The New York Liberty are no doubt tired of being reminded that they are an original WNBA franchise that hasn't won a league title. But that heartbreaking history is part of what makes the excitement for this season so palpable for Liberty loyalists. This could be the year.
Even oddsmakers are getting behind the Liberty, who remain No. 1 in ESPN's WNBA Power Rankings. On Sunday, ESPN BET listed the Liberty as +155 favorites to win the title.
The two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces are a +160 underdog, not far off. But it is the first time in two years (since August 11, 2022) that Las Vegas has not been the betting favorite to win the WNBA championship.
Last season, the Aces beat the Liberty 3-1 in the WNBA Finals after defeating Connecticut 3-1 in the 2022 Finals. But New York’s streak this season shows no signs of letting up. The Liberty have defeated the Aces in both regular-season matchups (79-67 on Saturday and 90-82 on June 15, both in Las Vegas), and there is one more matchup scheduled for Sept. 8 in Brooklyn.
Just four days after New York stars Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu won Olympic gold medals with Team USA, New York played its first game after the Paris Games and crushed Los Angeles 103-68 on the road on Thursday. With Saturday's win, the Liberty became the first team this season to clinch a spot in the WNBA playoffs.
New York has 13 games remaining, including seven against teams not currently in playoff position.
On Saturday, Ionescu was asked if clinching a playoff berth with a win over the two-time champion Aces made it more special, and she said no. Right now, the Liberty aren't motivated by what any other team is doing or not doing, but just by reaching their potential, which might be the best they've ever had.
“We're really excited to secure a playoff spot,” Ionescu said. “Our goal is not just to get there, but to keep winning these games ahead of us and keep improving as a team. We're back in the game.” [after the Olympic break]”But it's good to see that we've been able to pick up where we left off and keep moving forward.”
Previous rankings: Preseason | May 20 | May 27 | June 3 | June 10 | June 17 | June 24 | July 1 | July 8 | July 15
Previous classification: 1
This week: vs. DAL (August 20), vs. DAL (August 22), vs. CON (August 24)
Because of a scheduling conflict, the Liberty have yet to face Dallas, and the first of four games between the teams is Tuesday. They are on opposite ends of the spectrum: New York leads the WNBA in net rating (+13.1), while Dallas is last (-10.1). But the Liberty have been solid and have put in the same effort no matter who they play. All three of New York’s games this week are in Brooklyn, where the Liberty have a 12-1 record in 2024.
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Sabrina Ionescu scores 23 points as Liberty beats Aces to clinch playoff spot
Sabrina Ionescu scored 23 points in Liberty's playoff-clinching win over the Aces.
Previous classification: 6
This week: @LV (August 21), vs. LV (August 23), vs. IND (August 24)
The Lynx, dealing with an injury to star Napheesa Collier, fell to No. 6 in our previous Power Rankings on July 15. Since then, they won their last game before the Olympic break (against Atlanta) and their first two after (both against Washington) and have climbed back up. Collier, who was dealing with plantar fasciitis, played well and won gold in Paris. Now she and Team USA coach Cheryl Reeve are again focused on Minnesota, with a big week ahead against the Aces and Fever. After that, the Lynx have seven of their last 10 games on the road, where they are 7-5 this season.
Former: 3
This week: vs. MIN (August 21), @ MIN (August 23), @ CHI (August 25)
The Aces have been unable to beat the Liberty this season. But since their first loss to New York, which dropped them to 6-6 in mid-June, they are 11-3. A'ja Wilson continues to put up video game-worthy stats, including 58 points, 24 rebounds, 8 steals and 5 blocks in the loss to New York and the win over Los Angeles last week. The Aces are in fourth place in the WNBA standings. Can they crack the top three?
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A'ja Wilson scores 34 points in Aces' win
A'ja Wilson leads the Aces to a comfortable victory with 34 points and 13 rebounds against the Sparks.
Previous classification: 2
This week: vs LA (Aug 20), vs CHI (Aug 23), @ NY (Aug 24)
The Sun welcomed back point guard Marina Mabrey, acquired via trade with Chicago just before the Olympic break, when they beat Dallas but fell to Atlanta last week. Mabrey had 28 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists in the two games. She should be a key asset for the Sun, who are second in the WNBA standings, as they look to cement their playoff berth in the coming weeks.
