With the WNBA regular season complete, the standings are set in stone. We know the faces, some more familiar than others. Each of the eight teams have punched their tickets to the dance, but only one can reign supreme. Here are their stories.
TIER ONE — CHAMPIONSHIP CIRCLE
1. Las Vegas Aces (31-13)
That’s it, Occam’s razor, enough said. The defending champs represent an almost boogeyman presence that teeters on a malevolent evil; dominating the basketball sphere with an iron grip. Champions in three of the last four seasons, the Aces put all notions against their dynasty to bed with a rather emphatic midseason turnaround that collected them, by far, their most impressive chip. Dead in the water by the All-Star break last year, the mismatched Aces could adjust to circumstances on the fly, and the team suffered mightily. The acquisition of Jewell Lloyd and Chelsea Gray’s return from injury mounted tension for pressure cooker, with Wilson struggling to hold it together. It finally exploded with a 53-point humiliation at the hands of the Lynx, the largest defeat in Aces franchise history.
Then they earned the two seed, and then they won the championship.
Just like that.
The Aces begin their ineluctable championship defense as the league’s number-three seed. While each year brings a different tempo, some things just never change. Whether dominating the league or treading water, the Aces are simply inevitable, almost akin to a prophetic doom. Somewhere, beyond the clouds, the basketball gods scribble their commandments, with the first one reading as follows:
Do not play A’ja Wilson and The Las Vegas Aces, just don’t.
2. Minnesota Lynx (33-11)
Cheryl Reeve’s championship factory isn’t to be situated anywhere lower than the second spot in whatever rankings float the internet webspace. After all, the league’s top seed has reasonable standing to claim the top spot given their considerable excellence over the field throughout the course of the season. Napheesa Collier’s games played are barely indicative of a player who was dealing with injury to start the year. Kayla McBride is having her second greatest scoring season, averaging 17.6 points on 41.2 percent from three point range. Courtney Williams is equal parts zany and artful. Natasha Howard and Nia Brodie provide connective defense, size, spacing, rebounding, and interior scoring.
Perched atop this unit is the rookie named Olivia, who is simply “Miles” ahead of the rest of her class. The most well-oiled machine in the league has shown that they can beat anybody, anywhere, and anytime. Five out, heavy pick-and-roll, screen actions; the Rolodex of the Lynx’ repertoire is vast, almost to a point of perfection. Beyond the actual hardwood, they carry with them an air of “this has to be their year” energy, with the team’s constant positioning at the precipice of hardware.
Be sure of this; 2024 is still DEEP in their psyche. That WNBA Finals loss to the New York Liberty festers like decaying flesh on the carcass of their passing window. And they’ve played as such, securing the one-seed for the second consecutive season. Cheryl Reeve has just become the all-time leader in regular season wins, reaching 380 all the way back in July. It is not far off to imagine that her vision, already kaleidoscoped with records and milestones, now dilates on a championship – which is the goal in every season, of course. But this season, with all their excellence, has to be it. It just has to.
TIER TWO — SLEEPING GIANTS
3. New York Liberty (26-18)
Daniel Handler could not have come up with the series of events that have occurred in Barclays Center throughout 2026.
Champions two years removed, the team’s complexion, outside of its three-headed dragon, is different than what most fans had both anticipated and were ready for.
Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart, and Jonquel Jones have gone through a coaching shift from Sandy Brondello to former Warriors assistant Chris DeMarco. Satou Sabally has been unavailable for most of the season. Add in the Betnijah Laney-Hamilton sized elephant that acted as an emotional overcast, and the Liberty seemed to continue the momentum of their rather disappointing 2025 season that ended in a first round exit against the Phoenix Mercury.
But a second half turnaround has instilled blissful amnesia about All the Wrong Questions that fans had surrounding this squad. The rotation finally found healthy legs towards the tail end of the season. A 12-4 start after the All-Star break refocused fans’ attention to the small voice in the back of their minds that, through thick and thin, kept whispering
Psst, this is maybe the most talented team in the association.
Player for player, it is a tall task to find a squad with both the top-end star-power, and the quality connective pieces like the squad that Jonathan Kolb has put together. Even with their occasionally disjointed play, having a roster that boasts three of the best players in the WNBA is a rare gift.
