![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291477857-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\nA lot can happen in a single week at this point in the season.<\/p>\n
When Week 13 began on Monday, Aug. 17, two teams had clinched playoff berths (Minnesota and Las Vegas) and two teams had been eliminated (Seattle and Connecticut).<\/p>\n
Now, just seven days later, all but one playoff berth has been clinched, and that can be locked up as early as Tuesday. Of course, there is still the race for the home-court advantage, as well as matchups to be determined as teams jockey for playoff position over the closing weeks of the season.<\/p>\n
But as the league gets set for a 16-day pause at the end of this week in order to allow players to compete in the 2026 FIBA World Cup, the playoff picture they will return to is becoming more clear by the day.<\/p>\n
\u2705 Who\u2019s In<\/p>\n
Minnesota (31-7)
\nGolden State (25-11)
\nLas Vegas (26-13)
\nAtlanta (24-13)
\nIndiana (25-14)
\nNew York (23-15)
\nWashington (22-15)<\/p>\n
\ud83c\udfc0 Who\u2019s In The Hunt<\/p>\n
Dallas (22-16)
\nPortland (15-22)<\/p>\n
\u274c Who\u2019s Out<\/p>\n
Chicago (15-23)
\nLos Angeles (13-24)
\nPhoenix (13-24)
\nToronto (11-26)
\nConnecticut (9-27)
\nSeattle (7-31)<\/p>\n
Note: All stats and records through games played on Sunday, Aug. 23.<\/p>\n
\u2705 1.\u00a0 Minnesota Lynx (31-7) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 1
\nThis Week: Mon. at GSV, Sun. at ATL<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Olivia Miles #5 of the Minnesota Lynx<\/p>\n
With wins over Golden State and Washington last week, the Lynx have won six straight and 16 of their last 17 games. They have a chance to wrap up the No. 1 overall seed for the second straight year with another win over the Valkyries on Monday. When they met on Wednesday, Olivia Miles exited in the fourth quarter after rolling her ankle. However, the rookie was back on the court two days later to lead the Lynx over the Mystics while Minnesota rested Napheesa Collier after she helped Minnesota go 9-1 in her first 10 games of the season.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2705 2. Golden State Valkyries (25-11) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 2
\nThis Week: Mon. at MIN, Wed. at CON, Thu. at NYL, Sun. at POR<\/p>\n
Golden State is coming off consecutive losses, and has Las Vegas, Atlanta and Indiana on its heels for the No. 2 spot behind Minnesota. As they enter a new week, can the Valkyries repeat a pattern we\u2019ve seen from them since early June where two straight losses are followed by a win streak?<\/p>\n
June 4-6: Two losses followed by four straight wins
\nJune 19-21: Two losses followed by nine straight wins
\nJuly 20-29: Two losses followed by six straight wins<\/p>\n
The Valkyries hit the road for four games this week, including stops in Minnesota and New York to face fellow playoff-bound teams.<\/p>\n
\u2705 3. Indiana Fever (25-14) \u2b06\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 4
\nThis Week: Fri. vs. CON<\/p>\n
Kelsey Mitchell (24.8 ppg, 2nd in WNBA) and Caitlin Clark (22.1 ppg, 3rd) continue to be the best scoring duo in the league. This past week, they set the mark for most games in a season in which teammates both score at least 20 points. The record is now at 18 games and counting after both dropped over 30 in Sunday\u2019s win over Chicago. That was their third such performance as teammates \u2014 the most ever.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2705 4. Las Vegas Aces (26-13) \u2b07\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 3
\nThis Week: Fri. vs. TOR<\/p>\n
Despite a loss to Atlanta to open last week, the Aces still hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Dream by winning the season series 2-1. Las Vegas responded to that loss with consecutive wins over Connecticut and Toronto to pull within a half-game of Golden State for the No. 2 seed. One stat to keep in mind down the stretch: the Aces have the easiest strength of schedule, based on their remaining opponent\u2019s win percentage.<\/p>\n
\u2705 5. Atlanta Dream (24-13) \u2b06\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 7
\nThis Week: Mon. at LAS, Fri. vs. POR, Sun. vs. MIN<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291078449-1-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
The Atlanta Dream<\/p>\n
After a tough overtime loss to Indiana last Sunday, the Dream bounced back with three straight wins, including a pair of brilliant performances from Angel Reese. In Thursday\u2019s win at Los Angeles, Reese had a perfect shooting night, going 9-for-9 from the field with two 3-pointers, finishing with 20 points, 10 boards, eight assists and three steals. Two nights later in Phoenix, Reese dropped a career-high 31 points on 14-for-21 shooting, while adding 14 rebounds and four steals.<\/p>\n
\u2705 6. New York Liberty (23-15) \u2b07\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 5
\nThis Week: Thu. vs. GSV, Sat. vs. CHI<\/p>\n
New York opened last week with a loss to Chicago as former Liberty guard Natasha Cloud scored a career-high 35 points. The Liberty responded with an important win over Indiana as it prevented the Fever from earning the head-to-head tiebreaker. With seeds 2-6 currently separated by just three games, tiebreakers may be needed at season\u2019s end. New York holds the tiebreaker over Las Vegas (2-1), leads Atlanta (1-0, two games to play), is tied with Indy (2-2) and lost to Golden State (0-2, one game to play).<\/p>\n
\u2705 7. Washington Mystics (22-15) \u2b07\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 6
\nThis Week: Tue. at PHX, Thu. at PHX, Fri. at LAS<\/p>\n
On Sunday, Shakira Austin scored a career-best 31 points to go with 10 rebounds as Washington rallied from 14 points down to earn a 105-100 win over Portland. That victory coupled with Chicago\u2019s loss to Indiana clinched Washington\u2019s first playoff appearance since 2023. At No. 7, the Mystics are two games back of the coveted No. 4 seed, which brings home-court advantage in the first round. Washington will face only one playoff team the rest of the season as they try to climb the standings.<\/p>\n
