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The WNBA is poised for an historic 30th season after a transformational new collective bargaining agreement was reached in March.
Now the league can focus on the play on the court which will feature the Las Vegas Aces looking for a fourth championship in five years, the return of Caitlin Clark after she missed most of last season with injuries, and the debut of expansion teams the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo.
The Aces have their core intact from last season’s title run, including four-time league MVP A’ja Wilson. She was picked by a national media panel as the pre-season AP player of the year. She became the highest paid player in WNBA history, earning a $5 million US supermax contract extension over the next three years.
Las Vegas has won three of the last four championships with New York taking home the crown in 2024.
The Liberty look poised to challenge the Aces again with their Big Three of Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones and Sabrina Ionescu all returning. Ionescu will miss at least the first couple of weeks of the season with a foot injury she suffered in the pre-season finale over the weekend.
The Liberty added all-star Satou Sabally in free agency and made a coaching change after last season’s first-round exit in the playoffs. They replaced Sandy Brondello with former Golden State Warriors assistant Chris DeMarco. He’s one of five new head coaches in the league.
Brondello didn’t stay unemployed long as she is the head coach of the Tempo, the league’s first team outside of the United States.
Clark played in only 13 games last year after a series of injuries cut short her sophomore season. The Indiana Fever star spent the offseason getting healthy and stronger and is ready to go.
WATCH | Tempo lose 1st pre-season game to Connecticut Sun:
Connecticut Sun defeat Toronto Tempo 83-78 at Coca-Cola Coliseum.
Here are a few other tidbits for the upcoming season:
Free agent movement
While 80 per cent of the players were free agents this off-season with the expected payday of the new CBA, a handful changed teams with coming home a major reason why.
Nneka Ogwumike returned to Los Angeles, Skylar Diggins went to Chicago, putting her closer to her hometown of South Bend, Ind. Sabally came to New York where she was born.
Sunset season
The Sun will play their final season in Connecticut as the franchise will move to Houston next year after the team was sold to Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta. Connecticut has said it will honour its past players and coaches over the course of the season.
This will end a 23-year run by the team in New England after moving to Connecticut from Orlando in 2003.
Injured Lynx
Lynx star Napheesa Collier, who was the runner-up in MVP voting last year, will be out until at least early June while she recovers from ankle surgery she had in March. Collier also had surgery on her right ankle in early January.
“Right now, I’m just working as fast as I can with my doctors and my [physical therapy] staff, just trying to get back on the court,” Collier told reporters in training camp. “But everything is going well, so you’ll see me soon.”
The Lynx will rely on rookie Olivia Miles, who was the No. 2 pick in the WNBA draft last month. She was picked as the AP pre-season rookie of the year.
Where to watch
A record 216 WNBA regular-season games and events will be available on multiple broadcast platforms throughout the year. The league will have games on ABC/ESPN, CBS, Amazon Prime Video, ION, NBC, USA Sports and NBA TV.
Predicted order of finish
Las Vegas was the pre-season No. 1 team in the AP WNBA power poll, which is in its 10th season.
New York Liberty were second, followed by Atlanta, Indiana, Los Angeles, Minnesota and Phoenix. Dallas was eighth with Golden State ninth. Chicago, Washington, Toronto, Seattle, Connecticut and Portland rounded out the poll.
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