{"id":680813,"date":"2026-05-20T00:56:10","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T00:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/680813\/"},"modified":"2026-05-20T00:56:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T00:56:10","slug":"diving-into-wnba-trends-through-the-first-10-days-of-the-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/680813\/","title":{"rendered":"Diving into WNBA trends through the first 10 days of the season"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats newsletter. We\u2019re excited to announce a new partnership with Hudl. Hudl\u2019s industry-leading tools – Sportscode, Instat, and Fastmodel – elevate the preparation, performance, and player development of WNBA and NCAA teams. We appreciate their support and look forward to working with them to help bring more insight about the women\u2019s game to you.<\/p>\n

You can find me on Bluesky and Twitter and you can find HHS on Bluesky, Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.<\/p>\n

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The WNBA season has not disappointed over its first two weeks. We have seen plenty of wild finishes and intriguing developments as plenty of new-look franchises try to find their identity. <\/p>\n

What are the trends early on? What are some of the most interesting storylines? Let\u2019s dive in\u2026 <\/p>\n

Scoring is up<\/p>\n

If you have been watching the WNBA this year thinking, \u201cwow, there\u2019s a lot of high-scoring games,\u201d then it turns out you are not taking crazy pills. Through the first 10 days of the WNBA season in 2025, the average game produced 160.2 points per game. This year games are totaling 175.4 points per game.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s an enormous leap.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s happening? The most obvious place to start is with the refereeing. During the W\u2019s first weekend, the \u201cpoints of emphasis\u201d went a little wild and we saw a run of unusual free-throw attempts. Overall there is a decent sized gap between free-throws per game in the first 10 days of the season in 2025 (41.2) and the first 10 days of this season (45.8).<\/p>\n

However, it isn\u2019t just the free-throw increase that\u2019s causing the bump in scoring. There may be a trickle-down effect of this year\u2019s very aggressive reffing. Players and coaches have talked at length about defensive players being allowed to play overly physical with ball handlers and players moving without the ball. The strong message from the refs to open the year may have resulted in defenders playing differently and allowing more open opportunities.<\/p>\n

Another theory might be that expansion has spread out talent over the league so quickly that there are simply more players who wouldn\u2019t have gotten minutes in the WNBA two years ago, making it easier for the All-Stars to score.<\/p>\n

We could also toss in the insane offseason with every team basically being built from scratch through free agency, the draft and international signings. Team chemistry is pretty difficult to cobble together in a couple weeks of training camp and shortcomings in communication and system understanding usually show themselves more on defensive than on offense.<\/p>\n

Interestingly, the increase in scoring has not come because teams are shooting more 3-pointers or making more 3-pointers. The numbers are nearly identical this season and last season. Teams last year made 32.9% and attempted 48.8 threes per game and the 2026 WNBA made 32.9% and attempted 49.0 threes per game.<\/p>\n

The overall jump in buckets has come from 2-point shots with teams making 51.7% thus far this season versus 47.2% in 2025.<\/p>\n

Add up defensive miscommunications or less ability to play one-on-one with more \u201cfreedom of movement\u201d and you have more chances to make shots at the bucket. Per HHS data, there are currently 19 players with at least 10 restricted area shot attempts that are making more than 80% of their shots from right under the hoop. Last year the league had six players over 80% in the first 10 days of the season and finished with zero players over 80% and only 14 players over 70%.<\/p>\n

The question is whether the touch fouls will continue and teams will continue to find it easier to get to the basket and finish or if the rules will slowly drift back to where they were in terms of allowing physical play.<\/p>\n

From a league perspective, why would they go back? This is what players and coaches have been asking for, and the scoring totals have created more outstanding individual performances and more high-scoring games.<\/p>\n

Welcome to the new WNBA. For now. We\u2019ll see if things even out as the season goes along.<\/p>\n

The shutdown Sky<\/p>\n

Coming into the year, how was anyone supposed to know what to think of the Chicago Sky? They completely overhauled their roster by trading away Angel Reese and Ariel Atkins, acquiring Rickea Jackson and Jacy Sheldon via trade and signing Skylar Diggins, Natasha Cloud and Azura Stevens. They also selected UCLA\u2019s Gabriela Jaquez with their first-round pick.<\/p>\n

The results have been very good for the 3-1 Sky. They are the No. 2 defensive team in the WNBA, allowing 79.0 points per game, and are No. 1 in points allowed per 100 possessions.<\/p>\n

While their offensive production hasn\u2019t caught up yet, it\u2019s impressive that they have locked in defensively despite some of the injuries that they have had to overcome already. The Sky have been without Stevens as she is dealing with a knee injury, and they defeated the Lynx despite playing without Diggins and Jackson, who suffered an injury early in the game.<\/p>\n