\ud83c\udfc0 8. Dallas Wings (22-16) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 8
\nThis Week: Tue. vs. POR, Sun. vs. CON<\/p>\n
Paige Bueckers dropped 32 points and splashed a career-high six 3-pointers (without a miss!) in Sunday\u2019s win over Seattle. It was Dallas\u2019 second straight win following a stretch of five losses in six games. The Wings can earn their first playoff berth since 2023 with a home win over Portland on Tuesday. Dallas enters the week up 5.5 games on the Fire with six games to play. A win on Tuesday would complete the eight teams headed to the postseason, with only the battle for positioning remaining.<\/p>\n
\ud83c\udfc0 9. Portland Fire (15-22) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 9
\nThis Week: Tue. at DAL, Fri. at ATL, Sun. vs. GSV<\/p>\n
The Fire dropped a pair of close games this past week to put their playoff hopes on the brink when they visit Dallas on Tuesday. If Portland\u2019s recent play is any indication, expect the Fire\u2019s matchup with the Wings to come down to the wire. Each of Portland\u2019s last five games have been decided by five points or less, with the Fire going 2-3 in those contests; they are 10-8 overall in clutch games this season.<\/p>\n
\u274c 10. Chicago Sky (15-23) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 10
\nThis Week: Tue. at CON, Sat. at NYL<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2291624573-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Sydney Taylor #12 and Natasha Cloud #9 of the Chicago Sky<\/p>\n
The Sky entered last week with slim playoff hopes and a gauntlet of tough opponents. They started strong with wins over New York and Golden State \u2014 the latter courtesy of a game-winning 3-pointer by Sydney Taylor with 0.6 seconds left \u2014 but were unable to sweep the week as they fell to Indiana on Sunday. That loss coupled with Washington\u2019s win over Portland officially eliminated Chicago from the playoffs for a third straight year.<\/p>\n
\u274c 11. Phoenix Mercury (13-24) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 11
\nThis Week: Tue. vs. WAS, Thu. vs. WAS, Sat. vs. TOR<\/p>\n
In their lone game of the week, the Mercury got a 38-point effort from Kahleah Copper and a triple-double from Alyssa Thomas (extending her WNBA record to 22 in the regular season), but it was not enough to fend off Angel Reese and the Dream. With the loss, the Mercury were officially eliminated from the playoffs following an appearance in the Finals last season, something not seen in the WNBA since the 2008 Mercury.<\/p>\n
\u274c 12. Los Angeles Sparks (13-24) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 12
\nThis Week: Mon. vs. ATL, Fri. vs. WAS, Sun. at SEA<\/p>\n
The Sparks were also eliminated from playoff contention with a loss to the Dream this past week, marking L.A.\u2019s sixth straight year without a postseason appearance. We must give a shout out to Nneka Ogwumike, who announced her plans to retire at season\u2019s end since our last rankings were published. With the Sparks out of the playoff picture, enjoy the final seven WNBA games from Madame President.<\/p>\n
\u274c 13. Seattle Storm (7-31) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 13
\nThis Week: Wed. vs. TOR, Sun. vs. LAS<\/p>\n
While the Storm have dropped three straight and 14 of their last 15 games, the focus continues to be on developing their young talent with eyes toward the future. Rookies Flau\u2019jae Johnson and Awa Fam, as well as second-year player Dominique Malonga, rank in the top four in both minutes and points for the Storm this season. And all three players are 22 years old or younger.<\/p>\n
\u274c 14. Connecticut Sun (9-27) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 14
\nThis Week: Tue. vs. CHI, Wed. vs. GSV, Fri. at IND, Sun. at DAL<\/p>\n
For the third straight year, the Sun played a home game at Boston\u2019s TD Garden. And for the second time in those three games, the Sun defeated the Sparks. Connecticut was led by former Sparks draft pick Olivia Nelson-Ododa, who had 18 points and 11 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season, matching her career total from her first four seasons in the WNBA. This week, Connecticut has two of its four remaining home games at Mohegan Sun Arena before they relocate to Houston in the offseason.<\/p>\n
\u274c 15. Toronto Tempo (11-26) \u2194\ufe0f<\/p>\n
Last Week: 15
\nThis Week: Wed. at SEA, Fri. at LVA, Sat. at PHX<\/p>\n
The Tempo snapped a 12-game skid on Friday with a win over Portland in a clash of expansion teams. While wins have been scarce for the Tempo since a 9-9 start to their inaugural season, the play of Marina Mabrey has been a highlight. She ranks in the top five in the WNBA in scoring (20.8 ppg) and 3-pointers made (105), posting career-best marks in both categories.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A lot can happen in a single week at this point in the season. When Week 13 began…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":869912,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,82,630],"class_list":["post-869911","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wnba","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-sports","tag-wnba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869911","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=869911"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/869911\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/869912"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=869911"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=869911"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=869911"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}