As the 2026 WNBA postseason approaches, I have a feeling that all eight playoff teams will hold their own and make it an interesting first round. Any team could go on to win it all, but some teams need to win more than others.
So instead of picking who is most likely to win, let’s rank the teams in order of who faces the most pressure to deliver a championship.
In the comments, let us know your rankings.
1. Minnesota Lynx (31-9, 1st place)
I would argue the Lynx have been the best team in the league since the 2024 playoffs began. They
finished the regular season in second place that year, but judging by how they stepped up in the playoffs I would say they became the best team. They outplayed the New York Liberty in the Finals and came one bad call short of the title.
Give credit to the Liberty for putting themselves in position to take advantage of the bad call. They still earned that championship, and nobody can take that away from them.
Meanwhile, the Lynx have, I think unfairly, developed a reputation as a team that fails to rise to the occasion in the postseason. As I mentioned in my recent article about MVPs, history only remembers the winner and not the details of how it came to be.
In 2025, there was more bad luck and controversy, as, late in a close Game 3 of the semifinals, the Phoenix Mercury’s Alyssa Thomas stole the ball from the No. 1-seed Lynx’s Napheesa Collier and took it the other way for an easy layup, after which a technical was called on Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve. It was a six-point swing that sewed up Game 3. It actually sewed up the series as well, as Collier was injured on the play and, along with a suspended Reeve, would miss Game 4, causing Minnesota to be eliminated, 3-1.
This time, the no-call on Thomas was supported by many; it wasn’t necessarily the wrong call. But the injury was bad luck, as the Lynx would have had a good shot at coming back from down 2-1 with Collier.
Instead, Minnesota has nothing to show for being best team in the league for the past two years, and here they are again, sitting in first place. They rose to the top of the standings without Collier and now have her back. They should win the title; the only reason I named the Las Vegas Aces as my favorite ahead of them was because of the mental aspect of the game.
The Lynx’s failure to win it all the past two years was more bad luck than it was folding under pressure. But the pressure only mounts when you keep coming up short, regardless of the reason. Therefore, I think the Aces will be relaxed, while Minnesota will be on edge.
Also, Collier will be an unrestricted free agent after this season. While the Lynx have proven they can be a first-place team with Olivia Miles, Natasha Howard, Courtney Williams and Kayla McBride, all of whom are slated to be back, the pressure is on to win this year’s championship for Phee, who has laid it all out on the line for the franchise.
So it’s not necessarily pressure coming from a championship window closing as much as it’s wanting to win it for a player who has meant so much to the organization and the state of Minnesota. Hopefully she will be back, but the fact that she may not be only adds to the urgency of winning it all, an urgency that already ranks No. 1 in my opinion.
2. Indiana Fever (26-14, 5th place)
I’m not going to freak out over the fact that Caitlin Clark doesn’t have a championship. She’s only in her third season!
The Fever face pressure to win it all because of their all-world Big 3, and Clark in particular, given how talented she is.
But they were pretty much on schedule when they made it to the playoffs in 2024, and they were ahead of schedule when they almost made it to the Finals last year without Clark, losing in overtime of Game 5 in the semis. I don’t perceive them to be under more pressure than the Lynx because a loss in the semis or Finals this year would still be on schedule.
Yes, head coach Stephanie White is under a lot of unfair pressure to not supposedly get in the way of Clark’s greatness. A different group of people put all the pressure on Clark to not mess it up for White, Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston. Then, there’s all the controversy surrounding Sophie Cunningham’s opinions.
I classify all this as a different kind of pressure. It’s the pressure that comes with fame, not an urgency to win. I believe the Fever coaches and players are capable of tuning out all the nonsensical pressure. After they do that, when it comes down to it, they simply don’t face more pressure than the Lynx.
With that being said, Mitchell is an unrestricted free agent after this season. That adds to the pressure Indiana faces. But I still think the Lynx can’t go one more year empty-handed, whereas the Fever are on schedule—for now.
3. Atlanta Dream (26-14, 4th place)
Mitchell becoming a free agent caused me to put the Fever ahead of the Dream.
The Dream as a franchise have never won the title, and their players deal with the pressure of knowing they let the fanbase down last year by losing in the first round after sporting the best regular-season winning percentage in the team’s history at .682.
It was supposed to be the Dream in the semifinals last year, not the Fever, and we can’t forget that.
Not only was Atlanta supposed to get out of the first round, but they were seen as legitimate title contenders. They tied the Aces for the second-best record in the league, and Vegas went on to win it all.