Counting in the steady Leonie Fiebich, impressive rookie Pauline Astier, and sweet-shooting Marine Johannes, the Liberty are simply too loaded to be closer to a first-round exit than another championship. Even considering their two-game trouncing at home at the hands of the Dream, the entire operation feels too good to fail. Between record and standing to actual playoff viability, the eighth-seeded Liberty are the most polarizing group of any playoff team.
4. Golden State Valkyries (32-12)
This expansion team hit the ground running. The Valkyries became the only expansion franchise in WNBA history to make the playoffs in their first season. Adding to their already incredible lore is the makeup of their roster; a “strength-in-numbers” unit that employs the league’s number-one ranked defense and flaunts a deep bench.
Despite the fact that they lack a traditional 20+ point per game scorer, they’ve effectively replaced that archetype in the aggregate, with Gabby Williams, Janelle Salaün, and Veronica Burton all averaging double figures in scoring. A well coached, disciplined pace-and-space team focused on heavy gap help and defensive versatility is every coach’s dream, and Natalie Nakase has turned that dream into a reality.
Situated as the number two seed, the Valkyries are the most tantalizing team in the entire postseason. They leave fans wondering if their lack of an alpha scorer glares larger than their holistic approach as games slow down and defenses get set.
Golden State’s x-factor-like feel may be the mold that shapes the entire playoff picture — for themselves and everyone else.
5. Indiana Fever
“Juice Ball,” as defined in the baseball bible, refers to the sporadic ever-so-frequent periods in Major League Baseball when offensive numbers, particularly home runs, surged dramatically. Whether it be the inception point of the late 90s going into the 2000s, or the modern iteration in the 2010s, there have been many speculative culprits as to why offense was through the roof.
What people didn’t want to admit, however, was that it was fun as hell.
The WNBA’s most prolific offense has that same kind of magnetism. It’s a scoring flair that turns out Gainbridge Fieldhouse at every one of their home games. The Indiana Fever’s less impressive defense plays second fiddle to a three-man ensemble of offensive geniuses that have Stephanie White’s team as the highest scoring offense around. Raw points (96), field goal percentage (48.7%), three point shooting splits (38.6%); the Fever have found the cure to simply outpacing defenses — offensive suffocation.
Points upon points, Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell, and Aliyah Boston fuel the Fever to a league-leading 115 points per 100 possessions. In a league where six current teams rank in the top ten for offensive rating in league history, the Fever have put forth the best figure, juicing their way to 28 wins in the season, so far.
Most impressively is the fact that each of their aforementioned hubs fit together as complements, rather than redundant cogs. Kelsey Mitchell, perhaps the fastest player in the league, is the pure scoring weapon of the three. Extraordinarily efficient, Mitchell is attempting 17 shots a game, yet her percentages have refused to drop. The All-WNBA guard is shooting 45% from deep on volume (6.8 3PA), which is a downright cartoonish figure considering her 24.7 points per game.
Aliyah Boston’s transformation as an outside shooter is just the cherry on top to her 16.1 point-per-game mark, and her 52.8% from the field legitimize her blossoming skillset.
The always-polarizing and always-amazing Caitlin Clark is the organizer, with her 8.3 assists and 44.1% assist rate exemplifying just how much she’s creating for others.
Creation, shooting/scoring, interior dominance and spacing; blended together in a perfect potpourri that has dismantled defense to their will. As the Fever begin their playoff journey, one question looms large: can the defense play just well enough to complement an other-worldly offense for three straight series?
If the answer is yes, the rest of the league better duck and take cover. Mustn’t they catch a cold, or better yet, a Fever.
6. Atlanta Dream
Ironically enough, the Dream’s placement on this list mimics the actual passover that they experience whenever discussing championship favorites. The psychological dilemma is indeed a conundrum — why do the Dream consistently get overlooked? There is no real reason to feel worse about Karl Smesko past the applied indifference they already received. Their record is backed by a fairly balanced statistical profile rather than being slanted into a particular phase of the game. Third in points per game (91.3), but simultaneously first in steals (9.1 SPG), the Dream are one of the few in the association to rank top five in both offense and defense.
Plus, this isn’t a circumstance such as Golden State — Atlanta actually has top end stars with real individual offensive gumption. Allisha Gray, who is playing the best basketball of her career, is averaging 19 on solid efficiency with a knack for scoring without monopolizing the ball. Rhyne Howard’s game has earned her regards as one of the game’s bright two-way stars. Jordin Canada’s 7.3 assists sets the table for the tandem to blossom in their preferred spots.
And of course, the spectacular Angel Reese has raised their ceiling offensively, providing double doubles night in and night out. The defense is complementary to the offense as well, with Atlanta recording a 103.5 defensive rating on the season. The Dream excel at putting pressure on the rim while creating more possessions through their defense. That two-way excellence has helped them soar to thirty wins for the second consecutive year.
Again, why do we underrate and disregard this team?
Perhaps it’s the mediocre three point shooting (32.5%). Or maybe it’s their relatively straightforward plan of attack. Perhaps their stability can be thwarted due to predictability, rather than a team more slanted in one direction (Golden State, Indiana). Maybe they just don’t project the championship glow as the other teams ranked above them. If so, it’s a shame, because they’re good. Really good. And maybe it’s just that; their excellent play sets an expectation, then a sense of neglect.
The Dream closed out their regular season with a two game victory lap in New York against the Liberty, and they’ll have the opportunity to present themselves as the ultimate sleeper pick to win it all as they enter the postseason as the firm four seed.
7. Dallas Wings (27 – 17)
Going from basement dwelling to clinching a spot in postseason basketball usually requires a long, thoughtful rebuild with careful planning and execution. For the Dallas Wings, they’ve learned to fly past their days of Chris Koclanes and missed postseasons in just one short season. Jose Fernandez and new additions Azzi Fudd, Alanna Smith and Jessica Shepard, made this team the best story of the season. With Paige Bueckers already one of the best players in the association, Dallas has a chance to make things extremely uncomfortable in the postseason for whoever stands opposite them, and they’ll have flexibility to do so.
Aside from Paige being Paige (21/4/6, 51% FG%), Arike Ogunbowale’s role has shifted from primary creator to secondary play finisher. She’s been able to reap the rewards of this change. While Ogunbowale’s scoring has dwindled, her efficiency has taken a step forward. This year, Ogunbowale posted a career best 54.3 True Shooting percentage.
Jessica Shepard broke into Dallas with the first triple double of the season, and regularly contributes hyper-efficient double-doubles. Losing Fudd to injury hurts, particularly as the youngster had found her stride in the three-guard lineups Dallas ran. Notching themselves in the top five of both rebounds and field goal percentage, the Wings command considerable respect as a team to make a statement in the playoffs just as they did in the regular season. The Wings have stayed hot, as they are winners of seven of their final eight games.
With Dallas nearly finishing the regular season off undefeated while clinching their first playoff berth since 2023, the Wings hope to translate that momentum into a shootout first round series, and maybe beyond that.
TIER FOUR — THE FUTURE (OR NOW?)
8. Washington Mystics (27 – 16)
Sometimes certain facts of life don’t make sense. Just as we are to ponder on the ancient pyramids or how water is in fact NOT wet, the Washington Mystics (euphemistically) fit into this category. It simply isn’t sensible that the youngest team in the W, with their low scoring output, lack of three point shooting and superstar scorer, can be in the position they are now.
Operative word being now.
Even with their playoff fortune, the collective WNBA eyes are not really expecting a deep run from the Mystics. What their success means, however, is that Washington has solved the geometry on creating a foundation that may very well be the league’s next great dynasty.
Yeah, I said it.
Matching the Toronto Tempo’s offer sheet for Shakira Austin was the downright steal of the offseason for Washington. Austin’s 17.2 points and 9.5 rebounds is the steady, veteran foundation that any locker room would want when fostering young, precocious talent.
And precocious talent they have in spades. Kiki Iriafen passes the eye test as a player who could claim the throne as the best power forward in the world, rebounder extraordinaire and all.
Sonia Citron’s second season in the league impresses far past the raw numbers, as the Notre Dame product has an offensive rating of 119. Coupled with her 16.8 points per game and 62.3% true shooting, Citron stands as the Mystics’ perimeter release valve.
Scariest about these three in particular is the fact that this year still represents the learning phase for them. Head coach Sydney Johnson has squeezed every ounce of production from his youngsters through stellar defense (104.8 defensive rating), league-leading rebounding (37.6 rebounds per game), and youthful feel that makes you salivate over what’s in store for them down the road.
What’s most important is that they keep that energy and remember; the world is theirs, and with a steadfast patience and simplified game-plan, the world is in fact their oyster.