Previous classification: 5
This week: @MIN (August 24)
The Fever won both of their games last week in different ways: outscoring Phoenix in a 98-89 victory and then playing one of their best defensive games, including hitting 15 3-pointers, to beat Seattle 92-75. Caitlin Clark broke the rookie season assists record, tallying 19 assists over the two games, which was a big highlight. But so was her scoring along with teammate Kelsey Mitchell’s (they had a combined 107 points) and Aliyah Boston’s rebounding (24 combined), plus her career-high 8 assists on Sunday. With 13 wins, Indiana has matched the most wins it has had in any of the past seven seasons, with 12 games to play.
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Caitlin Clark scores 23 points and breaks rookie assists record in win over Fever
Caitlin Clark scores 23 points and breaks the rookie assists record as the Fever beat the Storm 92-75.
Previous classification: 7
This week: @ATL (August 21), @ATL (August 23)
The Mercury picked up two wins against Chicago and fell to Indiana in their first week back from the break. Olympic gold medalists Kahleah Copper, Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner all made key contributions. Phoenix also got some much-needed help at small forward, signing Monique Billings to a seven-day contract after Dallas had to release her from a hardship contract. Billings had 13 points, eight rebounds and two steals Sunday in her first game with the Mercury.
Previous classification: 4
This week: @WAS (August 20)
It was a rough week for the Storm, who lost at Atlanta and Indiana. In both games, Seattle was rebounded by double digits and didn't get much help from the bench. Seattle stays in the Eastern Time Zone for its only game this week and looks to get back on track before finishing August with three straight home games.
Previous classification: 12
This week: vs. PHO (August 21), vs. PHO (August 23)
No team needed a fresh start more than the Dream, who lost eight straight and 11 of 12 before the Olympic break. They have made the most of the season's resumption. The return of guard Jordin Canada, limited to four games by injuries in the early part of the season, helped lead Atlanta to home wins over Seattle and Connecticut last week. In all, she had 29 points, 8 rebounds, 14 assists and 9 steals. The Dream are not in playoff position yet, but they are getting closer.
1:25
Tina Charles' last-second basket caps Storm-Dream's crazy finale
Jewell Loyd hit a game-tying 3-pointer with 4.6 seconds left, then Tina Charles hit a friendly layup to win it for the Dream.
Previous classification: 8
This week: @ CON (August 23), vs. LV (August 25)
The Dream remain in eighth place in the standings, but last week they had a 1-2 record, with both losses to Phoenix by similar scores: 85-65 and 86-68. Although Chicago scored 90 points in beating Los Angeles, the Dream have to worry about their offense. They have the third-lowest scoring average (78.7 points per game) in the WNBA. However, Angel Reese continues her quest for a double-double, now with 20.
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Angel Reese makes history with a 19-point, 20-rebound performance
Sky rookie Angel Reese becomes the fastest player in WNBA history to reach 20 double-doubles in a season with a 19-point, 20-rebound performance against the Mercury.
Previous classification: 9
This week: against SEA (August 20), against LA (August 23)
Three starters are back — Shakira Austin, Brittney Sykes and Karlie Samuelson — but it remains to be seen whether this injury-plagued team can stay healthy game after game. That's been a big challenge for Washington, which looked competitive at times last week but still lost twice to Minnesota. The goal for the Mystics for the rest of the season is to see growth from the young players and perhaps pull off an upset or two that will affect the teams that make the playoffs.
Previous classification: 11
This week: @ NY (August 20), @ NY (August 22), vs. LA (August 25)
Dallas' Satou Sabally, Maddy Siegrist and Jaelyn Brown were all medically cleared to join the roster. But that meant parting ways with difficult signings like Odyssey Sims, who left for Los Angeles, and Monique Billings, who went to Phoenix. Sabally looked good in her first game of the season, posting 20 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists. But that was in a 109-91 loss to Connecticut, a game that highlighted the Wings' defensive deficiencies. Like the Mystics, Dallas figures to be in spoiler mode the rest of the way after a semifinal appearance last year.
Previous classification: 10
This week: @CON (August 20), @WAS (August 23), @DAL (August 25)
Sims, a former Sparks player, found herself back in Los Angeles. But there's not much she can do for an L.A. team that lost its first three games after the break — to New York, Chicago and Las Vegas. The Sparks can take satisfaction from the progress of rookie Rickea Jackson (she's scored in double figures in nine of her last 10 games), but not much else, as they project to miss the playoffs for a fourth straight season.
