![\"Kelsey](\"https:\/\/platform.swishappeal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/154\/2026\/06\/gettyimages-2282179072.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100\")
<\/a><\/p>\nKelsey Plum is second in the league in scoring at 23.9 points per game, but the Sparks are only 8-8. NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n
Through questionable roster construction, the Sparks have stuck themselves between a rock and a hard place.<\/p>\n
Unlike the other three teams on this list, Los Angeles is a mostly-veteran core of players: Nneka Ogwumike, Dearica Hamby, Kelsey Plum, and Ariel Atkins all have eight or more years of WNBA service. Those four veterans make up 62 of the Sparks 88 points per game, or 70.4 percent of their scoring production. However, LA is only 8-8, and has just two wins( one against the Aces, one against the Liberty) against opponents in the playoff picture.<\/p>\n
Their roster is, quite starkly, not good enough for serious playoff contention.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately for Sparks fans, they don\u2019t get to experience the upsides of a poor season. They went 21-23 last season, meaning that their two-year record likely won\u2019t be bad enough to land them a lottery pick even if they see a significant decline in wins over the latter half of the season.<\/p>\n
In addition, they don\u2019t have much of a young core to build on at the moment. Cam Brink has fluctuated both in role and in production, Rae Burrell is a couple years too old to feel like a future cornerstone if they were to embrace another rebuild and Kate Martin is, at best, a fringe rotation piece after coming from the Golden State Valkyries.<\/p>\n
Worst of all, Los Angeles\u2019 affinity for veteran talent has neutralized their actual ability to intentionally tank. It\u2019s very hard to believe that such an experienced locker room would be okay settling for mediocrity. Plum, now sidelined for four week with a leg injury, and the rest of the Sparks will continue to chase a championship, even if it zeroes their odds of landing LA-native JuJu Watkins in next year\u2019s draft.<\/p>\n
Washington Mystics: Will go for the playoffs, should go for the playoffs<\/p>\n
Washington owns Chicago\u2019s first round pick, giving them the flexibility to contend without sacrificing a high draft pick. Getty Images<\/p>\n Washington has had their own issues with balancing minutes for recent draft picks<\/a> (or perhaps just issues with positional need and draft philosophy), but there is no question that they have the right to try to contend for a playoff berth this season.<\/p>\n The biggest justification for Washington choosing to contend is that they own the rights to swap picks with Chicago in the upcoming draft\u2014hands down one of the most valuable assets in the league.<\/p>\n Chicago is 5-12, and only finished with 10 wins last season. They\u2019re comfortably positioned within next year\u2019s lottery, and it\u2019s unlikely that that will change throughout the rest of the season. The Mystics will keep whichever is the lower pick between their own pick and Chicago\u2019s, and even if they were to tank, their own pick will almost definitely be the worse of the two.<\/p>\n Because Washington will just swap picks with Chicago, there is no reason for them to try to tank to essentially give the Sky a better pick. Chicago\u2019s pick is in prime position for the JuJu Watkins lottery, and if this season\u2019s trend continues, only Connecticut will have better odds to land the first pick. The Mystics have a real shot at getting Watkins, Hidalgo or Booker, and won\u2019t need to tank to increase their odds.<\/p>\n Although they\u2019ve recently beaten both the Liberty and the Lynx, the Mystics still aren\u2019t quite good enough to suggest that they could beat a top seed in a first round series. Nevertheless, a playoff experience would do wonders for the ongoing development of Sonia Citron, Kiki Iriafen and the rest of their young core. Playing under postseason pressure is a feeling that is better experienced sooner rather than later, and will instill a confidence in the organization that they belong in the postseason.<\/p>\n If Washington is able to give Citron her first postseason berth, and then add a borderline generational talent through Chicago\u2019s first-round pick, they will easily have one of the best long term outlooks in the league.<\/p>\n Toronto Tempo: Might go for the tank, should go for the tank<\/p>\n Just two seasons after winning a WNBA Championship with the Liberty, tanking is a concept that Sandy Brondello hasn\u2019t had to deal with. Getty Images<\/p>\n Toronto is the hardest of the four teams to read because they have a little bit of everything.<\/p>\n As with Portland, their existence as an expansion team means that they won\u2019t be held back by a two-year record when it comes to tanking for a better draft pick. They are in complete control of their draft destiny. Like Los Angeles, they have a handful of veterans who likely want to win, including head coach Sandy Brondello who won a WNBA championship just two seasons ago. Like the Mystics, they probably aren\u2019t good enough to compete in a playoff series.<\/p>\n While Toronto\u2019s best route to long-term contention would probably involve tanking for a JuJu Watkins-Hannah Hidalgo type talent, the production of Marina Mabrey and Brittney Sykes have brought them to some kind of semi-contention. Injuries to Sykes and 2026 first-round pick Kiki Rice may hurt their performance in the upcoming stretch of games<\/a>, but both players will eventually return and the Tempo will recharge to a respectable strength.<\/p>\n Toronto\u2019s path forwards will likely be determined by Brondello herself, in accordance with the outlook of general manager Monica Wright Rogers. If Brondello is willing to sacrifice winning, which she has been so accustomed to in her WNBA career, and Sykes and Mabrey are able to see the value in sitting games or sacrificing production, then the Tempo are still in a position to tank.<\/p>\n However, there are too many variables at play to confidently suggest that they will adopt that strategy.<\/p>\n Portland Fire: Will go for the tank, should go for the tank<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n