Ranking Sparks' Biggest WNBA Rivals

As the revamped Los Angeles Sparks look to return to the postseason for the first time since 2020, it feels like there's no better time than now to revisit the club's top rivalries among its fellow WNBA franchises.

Several of the key squads L.A. has battled since 1997 have since folded. Those teams will not be included in this appraisal.

1. Minnesota Lynx

The Lynx and Sparks boasted a rivalry so fierce, evenly matched and fun that multiple pundits proclaimed their various postseason matchups to number among the all-time best, from ESPN's Ramona Shelburne to Brian Martin of WNBA.com to Matt Ellentuck and Kristian Winfield of SB Nation.

Led by Nneka Ogwuike, Candace Parker and Chelsea Gray, the Sparks faced the Maya Moore/Sylvia Fowles-era Lynx in two straight WNBA Finals, circa 2016 and 2017. After winning in '16, Los Angeles pushed Minnesota to five games (in the best-of-five series) before losing in '17.

In a 2018 first round single-game elimination encounter, the Sparks downed the Lynx 75-68, as a bit of vengeance for their Finals lost the year before.

DOWN GO THE CHAMPS!

Sparks: 75
Lynx: 68#GoSparks #All4LA #DefendLA #WNBAPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/eEvA8IVRPF
— Los Angeles Sparks (@LASparks) August 22, 2018

The modern Lynx don't have the same history with this reconfigured Sparks lineup. Four-time All-Star forward Napheesa Collier, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, and four-time All-Star guard Kayla McBride are Minnesota's current best players, and the Lynx look like a formidable squad again thanks to 30-10 finish and run to

2. Las Vegas Aces

Were it not for the history between Los Angeles and Minnesota, the Aces would be the No. 1 villains in team history.

Still, thanks to their relationship with Sparks All-Stars Dearica Hamby and Kelsey Plum, the Aces are a solid No. 2.

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Hamby has a justifiable grievance with Las Vegas, who traded her away after she (and Plum) won a championship with the club in 2022.

Getting closer to Vegas vs. Sparks.

This matchup comes on the heels of Dearica Hamby’s federal lawsuit against the Aces and the WNBA.

Will thread some pregame stuff below ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/C13w0aJDv8
— Callie Fin (@CallieJLaw) August 18, 2024

In August 2024, Hamby filed a federal lawsuit against the Aces, alleging that Las Vegas traded her out of town after she revealed she was pregnant, following her agreement to sign a contract extension with the franchise, per Rachel Treisman of NPR.org.

“Defendant’s decision to trade [Hamby] was motivated by [Hamby’s] announcement that she was pregnant after signing her contract extension,” Hamby's representatives claimed in an 18-page complaint.

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Hall of Fame Las Vegas head coach Becky Hammon claimed that the club's decision to trade Hamby away was the result of "math and business," per Jill Martin of CNN.

“We made the decision to move Hamby because we could get three bodies in for her one contract,” Hammon told reporters. “[Her pregnancy] was never an issue, and it was never the reason she was traded. It just wasn’t.”

The WNBA didn't quite agree with that assessment, however. The league investigated Hamby's contention that she was discriminated against for being pregnant. The WNBA dinged Las Vegas its 2025 first-round draft pick for violating league policy “regarding impermissible player benefits” and suspended Hammon for two games “for violating league and team Respect in the Workplace policies.”

Plum, meanwhile, was dealt away this past offseason, despite being one of the loaded club's top players, in exchange for six-time All-Star and two-time champion Jewell Lloyd — a more decorated star at this point in their respective careers.

3. New York Liberty

The reigning WNBA champs are a top nemesis for every club with title aspirations, but they also have a special history with Los Angeles, as they were the final barrier to the Lisa Leslie-era club's repeat hopes in the 2002 WNBA Finals.

Last year, the Liberty won their first title, avenging a WNBA Finals defeat in 2023 to Plum's Aces. Led by two-time MVP power forward Breonna Stewart, 2021 MVP center Jonquel Jones, rising All-Star shooting guard Sabrina Ionescu, and likely future Hall of Fame point guard Courtney Vandersloot, New York went 32-8 in the regular season. They went on to sweep the Atlanta Dream in the first round, beat the Aces 3-1 in the second round, and crush the aforementioned Lynx 3-2.

The other two teams that the Sparks faced in the WNBA Finals, the Charlotte Sting (whom they defeated in 2001) and the Detroit Shock (who beat L.A. in 2003), are now defunct.

4. Indiana Fever

There wasn't much question that Iowa point guard Caitlin Clark was going to be the top pick during last spring's 2024 WNBA Draft.

But surely the Nos. 2 and 6 picks, Sparks forwards Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson, believed they deserved to be selected in that pole position.

Clark, Indiana's second consecutive No. 1 pick alongside fellow All-Star Aaliyah Boston, finished fourth in MVP voting and submitted one of the most prolific scoring and passing seasons in league history. Brink's rookie season was cut short by an ACL tear 15 games into the action, while Jackson impressed with a solid all-around game and joined Clark on the 2024 All-Rookie Team.

The Fever are seen as the young team of the future — but the Sparks, armed with Brink, Jackson and rookies Sarah Ashlee Barker, Sania Feagin and Liatu King, are hoping to have something to say about that.

More Los Angeles Sparks:

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Can Sparks Sophomores Cameron Brink, Rickea Jackson be All-Stars This Season?

Every Caitlin Clark Appearance vs Sparks in 2025 Season

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