WNBA playoff picture: Standings, schedule as Storm clinch final spot and eliminate Sparks

Just a few days remain in the 2025 WNBA season, and the playoff picture is starting to take shape. The Seattle Storm clinched the final spot on Tuesday with a dramatic win over the Golden State Valkyries, and eliminated the Los Angeles Sparks in the process. 

Elsewhere on Tuesday, the Las Vegas Aces crushed the Chicago Sky to run their winning streak to 15 games and move back into second place. And while the Sparks’ win over the Phoenix Mercury ultimately was not enough to keep their season alive, it did lock the Mercury into the No. 4 seed. 

There are now three teams locked into a spot and one first-round matchup set. The Minnesota Lynx have secured the No. 1 seed and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. Meanwhile, the reigning champion New York Liberty will be the No. 5 seed and face the Mercury in the first round.

The playoff push will continue Wednesday with just one game. The Atlanta Dream need to win to have a chance of getting the No. 2 seed. 

As a reminder, the top eight teams in the league make the playoffs, regardless of conference. From there, they are placed into a standard eight-team bracket. The first round of the playoffs is a best-of-three series, while the semifinals are a best-of-five and the Finals, as of this season, are a best-of-seven. 

The regular season will conclude on Sept. 11 and the playoffs begin on Sept. 14. The last possible Finals date is Oct. 17. 

StandingsMinnesota Lynx (33-10) — Clinched playoff berthLas Vegas Aces (29-14) — Clinched playoff berthAtlanta Dream (29-14) — Clinched playoff berthPhoenix Mercury (27-16) — Clinched playoff berthNew York Liberty (26-17) — Clinched playoff berthIndiana Fever (24-20) — Clinched playoff berthGolden State Valkyries (23-20) — Clinched playoff berthSeattle Storm (23-21) — Clinched playoff berth
—————————–Los Angeles Sparks (21-22) — Eliminated from playoff contentionWashington Mystics (16-28) — Eliminated from playoff contentionConnecticut Sun (11-32) — Eliminated from playoff contentionChicago Sky (10-33) — Eliminated from playoff contentionDallas Wings (9-34) — Eliminated from playoff contention

Note: Two-team ties are decided first by head-to-head record and then, if necessary, by better record against .500+ teams. Ties between more than two teams are determined by the combined head-to-head record against the other teams. 

Lynx have clinched No. 1 seed1. Minnesota Lynx (33-10)

The Lynx are locked in as the No. 1 seed and have clinched home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. They have also set a franchise record for wins in a season, but with Tuesday’s loss to the Fever they can no longer break the 2023 Aces’ all-time record of 34 wins. They can tie it, however, with a win Thursday against the Valkyries. 

Aces vs. Dream for No. 2 seed2. Las Vegas Aces (29-14)3. Atlanta Dream (29-14)

The Aces won again on Tuesday, this time by 31 against a lifeless Sky team, to run their winning streak to 15 games and move back into second place. Heading into the final two days of the season, the Aces and Dream have identical records, but the Aces own the tiebreaker. 

Thus, the Aces will get the No. 2 seed with either a win Thursday against the Sparks or a Dream loss on Wednesday versus the Sun. The only way for the Dream to wind up with the No. 2 seed is to beat the Sun and have the Aces lose to the Sparks. 

Mercury will play Liberty in first round4. Phoenix Mercury (27-16)5. New York Liberty (26-17)

The Mercury are locked into the No. 4 seed after a loss to the Sparks on Tuesday, their second in a row following a six-game winning streak. They will have home-court advantage for their first-round series against the reigning champion New York Liberty, who were locked into the No. 5 seed earlier this week. 

The Mercury won the season series between the teams 3-1, but it’s hard to read too much into that considering the injury issues for both clubs. 

Valkyries make history, Storm clinch final spot6. Indiana Fever (24-20)7. Golden State Valkyries (23-20)8. Seattle Storm (23-21)

Last week, the Valkyries became the first expansion team ever to make the playoffs in their inaugural season. They have since lost two games in a row, however, and have been jumped by the Fever, who ended their regular season on a three-game winning streak. 

The Valkyries have one game remaining on Thursday against the Lynx. If they win, they will be the No. 6 seed and the Fever will be the No. 7. If the Valkyries lose, however, they will drop to the No. 8 seed, the Fever will be the No. 6 seed and the Storm will be the No. 7 seed. 

On Tuesday, the Storm clinched the final playoff spot with a dramatic win over the Valkyries thanks to a game-winning jumper by Erica Wheeler with less than 20 seconds to play. The Storm are currently in eighth place, but could jump to seventh if the Valkyries lose their final game. 

Lottery bound9. Los Angeles Sparks (21-22)10. Washington Mystics (16-28)11. Connecticut Sun (11-32)12. Chicago Sky (10-33)13. Dallas Wings (9-34)

The Sparks’ push for the playoffs turned out to be too little, too late. They are 15-8 since their 6-14 start, which is the fourth-best record in that span, but that wasn’t enough to chase down the Storm. Their playoff drought has now reached five seasons, which is not only the longest active drought in the league, but the longest in franchise history. To make matters worse, they owe the Storm their 2026 first-round pick, which will now be a lottery selection. 

Though the Mystics were more competitive than expected this season, they ultimately fell apart down the stretch after trading All-Star guard Brittney Sykes. They got a first-round pick for Sykes, though, and will now have another lottery selection, so missing the playoffs is for the best. 

The Sun, Sky and Wings have been a step behind everyone else all summer and have long been destined for the lottery. Only the Wings control their own first-round pick in the 2026 draft, however. 

The Sky owe their first to the Lynx, while the Sun owe the Sky swap rights to their first rounder. The Sky also own Mercury’s first rounder, so the Sky will get the more favorable of the Sun/Mercury picks, while the Sun will get the least favorable of those selections.