The WNBA regular season is nearing a wild conclusion. The playoffs are drawing near and the race is much tighter than it appears.
The Minnesota Lynx are still well ahead and have even taken back-to-back losses for the first time all season but have yet to lose 10 games total. The second seed, however, is still up for grabs. A recent run by the Atlanta Dream gives them the edge, but the Las Vegas Aces and reigning champion New York Liberty are within touching distance.
With the race for the postseason as backdrop, let’s see where teams fall on this week’s power rankings.
13. Dallas Wings
Last: 9 | Upcoming: SEA (8/22), GSV (8/24), CON (8/27)
Paige Bueckers probably ended the race for Rookie of the Year with her 44-point master class against the Los Angeles Sparks. She went 17-for-21 from the floor, including 4-for-4 from deep. She’s shattered records all season, like the rookie scoring record, but her personal highlights haven’t equated to team success.
To make things even more painful, breakout center Li Yueru will miss the remainder of the season with an ACL sprain. Arike Ogunbowale is also sidelined with right knee tendinitis.
12. Chicago Sky
Last: 13 | Upcoming: CON (8/23), LVA (8/25), PHX (8/28)
Angel Reese returned to the lineup for the Chicago Sky for the first time since July 29 against Seattle. Her presence immediately added an extra scoring punch, and though they fell to Seattle in her return, she came back even sharper against the reigning champion Liberty. During that matchup, Reese put up a 21-10 double-double in a massive upset victory.
11. Washington Mystics
Last: 11 | Upcoming: LVA (8/23), SEA (8/24), NYL (8/28)
The Mystics are quickly sliding out of the playoff race. They followed a two-game win streak with back-to-back losses to the Connecticut Sun, who had lost 13 games on the road at that point.
Hope isn’t completely lost, though. The Mystics have all the young talent in the world and can make the battle for the eight seed even more competitive if they can make a late-season push.
10. Connecticut Sun
Last: 12 | Upcoming: CHI (8/23), NYL (8/25), DAL (8/27)
Connecticut’s consecutive victories over the Washington Mystics marked the first time the Sun have won back-to-back games all season. Tina Charles continues to showcase her legendary skills night after night, even on a rebuilding team. Her 21-point effort led the way on the second game against Washington in which she was one of two players on the team to score in double figures.
9. Indiana Fever
Last: 8 | Upcoming: MIN (8/22), MIN (8/24), SEA (8/26), LAS (8/29)
The Indiana Fever may be the unluckiest team in the league.
They were already down three pivotal players in Caitlin Clark, Syd Colson and Aari McDonald when Sophie Cunningham suffered a season-ending injury in the loss to Connecticut. Kelsey Mitchell continues to showcase why several WNBA players called her the hardest player to guard, but the sheer amount of absences has been a massive loss for Indiana.
8. Seattle Storm
Last: 10 | Upcoming: DAL (8/22), WAS (8/24), IND (8/26), MIN (8/28)
Seattle straightened course a bit recently after a long skid sent them careening down the standings. They lost narrowly to Phoenix and bounced back with a win against Chicago. The Storm are still in control of the eighth playoff spot, but they cannot afford to lose multiple games again with the race so tight.
7. Golden State Valkyries
Last: 4 | Upcoming: PHX (8/22), DAL (8/24)
Golden State’s resilience must be applauded. The expansion team exceeded all expectations and has battled its way into the playoff race in its inaugural season, but this week was a setback. After a four-game winning streak, the Valkyries dropped back-to-back games to two of the league’s elite squads, Atlanta and Phoenix. Despite the losses, Golden State’s hard-nosed team has still impressed. Veronica Burton once again looks like one of the most improved players in the league after dropping 21 points in a close loss to the Mercury.
6. Los Angeles Sparks
Last: 5 | Upcoming: PHX (8/26), IND (8/29)
The high-scoring L.A. Sparks are mounting their comeback. Kelsey Plum has been leading the way, and her game-winning bucket against the Wings broke the Sparks’ record for most points in a single season. Plum isn’t the only player making a major impact, though. Rickea Jackson and Azura Stevens have made strides, with the Sparks going 8-0 when Jackson scores more than 20 points.
5. Phoenix Mercury
Last: 7 | Upcoming: GSV (8/22), LAS (8/26), CHI (8/28)
The heat wave isn’t over yet. Phoenix has stamped itself as one of the league’s elite teams.
Alyssa Thomas has made a solid case for herself as one of the MVP front-runners with her triple-double feats, which is a feat on a team with multiple other All-Stars and All-Star-caliber players. Satou Sabally, Kahleah Copper, DeWanna Bonner and Natasha Mack join Thomas for one of the most elite scoring lineups in the WNBA.
4. Minnesota Lynx
Last: 1 | Upcoming: IND (8/22), IND (8/24), SEA (8/28)
Minnesota would love to have Napheesa Collier back at some point soon. Collier has been on the bench with an injury for more than a month, but the Lynx have kept riding high.
As the season nears a close, though, the Lynx have lost back-to-back games for the first time all season and to high-level opponents in the reigning champion New York Liberty and the rising Atlanta Dream. Will those defeats become a trend? Or were they just an understandable stumble?
3. New York Liberty
Last: 6 | Upcoming: ATL (8/23), CON (8/25), WAS (8/28)
New York and Minnesota went blow-for-blow in their latest matchups, with the teams splitting a pair of games. New York followed up a double-digit victory against the number one team in the league with a loss to the Chicago Sky, a team battling through an injury-filled season.
2. Atlanta Dream
Last: 2 | Upcoming: NYL (8/23), LVA (8/27), DAL (8/29)
Atlanta might need to be on more people’s radar as a sleeper Finals team. They went down to the wire with the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx and pulled out a tight victory. Allisha Gray has been playing at an MVP level all season and her adaptation to coach Karl Smesko’s system has made her one of the most formidable players on both sides of the floor.
1. Las Vegas Aces
Last: 3 | Upcoming: WAS (8/23), CHI (8/25), ATL (8/27)
Despite a shaky start to the season, the Aces never folded. Vegas has fought its way to a nine-game win streak and are now second in the standings. The former back-to-back champions are clicking just at the right time as the regular season nears its close.
A’ja Wilson is making her case for another MVP trophy as the only player in the WNBA in the top three in points, rebounds, steals and blocks. Wilson has been on fire of late, notching back-to-back-to-back 30-point double-doubles during the streak.
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