WNBA Wraparound: The Finals are set and there will be a new champion crowned this season

3 highlights from the WNBA this week:

The New York Liberty win Game 4 on the road: Road games are hard enough, but when you're the away team at the back-to-back champions' arena during an elimination game — you're the enemy. The Liberty came into Game 3 of the semifinals with the potential to sweep the defending champs, but the atmosphere proved to be too much. The Aces defended home court and pushed the series to another game, but the Liberty did not want to have to play another game in New York. They were on a mission and carried it out. Winning the series 3-1 and earning themselves extra days of rest and practice before the finals started, New York also ended the three-peat hopes of the Aces.

The Minnesota Lynx pull off the unpredictable: Coming into this season, the WNBA had ranked the Minnesota Lynx sixth on their preseason power rankings list. Despite the naysayers, the Lynx proved just about everyone wrong with their performance this season. They proved that chemistry is key when building a winning team and that ultimately defense will build offense. Coming into an evenly-matched semifinal series, the Lynx dropped the first game at home and had to recover. They won Game 2 and then got revenge with a Game 3 win in Connecticut. We all knew this series was going to 5 games, so it wasn't surprising when the Sun evened it up again, sending them back to Minny for Game 5. The Lynx yet again proved the haters wrong, winning Game 5 in dominant fashion and getting back to the WNBA finals.

A moment for the Las Vegas Aces and Connecticut Sun: Obviously we can't move on without a note about these two incredible teams. While Las Vegas had a tough season, there still was not too much doubt about their postseason potential. That all comes down to the talent they have, and the fact that A'ja Wilson had a record-breaking season all around. On the Connecticut Sun side, the excellence the Sun have been able to maintain over the past five years is impressive. While it never got them a title, unfortunately, they have consistently made it to the semifinals or finals. While both of these rosters will look different next season with free agency upon us, as well as the expansion shuffle, hopefully, they will be able to maintain the excellence they have sustained.

2 Games (1 series) to watch this week:

Finals Game 1: Thursday, Oct. 10, 8:00 p.m. ET (New York)

Finals Game 2: Sunday, Oct. 13, 3:00 p.m. ET (New York)

Well, it all comes down to this. The WNBA Finals tips off on Thursday, Oct. 10, and is shaping up to be a great series. While the New York Liberty reigned over the league as the number one seed this season, the only team they did not win the season series against was Minnesota. They also lost against the Lynx for the Commissioner's Cup in June.

It's a great match-up all around, with Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier leading their teams. Collier and Stewart are long-time friends, teammates, and now business partners as they launch their 3x3 league, Unrivaled, this winter. It will be fun to see them go head-to-head in a winner-take-all series. For Canadian fans, there's something for us too, as Bridget Carleton makes her WNBA Finals debut. The last time a Canadian made it to the WNBA Finals was 2021, but Kia Nurse could not play in the series for the Mercury after tearing her ACL in the semi-finals.

Both teams have a ton of chemistry, play elite on both sides of the ball, and are stacked with talent. There are a ton of Olympians in this series, as well as promising young talent. The New York Liberty are trying to win their first WNBA title in franchise history, while Minnesota would be the first team in league history to win five championships with a win. There is a ton to tune into this series, and it's going to be amazing hoops!

1 storyline to track in the WNBA this week: Who will step up as Finals MVP?

With the Finals comes a whole new set of awards to be handed out. Not only does the winning team get a trophy, but an MVP of this series will be chosen as well. 99 percent of the time, the Finals MVP is someone from the winning team, who has been the team's top performer this postseason but also in this series.

With the regular season M'VP now eliminated after the Las Vegas Aces lost in the semi-finals to New York, the race is wide open. On the Lynx side, it's hard to predict anyone else would grab that title other than Napheesa Collier, who has been the team's anchor all season. She came second in regular season MVP voting and has already broken multiple records this playoff season. Collier was the first WNBA player in league history to score 25+ points and 10+ rebounds in three straight playoff games.

On New York's side, there are a few contenders who could step up. Of course, there is Breanna Stewart, who won Finals MVP both times she won a championship with Seattle. She's been her own team's rock this playoff season, keeping them calm through the ups and downs. She is averaging 20 points per game in the postseason so far. Sabrina Ionescu has also been superb in the postseason, carrying the team to multiple wins with her defense, improved interior offense, and of course those killer 3-pointers. Jonquel Jones also has the potential and ability to step up for this team but will have to work on staying out of foul trouble in the finals.

It's set to be an exciting series on both sides kicking off this week!