If Jackson is out for a long period of time, the Sky will need Stevens to step into her role when she returns. Even if that\u2019s the case, Chicago will still have one of the deeper and more flexible lineups in the league.<\/p>\n

The player that the Sky\u2019s ceiling appears to revolve around is Kamilla Cardoso. Across her stat line, Cardoso\u2019s offense is slightly down from last year in terms of points per game, field-goal percentage and free-throw percentage, but those numbers do not tell the story of her 2026 season. Without Reese in the lineup, her rebounding has been on full display as the 6-foot-7 center ranks fourth in rebounds per game. She\u2019s also seventh in blocked shots. It\u2019s very, very, very early in the season, but Cardoso\u2019s 93.5 individual defensive rating is in the 98th percentile of the league overall.<\/p>\n

Chicago\u2019s 2024 No. 3 overall pick continues to be a weapon for them defensively. Then, adding Stevens\u2019 length to the mix gives the Sky a chance to be the league\u2019s best defensive team.<\/p>\n

The draft class\u2019s debut<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been a fascinating start to the season for the 2026 WNBA draft class because several of the top picks have opened their careers as role players off the bench and others have been tossed right into the fire and thrived.<\/p>\n

Azzi Fudd missed a game due to injury and has only seen 18.5 minutes per game off the bench for the Dallas Wings. The roster that coach Jose Fernandez is working with is stacked in the backcourt with Paige Bueckers, Arike Ogunbowale, Odyssey Sims and Aziaha James, so it\u2019s a little tricky to figure out exactly how the Wings are going to get Fudd more minutes and more touches. Her size isn\u2019t conducive to playing anywhere above small forward and even then that\u2019s a bit of a stretch. The Wings have played Sims and James at point guard to get Bueckers moving off the ball rather than being blitzed constantly, but that makes it tougher to put Fudd into the lineup if Ogunbowale is going to play 31 minutes per game.<\/p>\n

Fernandez is already struggling with how to work in Maddy Siegrist, who is a super efficient scorer but is undersized as a power forward and lacking quickness as a three. After a loss to the Lynx, Fernandez referenced \u201cselfishness\u201d in the locker room regarding players\u2019 roles, but it\u2019s his task to figure out how all the pieces fit to maximize skillsets. Also, as a quick aside, the Wings\u2019 coach might be wise to keep things like that internal in the future rather than airing dirty laundry. With so many eyeballs on the WNBA these days, it\u2019s not favorable to start your own public drama as a head coach.<\/p>\n

So, unless the Wings make a trade to reshuffle the roster, Fudd\u2019s role might be very uneven from game to game unless injuries open up a more solidified spot.<\/p>\n

It is worth noting that the Wings had a blowout win over the Mystics and Fudd went 6-for-9 shooting off the bench on Monday night but Fernandez\u2019s management of the media, locker room and Fudd\u2019s role are all worth watching going forward.<\/p>\n

The No. 2 overall pick Olivia Miles has looked the part right away. She is evidence that a draft pick\u2019s landing spot can do a lot for their career. Miles has benefited greatly from playing under floor-spacing wizard Cheryl Reeve, who has created plenty of chances for Miles to run pick-and-roll with Natasha Howard and drive-and-kick passes to sharpshooter Kayla McBride.<\/p>\n

Miles\u2019 confidence has shined, especially when she\u2019s making high-difficulty passes and driving to the hoop. Out of her 22 made baskets thus far, 18 of them have come within five feet of the rim. If she starts to heat up from outside, opponents could be in a lot of trouble.<\/p>\n

Four games is certainly not enough to say that the book is written on Miles. Teams are going to start having scouting reports on the way she plays within the Lynx\u2019s system and they will find ways to hunt her on defense, but her fit in Minnesota has been phenomenal and she should continue ascending as she becomes more comfortable with the WNBA.<\/p>\n

The fourth overall pick, UCLA star Lauren Betts, has had a similarly slow transition into the pros. Because Washington has Kiki Iriafen and Shakira Austin playing at a high level, Betts is only seeing 14 minutes per game.<\/p>\n

You could argue that it\u2019s a tough transition from college to the W for bigs and that it might be better long term for Betts to ease into her minutes, but Austin was also a top draft pick and is only 25 years old. If Austin\u2019s strong start to the year continues, what will Washington do with Betts? Austin is under contract through 2028 and Iriafen is already flashing superstar potential, so there isn\u2019t much room for a twin tower type lineup with Betts and Austin.<\/p>\n

It would be silly to suggest trading Betts already because we never know how things are going to play out and depth at the center position is worth its weight in gold, but top-five picks have been quickly moved if they are not an immediate fit before (see: Sheldon, Jacy). It\u2019s hard not to wonder already what the Mystics lineup might have looked like if they took Kiki Rice or Gabriela Jaquez.<\/p>\n

