A month into the WNBA season and there has been a strong effort from the two new expansion teams in Toronto and Portland.
Building off the success of Golden State last season as an expansion franchise, the two new teams are in the middle of the standings. Portland (6-7) pulled off wins over title contender New York and Indiana. Toronto (6-5) has beaten Los Angeles.
“I think it’s the best thing for the game, the parity and how talented rosters are,”
Indiana guard Caitlin Clark said before the Fever lost to New York on Saturday. “The coaches are really good, they’re finding ways to get the best out of their players.”
Each team went a different route to build their franchise with the Tempo going with a solid backcourt through free agency with Brittney Sykes and Marina Mabrey.
The Fire used the expansion draft to solidify their foundation with Bridget Carleton, Emily Engstler and Megan Gustafson.
“This is the hardest league in the world to play and I understand we expanded, but there’s still limited spots and every single night you have to bring it,” Clark said as her team sits at 5-5. “Everybody’s going to come to compete and everybody knows your job’s on the line.”
The two expansion team's success has led to more parity in the league, which is celebrating its 30th season. Minnesota is leading the way, but the Lynx already have two losses. Last season the Lynx and Liberty both started 9-0. Four teams are within two games of the Lynx atop the standings.
At the other end of the spectrum, Phoenix, Seattle and Connecticut have been struggling. While the Storm and Sun were definitely in rebuilding mode this year, the Mercury were coming off a trip to the WNBA Finals. They hit a rough spot early on, dropping six consecutive games after an opening-game rout of the Las Vegas Aces. Phoenix has won its past two games.
Minnesota was an unanimous choice at the No. 1 spot in the AP power poll this week. The Lynx were followed by Las Vegas and Dallas. Atlanta, New York and Golden State were next. Indiana was seventh with Toronto eighth. Los Angeles, Portland and Washington followed the Tempo. Phoenix, Chicago, Seattle and Connecticut rounded out the poll.
Olivia Miles of Minnesota was the AP player of the week. The rookie guard averaged 22 points, 7.7 assists and 3.7 rebounds to help the Lynx win all three of their games last week. She's having a stellar first season for Minnesota, helping the team to the best record in the league so far. The No. 2 pick in the WNBA draft is averaging 17.2 points, 6.4 assists and 5.0 rebounds on the season. Other players receiving votes included Paige Bueckers of Dallas, Breanna Stewart of New York and A'ja Wilson of Las Vegas.
Minnesota at Las Vegas, Saturday. The chance to represent the Western Conference in the Commissioner's Cup championship could be at stake when these two teams meet. They both haven't lost yet in Cup play. The two teams have combined to represent the Western Conference the past four seasons with the Aces winning the title in 2022 and the Lynx in 2024. Minnesota lost to Indiana last season.
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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball
