The New York Liberty just did the unthinkable. Across WNBA history, an eighth-seeded team has never been responsible for kicking out the top-seeded squad. But last night, in Game 2 of the first round, the once-favorites to win it all — the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx — were swept by the No. 8 Liberty.
This has to make you think: could New York make more history and go all the way? This squad breathes through Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Sabrina Ionescu — all 2024 WNBA Champions. They've been here before, and we just saw them tap right back into that winning energy.
So, how unlikely is it that a last-ranked seed will go all the way? It's never happened in the WNBA before, and it's never really even been close. Here's a little history on the lowest seeds to go far in the WNBA playoffs.
No. 6 Chicago Sky (2021)
The 2021 Sky are the lowest seed to ever claim a WNBA title. This was back when the first round was single-elimination. They defeated the No. 7 Dallas Wings, advancing to the second round, which at the time was also a single-elimination game. They defeated the No. 3 Minnesota Lynx, advancing to the best-of-5 semifinals. In the semifinals, they took down the No. 1 Connecticut Sun, finding themselves in the WNBA Finals. The Finals were also a best-of-5 series — the Sky beat the No. 5 Phoenix Mercury in four games, claiming the 2021 title.
This team was led by Kahleah Copper, Candace Parker, Allie Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot. They did something that no other team in the W had ever done. In 2021, Parker returned home — making the run that much more special. She grew up in Missouri and after spending her first 13 years in the league with the Los Angeles Sparks, she signed with Chicago in 2021, immediately taking them to the promised land and winning her second title.
Other seeds to make it far
The history gets a little cloudy when you learn that from 1997 through 2016, the playoffs were split up by conference. There were two of each seed — technically, no team was lower than a No. 4 seed. This is a big reason we've never seen a true No. 8 seed take down a No. 1 seed.
Besides the 2021 Chicago Sky, no team lower than a No. 2 seed has ever won the WNBA championship. But that doesn't mean they were always the second-best team in the league, record-wise. For example, the 2012 Indiana Fever won the title as a No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference, but they held the fourth-best record in the league. In 2004, the Western Conference No. 2 seed Seattle Storm won the title. They had the fourth-best record in the league that year.
The Phoenix Mercury have a reputation for making it far in the playoffs as a low seed. Take last year, for example; they made it to the Finals as a No. 4 seed. In 2021, when the No. 6 Sky won the title, it was the No. 5 Mercury standing across from them in the Finals. In 2016, Phoenix made it to the semifinals as the eighth-best team in the league.
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