As the youngest WNBA team that is made of mostly rookies, and a front office that has done little in free agency for two straight seasons, one would think that the Washington Mystics would likely be a bottom feeder in 2026. But when the team has two sophomore All-Stars with Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafem, the Mystics could very well be in the playoff conversation for most of this season, if not sneak into the playoffs this fall.
In ESPN’s latest WNBA power rankings, Michael Voepel placed them at No.
9. And last week they were at No. 8.
Here is the snippet:
The Mystics showed two different sides over the past week: Resilience as they held off Indiana 104-102 in overtime on Friday, then not much resistance as they fell 92-69 at Dallas on Monday. Considering they are the youngest team in the league with an average age of 23.6, inconsistency is expected. And their young stars did have flashes as Sonia Citron posted 30 points against the Fever while rookie Lauren Betts had her best game so far with 11 points on 5-of-7 shooting against the Wings.
The Mystics’ next game is on Sunday on the road against the Seattle Storm, who are 1-4 and rebuilding. If Washington can win Sunday, perhaps more fans will become less skeptical about Michael Winger’s “youth at all costs” strategy.
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
