Liberty Edge Aces in Latest WNBA Power Rankings
The top spot in the WNBA Power Rankings is up for grabs! That's because the New York Liberty have the best record in the league but they were beaten not only by the Indiana Fever, but in the Commissioner's Cup by the Minnesota Lynx. While the back-to-back champion Las Vegas Aces have started to surge. Here's how the league stacks up at this moment.
1. New York Liberty
The Liberty narrowly hold on to the top spot off the strength of a tight win against the Connecticut Sun. That game featured a huge block from Breanna Stewart and a huge bucket by Sabrina Ionescu down the stretch. New York was also able to get revenge on the Lynx for the Commissioner's Cup loss, so even though they didn't win the high profile matchup with the Indiana Fever, they remain in first place.
2. Las Vegas Aces
The Aces may be coming for the top spot sooner rather than later. Las Vegas has won eight of nine games and A'ja Wilson is dominating. Not to mention they got star guard Chelsea Gray back in the lineup. However, a loss to the Los Angeles Sparks and the Liberty winning the most recent meeting between the two teams keeps the champs in second place, for now.
3. Minnesota Lynx
The Lynx have struggled a bit since the big Commissioner's Cup win over the Liberty. However, some of that can be forgiven given it was with their best player Napheesa Collier out of the lineup as she deals with plantar fasciitis. Minnesota did win its last two contests, so perhaps the squad is back on track with its star on the way back.
4. Connecticut Sun
The Sun have had a very strong season thus far. But they are penalized just a bit in the rankings because they have dropped many of the head-to-head showdowns against the other top teams in the W. Connecticut has fallen to New York twice, Las Vegas, and against the Seattle Storm keeping them a little lower than their record shows.
5. Seattle Storm
The Storm have lost two of three games, though one came against the Aces. Seattle bounced back getting revenge against the Chicago Sky and also have a recent win over the Sun. The squad is certainly not lacking for scoring between the trio of Jewell Loyd, Nneka Ogwumike, and Skylar Diggins-Smith.
6. Phoenix Mercury
The Mercury have bounced back nicely after a couple of losses and that's with Diana Taurasi missing time. Brittney Griner being back has helped greatly given her presence alongside Kahleah Copper and Natasha Cloud makes Phoenix a formidable threat.
7. Indiana Fever
The Fever were threatening to rise higher in the rankings before the loss to the Washington Mystics. Still, Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston and company are 6-4 over the last 10 games and have developed a potent transition offense that is sure to be noticed by opposing teams.
8. Chicago Sky
The positioning between the Fever and the Chicago Sky is basically a toss up. The Sky had an impressive win over the Storm recently and the trio of Chennedy Carter, Kamilla Cardoso, and Angel Reese should have them positioned well going forward.
9. Washington Mystics
This spot is actually quite a come up for the Mystics given Washington started the season 0-12. But they are .500 over the last 10, including the big win over the Fever.
10. Los Angeles Sparks
The Sparks suffered a toss loss losing rookie Cameron Brink for the season but they fought for a big overtime win over the Aces last week, which gives them the edge over the other squads at the bottom of the standings.
11. Atlanta Dream
The Atlanta Dream miss Rhyne Howard badly. The team has sputtered since she suffered an ankle injury, though Tina Charles did recently become the third all-time leading scorer in WNBA history.
12. Dallas Wings
Arike Ogunbowale has not been able to elevate the Dallas Wings on her own. Dallas recently lost 11 games in a row and has now dropped five out of six since snapping the skid.
ROBIN LUNDBERG
Robin Lundberg is a media veteran and hoops head who has spent the bulk of his career with iconic brands like Sports Illustrated and ESPN. His insights have also been featured on platforms such as Fox and CNN and he can currently be heard hosting shows for Sirius XM and on his burgeoning YouTube show. And now he brings his basketball expertise to Women's Fastbreak on SI!