Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Minnesota Lynx's dominance ended Saturday with a narrow loss to the league's top team — the Aces — in a potential Finals preview.
- The Aces have emerged as the clear favorite, led by dominant two-time MVP A'ja Wilson and a supporting cast that makes them nearly unstoppable.
- The Los Angeles Sparks' recent winning streak has them climbing into playoff position, but their reliance on one star's scoring could be a major hurdle.
The Minnesota Lynx's run atop the power rankings has come to a close. The team had the league's best record despite not having Napheesa Collier yet this season, but Saturday saw them come up just short against the Aces, losing 100-97 in what could wind up being a Finals preview.
You can probably guess from that last paragraph what the top two spots in this week's WNBA power rankings look like, but how about the rest of the rankings?
WNBA Power Rankings, Week 6
Position | Team | Record | Last Week |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Las Vegas Aces | 10-3 | 2 |
2 | Minnesota Lynx | 10-3 | 1 |
3 | New York Liberty | 10-4 | 5 |
4 | Atlanta Dream | 9-4 | 3 |
5 | Golden State Valkyries | 8-5 | 6 |
6 | Indiana Fever | 8-5 | 8 |
7 | Dallas Wings | 8-5 | 4 |
8 | Los Angeles Sparks | 7-6 | 9 |
9 | Portland Fire | 7-8 | 10 |
10 | Toronto Tempo | 7-7 | 7 |
11 | Washington Mystics | 5-7 | 12 |
12 | Phoenix Mercury | 4-11 | 11 |
13 | Chicago Sky | 4-9 | 13 |
14 | Seattle Storm | 3-12 | 14 |
15 | Connecticut Sun | 2-13 | 15 |
The Aces reminded us they're still the favorites
Even with Stephanie Talbot giving them zero points from a starting spot and Jewell Loyd shooting under 40 percent once again, the Las Vegas Aces found a way on Saturday, beating the Minnesota Lynx 100-97 behind a combined 47 points from A'ja Wilson and Chelsea Gray.
This is the league's best team. No one has a player as good as Wilson, and no one has a supporting cast as good as the Gray and Jackie Young duo. Add in that NaLyssa Smith has been reborn as an efficient rim-runner in Vegas, and you get a team that's about as close to unstoppable as they come.
Yes, the Lynx will pose a threat, especially if the team gets Collier back by the second half of the season. Yes, the Liberty might arguably have more high-end players, though the fit there remains weird enough to stand as a mark against the team's title hopes. And yes, Atlanta's pretty good too. But when it comes down to it, the Aces are the true favorites.
The Sparks have figured it out
The Los Angeles Sparks have the talent to be a playoff team, but early in the season, something seemed off. Disjointed. But after winning three consecutive games and moving into the No. 8 seed, it's time to wonder if Los Angeles has figured things out.
Last time out, the team wound up in a shootout against the Mercury, with Kelsey Plum piling on the points. She scored 43 of them to lead the way, while Rae Burrell added 24 points and Nneka Ogwumike scored 15.
There's one issue that still needs to be settled, though: Can the Sparks win a game like this if Plum doesn't have an elite scoring night like this? The Sparks have scored 100-plus points twice; Plum had 38 the first time and 43 this time. It does seem like if a game becomes a shootout, Plum kind of has to go nuclear, so that's a worry. Unless, of course, she just keeps doing this every time she needs to do it.
Seattle might be the league's worst team
Yes, the Connecticut Sun are a game back of the Storm in the battle for the league's worst record, but Seattle's eight-game losing streak is strong evidence that this team is just not good.
Yes, two of Seattle's three wins are against the Sun, which is a definite mark in the "okay, Seattle really is better than Connecticut" direction, which is why the Sun still come in last in these power rankings, but it's close, and Seattle having decent expectations coming into the year makes it feel worse.
Yes, the team lost Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins in free agency, and yes, Ezi Magbegor has yet to play a game. But this is a roster with some good pieces that should theoretically be something like the 11th-best team in the league, not a complete cellar dweller. Domique Malonga hasn't been quite as good as she needs to be (though she did miss some time with injury) and Awa Fam doesn't look as ready as you might like. Add in Flau'jae Johnson's complete lack of efficiency and...yeah, it's hard to see this team turning things around soon.
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