The Dream had one of the most talented teams on paper in 2025 with Allisha Gray, Rhyne Howard, Brionna Jones and Jordin Canada. Now it’s Gray, Howard, Canada and Angel Reese, as Jones is currently out with a leg injury with no timetable for her return.
Even without Jones, this is a team with high expectations.
What diffuses the pressure a bit is the fact that all their key players (save for an aging DeWanna Bonner) are slated to be back next year, with Gray, Howard, Jones and Naz Hillmon all under contract through 2028.
4. New York Liberty (24-16, 6th place)
The Liberty are a team that won it all in 2024, so there’s no pressure on their core group of players to get the monkey off their backs. They are champions, and that lasts a lifetime.
However, I know, as a Boston Celtics fan who was heartbroken when their Big 3 lost the 2010 Finals after winning in 2008, that certain teams set a higher bar. Like the Kevin Garnett-, Paul Pierce- and Ray Allen-led C’s, the Breanna Stewart-, Sabrina Ionescu- and Jonquel Jones-led Libs were built to be a dynasty.
New York has put a lot of pressure on themselves by letting go of a two-time championship-winning head coach in Sandy Brondello this past offseason. They have made it clear that it is championship or bust, which is why the team’s 2025 first round exit under Brondello was unacceptable.
Personally, I wouldn’t have fired Brondello. She won it all the year before and one season of missing the semifinals shouldn’t be cause for panic. Brondello could have led New York to more championships if she had been given the chance to bounce back.
Now operating under new head coach Chris DeMarco, Stewart, Ionescu and Jones are capable of actually being a favorite in a first-round series, despite being tied for sixth place currently. Not having their big offseason addition, Satou Sabally, for the playoffs due to a second concussion in under a year should lower expectations somewhat, but New York didn’t have Sabally last year and expectations were still sky high.
The Liberty have Stewart, Ionescu and Jones signed through 2028, and Sabally signed through 2027. But the remaining teams on this list still face less pressure to get it done this year.
5. Golden State Valkyries (29-11, 2nd place)
The Valkyries making the playoffs in their inaugural season of 2025 was impressive, but what they’ve done in their second year takes it to a whole other level. They are 29-11 and still have a shot at the No. 1 seed.
Golden State continues to play with house money, as no expansion team is expected to be this far along through two seasons.
They are under pressure to at least make it out of the first round, and under some pressure to win it all. I mean, you don’t finish first or second in the standings with no postseason pressure whatsoever. But the more intense pressure of needing to win it all is in this franchise’s future.
6. Washington Mystics (24-16, 7th place)
The Mystics, like the Valkyries, are playing with house money. They are the feel-good story of the WNBA.
The No. 3 and No. 4 picks in the 2025 draft, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen, respectively, were All-Stars as rookies, and, this year, it’s even more clear that they are players you can build around.
But Washington’s best player since the All-Star rosters were finalized has been All-Star snub Shakira Austin, a fifth-year 26-year-old who has inspired fans to stop using the nickname “Kitron” (a combination of Kiki and Citron’s and names) and start using “CIA” for Citron, Iriafen and Austin.
The Mystics’ top seven scorers and minute getters are all 27 years old or younger, and four of them (Citron, Iriafen, Lauren Betts and Cotie McMahon) are 23 or younger. Austin, Citron and Iriafen are stars, while Betts and McMahon have star potential, as do George Amoore (age 25) and Michaela Onyenwere (age 27). All these players have seemingly endless time to improve and chase future championships together.
There is no doubt that the Mystics are the team of the future.
7. Dallas Wings (24-16, 8th place)
I put the Wings behind the Mystics because 2026’s No. 1 pick, Azzi Fudd, is out for the remainder of the season, and Alanna Smith is currently dealing with an injury at the World Cup. If it weren’t for those injuries I would consider arguing that Dallas faces more pressure than Washington.
That’s largely because the Wings started the season 18-9 before stumbling, while the Mystics started 12-12 before rising. These starts to the season are stuck in our brains and, if it wasn’t for Dallas’ injuries, I feel like the Wings would be facing higher expectations than the Mystics.
But really, the Wings’ fast start shouldn’t have caused anyone to put pressure on them. They are still ahead of schedule in their rebuild around Paige Bueckers and Fudd, the last two No. 1 picks.
8. Las Vegas Aces (27-13, 3rd place)
My reasoning for putting the Aces at No. 8 is that they already have a dynasty.
This is not to say that A’ja Wilson and company aren’t hungry for more championships. They are extremely hungry. In fact, the Aces are my favorites.
What makes them my favorites is they aren’t facing any pressure!
Unlike the Liberty, they’ve owned the 2020s with three titles; their spot in history is secured. They aren’t facing the boogeyman of broken dreams.
