WNBA Power Rankings

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Sep 11, 2009

WNBA Power Rankings

Phoenix Mercury

The Mercury's matchup against the Lynx last Saturday featured plenty of crowd-pleasing moments. One of the loudest came right before tipoff when it was announced that Seattle had lost to Minnesota, allowing for Phoenix to secure the West's top seed with a win. The Mercury revved up their fans' excitement with a 100-82 victory, but they aren't resting on their laurels. "We can't rest," said Cappie Pondexter (pictured). "We're not a great team. We didn't win anything yet." Coming up: 9/10 at Seattle; 9/13 vs. Los Angeles

Indiana Fever

If Katie Douglas (pictured) wasn't at the top of your MVP list already, she should after the Fever's last four-game stretch. After Douglas sprained her left ankle in loss to Sacramento last Saturday, Indiana dropped games against Phoenix (106-90) and at Detroit (70-63). When she came back, the Fever bounced back with victories over the Mystics (72-61) and Liberty (69-63) to put Indiana a step closer to clinching home court advantage throughout the playoffs. Coming up: 9/10 at Chicago; 9/13 at Connecticut

Atlanta Dream

Angel McCoughtry (pictured) clinched her second straight rookie of the month nod last week. In 10 games she placed among the league's top 10 in scoring (17.3 ppg), led all rookies in steals (3.4 spg) and ranked third in rebounds (3.4 rpg) and assists (2.4 apg). More impressively, she has helped Atlanta to wins in six of its last 10 games. That run vaulted the Dream into second place in the East and has them on the verge of securing its first postseason berth in franchise history. Coming up: 9/11 vs. Connecticut; 9/12 at Washington

Seattle Storm

Two weeks ago the Storm seemed unstoppable, but a rash of recent player losses has slowed its momentum. After Lauren Jackson was sidelined indefinitely with a stress fracture in her lower back, the Storm lost Sue Bird to a bad neck and then Swin Cash, who took a two-game leave from the team for the death of her grandmother. Those absentees, along with Katie Gearlds, who's been out the last month with a bum knee, have left the playoff-bound Storm with just seven active players and plenty of concerns heading into the postseason. Coming up: 9/10 vs. Phoenix; 9/12 at San Antonio

Los Angeles Sparks

To be certain, 2009 has mostly been a mediocre season for the Sparks, but at least they can take comfort in the fact that their year isn't over yet. After Los Angeles posted consecutive losses to Atlanta (84-79) and at San Antonio (89-72), the Sparks rebounded to beat the Silver Stars, 76-68, Tuesday to secure a playoff berth. Still, said coach Michael Cooper, "Our job is not done." Coming up: 9/11 vs. Minnesota; 9/13 at Phoenix

Detroit Shock

All season long the Shock has showed the heart of a champion. They didn't give up after losing their coach at the start of their season, nor did they pack it in as key players cycled in and out of the lineup with various ailments. Now thanks to their resolve, and victories in seven of their last 10 games, the Shock is once again in the postseason conversation and in position to defend their WNBA title. "I think that this is great for us," said Deanna Nolan (pictured), who was named the East's player of the week for the second straight time. "Everyone has spent the season thinking we are down and out, but we're still alive." Coming up: 9/10 vs. New York; 9/12 at Chicago

Chicago Sky

Tiebreakers over the Mystics and Sun have given the Sky the inside track on the East's final playoff spot. Whether they can hold on to their advantage will depend on All-Star center Sylvia Fowles (pictured). After missing five games with an ankle injury, Fowles made a surprise return to the lineup for Chicago's game against the Mystics last Friday, notching 13 points, four rebounds and two blocked shots off the bench. "She is just so dominant offensively and defensively [with her] shot-blocking ability and her presence on the inside," Mystics' Crystal Langhorne said. Coming up: 9/10 vs. Indiana; 9/12 vs. Detroit

San Antonio Silver Stars

On Monday, Vickie Johnson (pictured) received the first conference player of the week nod of her 13-year career, which will end with her retirement after this season. She averaged 22.0 points on a league-leading 76.0 percent shooting, 3.5 assist, and 3.5 rebounds in victories over Minnesota (84-82) and Los Angeles (89-72) to keep the Silver Stars ahead of the Lynx for the fourth and final playoff spot in the West. "She still has those little bursts of energy," Becky Hammon said of Johnson. "You can still throw the ball up (the floor) to her and you know she's going to turn the jets on and go underneath and get it." Coming up: 9/10 at Sacramento; 9/12 vs. Seattle

Washington Mystics

The Mystics' stretch run got off to a promising start with a 78-67 victory over the Storm last Thursday. But after road defeats in Chicago (92-86) and Indiana (72-61), Washington's prospects of breaking out of its East logjam with the Sun and Sky for the final playoff spot got tougher. If the postseason were to start today, Chicago would get in based on its better winning percentage against the other two. Washington needs to win out and Chicago to stumble to give themselves a chance. Coming up: 9/12 vs. Atlanta; 9/13 at New York

Connecticut Sun

The Sun has battled valiantly through injuries and various player absences to stay in a three-way tie for the East's final playoff spot with the Mystics (which holds an advantage over them) and the Sky, which holds advantages over both teams. Connecticut helped keep its hopes alive with an 88-85 overtime victory over New York last Friday night. The win snapped a five-game losing streak and served notice that the Sun refuses to fade. "Nothing about this team surprises me anymore," coach Mike Thibault said. Coming up: 9/11 at Atlanta; 9/13 vs. Indiana

Minnesota Lynx

You could argue that -- between their coach bailing on them just before the season and their best player going down for the season with a blown knee -- that no team has had to overcome more this season than the Lynx. And yet here they are, tied with San Antonio for the fourth and final playoff spot in the West thanks to victories against Seattle (76-68) and Detroit (75-72). (If the postseason started, the Silver Stars would get in based on their better head-to-head record against the Lynx.) "I love the way this team handled adversity," Lynx coach Jennifer Gillom said. Coming up: 9/11 at Los Angeles; 9/13 at Sacramento

New York Liberty

To say that Anne Donovan's interim stint as coach hasn't gone exactly as planned would be an understatement. Since taking over on July 31, Donovan has led the Liberty to a 6-9 record -- or nearly the same record that Pat Coyle had led the team to before she was fired. Given that -- and the fact a recent three-game slide that would effectively eliminated the Liberty from postseason contention -- maybe this team needs to stop heaping the blame for its dismal play on the coaching staff and turn a more critical eye toward management, in particular general manager Carol Blazejowski. Coming up: 9/10 at Detroit; 9/13 vs. Washington

Sacramento Monarchs

Rookie Courtney Paris (pictured) has mostly underwhelmed on the court. A season after setting an NCAA record for the longest double-double streak, she is averaging a paltry 4.8 points and 3.8 rebounds for the listless Monarchs. Still, she continues to make an impact off of the court. On Thursday, the California product earned the league's community assist award for the month of August for her work in and around Sacramento. "As a child, I was a member of the Boys & Girls Club," she said, "and that experience, along with other similar community experiences, really helped me to become the woman I am today." Coming up: 9/10 vs. San Antonio; 9/13 vs. Minnesota