With options expiration on Friday we got a volume spike which took some of the sting out of NASDAQ and S&P 500 losses—the latter to a lesser degree. In the case of the S&P, Friday's 'spinning top' candlestick marked a neutral finish, but it occurred bang on resistance, which, after a rally, is not the best candlestick to see. This could go either way.
The NASDAQ took the largest loss on Friday, but it had already recovered resistance, so Friday's down day wasn't enough to break what is now support. However, there is still the September high of 15,403 to challenge, and if there is a break of support it will only go on to attract more sellers.
This is where the Russell 2000 (via IWM) comes in. As we all know, it has done little but push sideways since the start of the year, but over the last few months it has managed to create a launch pad for a potential resistance break of $227.50 (IWM). If it can manage this, then I don't expect June resistance around $233 to be much of a challenge. Technicals are improving, and soon there will be a relative performance gain to peer indices. If it does break out then I would expect a good run from this.
For this coming week, keep an eye on the Russell 2000. Other indices aren't hogging the limelight and it's primed to benefit.