Power classification of the WNBA: First lynx, Liberty Open race to cup championship losses

The Minnesota Lynx and New York Liberty losing their first games of the season did not change the summit of the Power Wnba ranking of ESPN, but he upset the photo of the commissioner’s cup.

A week ago, it seemed likely that the lynx and freedom would meet during the championship match on July 1, as they did last year. Now, Atlanta’s dream and Indiana fever – with Caitlin Clark in this last program after missing five games (Quad injury) – have a chance to beat the freedom to represent the Eastern Conference, while the Seattle storm confronts the lynx for these rights to the Western conference. And everything comes down to the Tuesday cup games.

Let’s start in the East.

If the dream beat freedom on the road, Atlanta will represent the Orient, that the fever bats the Connecticut Sun thanks to the victory of Atlanta over Indiana on June 10. If the dream loses and the fever, Indiana and New York would have 4-1 – the fever would have returned to the action. (Note that the results before the cup games on June 1 do not count.))

The Liberty, which won the title of the Cup in 2023 and lost the championship against the Lynx last year, must beat the dream And Ask the fever to lose the sun in order to reach the third consecutive final in New York.

Meanwhile, in the West, the lynx, the Storm and the Golden State Valkyries could all finish at 4-2 in the Cup classification with the Phoenix Mercury, which concluded the Cup cup on Sunday. But due to the different shooting scenarios, Phoenix and Golden State are already eliminated.

Minnesota always controls its cutting destiny. The lynx will switch to the final if they defeat Las Vegas at home or if Seattle loses on the road to the sparks of Los Angeles. Seattle would need both a victory over Los Angeles and a defeat of Minnesota to move forward.

If the lynx and freedom do not meet for the title of the commissioner’s cup, we will not see the two best teams of the League compete until the end of July in what would be the first of the four meetings over three weeks.

Previous classification: 1

Following seven days: Vs. LV (June 17), against (June 21)

Coach Cheryl Reeve was very pragmatic after the defeat of 94-84 from last Wednesday in Seattle, saying that Minnesota was just not playing well enough to win on the road. The Lynx rebounded with a 101-78 victory against the Sparks on Saturday behind the 32 points of Napheesa Necklace, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. This, combined with the loss of liberty against fever, maintains the lynx in the front row. A victory over Las Vegas on Tuesday will bring the Minnesota back to the commissioner’s cup final a year after winning it.

Previous classification: 2

Following seven days: Vs. ATL (June 17), against Pho (June 19), @ sea (June 22)

Liberty are not the same team without starters Jonquel Jones (ankle) and Leonie Fiebich (commitment abroad for Eurobasket). Coach Sandy Brondello said the team hoped that Jones returned for Tuesday’s match against the dream, but freedom is thinking about the “big image” of his health with regard to a long season. The Sabrina Ionescu score stood out last week with 57 points combined between a victory against Chicago and a defeat at Indiana.

Previous classification: 5

Following 7 days: @ Ny (June 17), against (June 20), against Chi (June 22)

This is how the coach of the new coach Karl Pmesko translated his heavy 3 -point offense from the University to the WNBA: Atlanta set a franchise record with 18 3s in the victory of Sunday in Washington. The 84.6 points of the dream per game are also ranked third in the league, against 77.0 the league last season. Overall, they went 3-0 last week with victories against Indiana and Chicago, and are also a victory for the final of their first commissioner. But they will have to go beyond New York freedom on Tuesday.

Previous classification: 4

Following 7 days: @ Con (18), @ nyy (19), @ 21)

The Mercury went 2-0 last week with victories on the wings and the Aces behind the 42 points combined by Sutou Sabally and 18 rebounds. Their departure alignment and their upper reserves are now at full power with Kahleah Copper (knee), Alyssa Thomas (calf) and Natasha Mack (rear) having returned from injuries during last week. Thomas had double points double in the two victories after missing five games.

Previous classification: 6

Following 7 days: Vs. con (June 17), @ gs (June 19), @ lv (June 22)

It took a quarter of Caitlin Clark – in which she struck three consecutive long 3 3 – to restore her dynamic impact. She finished with 32 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds when the fever gave freedom their first defeat of the season on Saturday, Indiana making only 17 3s after having lost against Atlanta with a 58-point-me season. The fever had not Dewanna Bonner (for personal reasons) in victory, but obtained a very good effort from their bench with 20 combined points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists.