The next two draft picks off the board have opened their careers looking like instant quality starters. Jaquez had 20 points and eight rebounds on Sunday night vs. Minnesota and has contributed positively from an efficiency or defensive standpoint in every Chicago game. The Sky\u2019s fifth overall pick is an incredibly mature rookie whose IQ and effort stands out as much as her shooting.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s a different player but reminiscent in some ways of Sonia Citron in the way she had a \u201cthree and D\u201d type skillset and then has instantly shown at the professional level to be more of a complete player.<\/p>\n

Rice had her breakout game for the Tempo against the Los Angeles Sparks on Sunday. In her first start, the ex-Bruins slasher scored 19 points on 5-for-8 shooting and went 8-for-10 from the free-throw line. She also had five rebounds and two assists with zero turnovers.<\/p>\n

The interesting thing about Rice is that she\u2019s been ascending for years. During her college career, her shooting percentage and 3-point percentages increased every season, from 41.1% from the field as a freshman to 49.9% as a senior and from 21.7% from 3-point land in her first college season to 38.5% in this year\u2019s championship season. It\u2019s incredibly early in her career but it wouldn\u2019t be surprising if that trend continued into the pros.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also worth noting that Rice has the athletic potential to be a very good on-ball defender if she can cut down on fouls (she had five on Sunday) and she\u2019s a phenomenal free-throw shooter (90.2% as a senior), which may help if the W keeps calling infractions.<\/p>\n

Most other players in the draft are still getting their feet wet, but overall the class is looking very strong from the outset.<\/p>\n

Quick hits<\/p>\n

International players crushing it<\/p>\n

Before the season, I wrote that one of the potential impacts of expansion was more room for international players. That has come to fruition quickly and resulted in several players wowing right away. French guard Pauline Astier has displayed ridiculous offensive instincts and shooting by scoring 16.8 points per game on just 27 minutes per contest. For the Mercury, Jovana Nogic has 16.0 points per game in her debut season at age 28.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately for the Lynx, their breakout rookie Emma \u010cechov\u00e1 tore her ACL. At 21, she has a bright future ahead.<\/p>\n

Is Citron an MVP candidate?<\/p>\n

A\u2019ja Wilson is the best player in the universe and could win the MVP every single year but the contest for the No. 2 player in the WNBA is wide open and Sonia Citron has tossed her name in the mix early in the season. She\u2019s averaging 20.0 points per game while shooting 59.1% from the field, playing some of the best all-around basketball in the league as a good rebounder, passer and top-notch on-ball defender. What folks may not have realized when she came out in the draft is that she is very capable of creating her own shots and scoring on high-difficulty looks anywhere on the floor.<\/p>\n

Chennedy Carter\u2019s role in Las Vegas<\/p>\n

There was some consternation about Becky Hammon going with a more defensive lineup down the stretch on Sunday against the Atlanta Dream as the Las Vegas Aces struggled to close out the game. Carter, who appeared disappointed in her role in the postgame press conference, scored 20 points in 20 minutes against the Dream.<\/p>\n

Overall she\u2019s averaging a ridiculous 19.4 points per game in just 21.4 minutes off the bench, so it makes sense that she would want to be on the floor more often.<\/p>\n

Carter has always been a mystery. She has extremely rare scoring ability and unmatched explosiveness off the dribble, yet the former No. 4 overall pick has always struggled to stick with teams and has spent several years playing overseas rather than in the W.<\/p>\n

If Hammon and Carter\u2019s teammates can make it work and she can accept that sometimes the reigning champions are going to go with some of their other stars, it will be a cheat code for Vegas to have her production.<\/p>\n

Sparks panic time?<\/p>\n

In a year where there was unprecedented movement before the season and everyone is trying to figure out the rules, we really shouldn\u2019t overreact to any results before June\u2026. except with the Los Angeles Sparks.<\/p>\n

With Nneka Ogwumike back in L.A., the Sparks are 1-3 and 14th in points allowed per game. Their top three scorers are averaging 26.8, 17.0 and 16.5 points per game, yet they are only producing the eighth most points per game so far.<\/p>\n

The Sparks made a super aggressive win-now trade to deal Rickea Jackson to Chicago for Ariel Atkins, yet they do not appear to have the depth to compete as a championship-caliber team.<\/p>\n

Also after finishing dead last in points allowed per game in 2025, there have to be questions about them schematically when it comes to their defensive performance.<\/p>\n

Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter. If you like our work, be sure to check out our stats site<\/a>, our podcast<\/a>, and our social media accounts on Twitter<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n