WWE SmackDown: Burning Questions to Address After June 13 Show

From Charlotte Flair standing victorious over her foe to Shinsuke Nakamura clutching the Money in the Bank briefcase, Tuesday's WWE SmackDown offered a number of potential omens about how Sunday's pay-per-view will unfold.

Is Flair destined to keep winning? Is Nakamura going to repeat the closing moments of the latest SmackDown?

The go-home show ahead of Money in the Bank made it hard to distinguish precursors from smoke screens.

Questions also emerged on Tuesday night about John Cena and Jinder Mahal potentially crossing paths, the whereabouts of a pair of former tag team champs and whether Lana will be SmackDown's latest curveball. The following is a look at all of those unknowns, trying to clear it up before Money in the Bank arrives.

Will SmackDown Push Lana?

Lana is striding into the SmackDown Women's Championship scene with an unprecedented amount of inexperience. She has yet to wrestle on TV and has no victories to her name, but she will meet Naomi for the title at Money in the Bank.

On Tuesday, Lana made sure the champion took notice of her.

She distracted her during her match with Tamina. The Ravishing Russian then followed up by ambushing Naomi, busting out her apparent finisher in the process.

Could Lana actually win on Sunday? Could WWE buck conventional logic and let her first win be for the gold?

If Money in the Bank weren't a SmackDown-exclusive PPV, one might not even ask that question. But this is the brand where also-ran Mahal became WWE champ, comedy midcarders Breezango became No. 1 contenders and a complete unknown in James Ellsworth tangled with the top titleholder.

Anything can happen on SmackDown, and that's not just a tagline.

It's more than conceivable that Lana cheats her way to a victory that shocks the world. It would certainly spark discussion much as Mahal's win did at the last PPV.

Is Cena Coming for Mahal?

Cena is headed back to the blue brand on July 4 when he'll end his recent hiatus. The anti-American heel Mahal may be champion at that point should he get by Randy Orton at Money in the Bank.

The patriotic holiday, the foreign villain and the all-American Cena character all seem poised to converge. A Cena-Mahal matchup would be a classic WWE move. 

Justin LaBar of Upgruv is among those who believe that showdown is coming:

Cena is regularly in the world title picture. He'll be in need of a new rival.

It's his free-agent status, though, that makes the Mahal path less certain.

WWE has been billing him as a free agent, presumably as a means to get him on both Raw and SmackDown. If that's the case, perhaps he goes after the Universal Championship, challenges Roman Reigns at SummerSlam or is only a part-time presence on both brands.

Where Is American Alpha?

It's a question many have asked before, but why isn't American Alpha around at all?

The New Day is poised to challenge The Usos at Money in the Bank for the SmackDown tag team titles. Breezango is still producing Fashion Files segments. And The Colons have been agitators for the brand's babyface squads. 

Jason Jordan and Chad Gable, however, have been no-shows since April 25, per CageMatch.net.

American Alpha's complete absence has become a running joke. PWTorch writer Greg Parks mocked the fact that they weren't on TV once more:

SmackDown's two-hour format makes it tough to cram all its talent into each show, but American Alpha not getting a glimmer of spotlight has been baffling.

Jordan and Gable aren't injured. They've been working the house show circuit. SmackDown has just decided to make them the lowest of priorities of late.

That seems to be a case where WWE Creative doesn't have something for them so has decided to just cast them aside until that changes. That's something SmackDown has to remedy soon.

What Clues Did We Get About MITB?

Tuesday's SmackDown featured the entrants in the two upcoming Money in the Bank ladder matches collide in various matches. 

Sami Zayn got the pin for his team against Baron Corbin, Kevin Owens and Dolph Ziggler. Corbin beat up everybody, but Nakamura stood tall. Flair outlasted Natalya and then pointed up at the Money in the Bank briefcase.

How many of these images were instances of foreshadowing and which were mere teases?

Nakamura climbing a ladder and retrieving the Money in the Bank briefcase on Tuesday is too heavy-handed to be a sign of things to come. That felt like WWE trying to put the idea of him winning in the audience's mind in order to surprise everyone with another winner.

Flair's win likely doesn't mean much, either.

She's going to get title shots with or without the briefcase. Carmella and Becky Lynch are more likely to come away as the first-ever Ms. Money in the Bank.

Much of SmackDown was a display of sleight of hand, designed to get fans to falsely think Superstars like Flair and Nakamura are bound to win.