Previous classification: 3

Following seven days: @ La (June 17), @ lv (June 20), against NY (June 22)

Seattle was difficult to understand. Does the storm look more like the team that treated the lynx its first defeat last Wednesday? Or more like the team that was exceeded 33-20 and fell 76-70 in the Valkyries on Saturday? It is impossible to be sure at the moment, which is why the storm has rebounded in the edition of each week of the Power ranking. Thanks to the victory over Minnesota, however, Seattle remains a bit ahead of Golden State despite its loss against the Valkyries on the road.

Previous classification: 8

Following 7 days: @ Dal (June 17) against Ind (June 19), against Con (June 22)

The perspective is everything. A 5-5 brand seems to be a triumphant start for the first season of the Valkyries, even if this same record is undoubtedly disastrous for the ACE. It seems that what the Valkyries said during the pre-season not to underestimate them was not only a rhetoric full of hope-they won three in a row and lost the three games before that on average only 8.3 points. Kayla Thornton, taken from New York in the expansion draft, has four double double after only five in total during her nine seasons of the previous WNBA.

Previous classification: 7

Following 7 days: @ Min (June 17), against Sea (June 20), against Ind (June 22)

The aces did not play as pretenders, even before the MVP quarter, A’ja Wilson entered the concussion protocol after being struck in the face during the defeat of 97-89 on Wednesday against the Sparks, although Las Vegas joined Dallas 88-84 before falling 76-70 in Phoenix on Sunday. Coach Becky Hammon said that the emphasis should be on the penalty of successes, saying to journalists after loss of mercury, “I think it’s something that people really have to start looking at, because people fall like flies in concussions.”

Previous classification: 10

Following 7 days: Vs. Sea (June 17), @ min (June 21)

The Sparks fell 101-78 at the Lynx on Saturday, but let’s focus on Los Angeles’s light points: the second year striker Rickea Jackson, who missed the matches on May 30 and June 1, while in the concussion protocol, raised a 30-point career summit in the 97-89 Wednesday victory on Las Vegas. And his colleague player Azura Stevens displays the best career in score (13.3) and bouncing (8.7) in his eighth WNBA season. That said, there is also a recent setback: Kelsey Plum, which leads score and help sparks, was released on Tuesday with a leg injury.

Previous classification: 9

Following 7 days: @ Chi (June 17), @ ATL (June 20), against Dal (June 22)

The mystics have lost four of their last five games since the end of May, including a home loss of 89-56 against the dream on Sunday in which Washington made only 3 deep shots compared to the Atlanta 18 franchise. It was the lowest total of the Mystics and came only a week after marking a summit of the 104 season against the Sun.

Previous classification: 12

Following 7 days: Vs. was (June 17), against Pho (June 21), @ ATL (June 22)

After losing against the Liberty and Dream earlier in the week, the sky obtained a good boost necessary Sunday with a 78-66 victory in the Sun while Angel Reese obtained his first triple-double WnBA (11 points, 11 assists, 13 rebounds). Chicago has the second net note in the League in Minus-4.6, ranking ahead of only the MINUS-22 in Connecticut.

Previous classification: 11

Following 7 days: @ Ind (June 17), against Pho (June 18), against Dal (June 20), @ GS (June 22)

The only sun match last week was their defeat against the sky, which underlined how the attack and defense of Connecticut had trouble this season. The sun has the worst offensive note of the league (92.7) and the lowest average (71.3 points per match), the worst defensive note (114.7). In one way or another, the sun still has a victory more than the wings – but are also the only team that Dallas has defeated.

Previous classification: 13

Following 7 days: Vs. GS (June 17), @ con (June 20), @ was (June 22)

The good news is that the choice n ° 1 of the draft of Paige Bueckers returned from the protocol and the disease of the concussion, which prevented him from four games in total. She had 35 points in her return Wednesday, but Dallas has always lost 93-80 in Phoenix. And just when the wings seemed to be able to return to the victory column on Friday, the Aces outclased them 17-2 in the closing section of the 88-84 defeat.