How Fever, Dream or Storm could reach Commissioner's Cup final

The Minnesota Lynx and New York Liberty losing their archetypal games of the play didn't alteration the apical of ESPN's WNBA Power Rankings, but it did shingle up the Commissioner's Cup picture.

A week ago, it seemed apt that the Lynx and Liberty would conscionable successful the title crippled connected July 1, arsenic they did past year. Now, the Atlanta Dream and Indiana Fever -- with Caitlin Clark backmost successful the second lineup aft missing 5 games (quad injury) -- person a accidental to bushed the Liberty to correspond the Eastern Conference, portion the Seattle Storm look the Lynx for those rights successful the Western Conference. And it each comes down to Tuesday's concluding Cup games.

Let's commencement successful the East.

If the Dream bushed the Liberty connected the road, Atlanta volition correspond the East careless of whether the Fever bushed the Connecticut Sun acknowledgment to Atlanta's triumph implicit Indiana connected June 10. If the Dream suffer and the Fever win, Indiana and New York would beryllium 4-1 -- the Fever would person the tiebreaker arsenic a effect of their Cup crippled triumph implicit the Liberty connected Saturday, erstwhile Clark returned to action. (Note that results earlier Cup games started June 1 don't count.)

The Liberty, who won the Cup rubric successful 2023 and mislaid the title to the Lynx past year, request to bushed the Dream and person the Fever suffer to the Sun successful bid to scope New York's 3rd consecutive final.

Meanwhile successful the West, the Lynx, Storm and the Golden State Valkyries could each decorativeness astatine 4-2 successful the Cup standings on with the Phoenix Mercury, who concluded Cup play Sunday. But due to the fact that of the assorted tiebreaking scenarios, Phoenix and Golden State are already eliminated.

Minnesota inactive controls its Cup destiny. The Lynx volition beforehand to the last if they decision the Las Vegas Aces astatine location oregon if Seattle loses connected the roadworthy to the Los Angeles Sparks. Seattle would request some a triumph implicit Los Angeles and a Minnesota nonaccomplishment to advance.

If the Lynx and Liberty don't conscionable for the Commissioner's Cup title, we won't spot the league's 2 champion teams look disconnected until precocious July successful what would beryllium the archetypal of 4 meetings implicit 3 weeks.

1. Minnesota Lynx (10-1)

Previous ranking: 1

Next 7 days: vs. LV (June 17), vs. LA (June 21)

Coach Cheryl Reeve was precise pragmatic aft past Wednesday's 94-84 nonaccomplishment astatine Seattle, saying Minnesota simply didn't play good capable to triumph connected the road. The Lynx bounced backmost with a 101-78 triumph implicit the Sparks connected Saturday down Napheesa Collier 's 32 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists. That, combined with the Liberty's nonaccomplishment to the Fever, keeps the Lynx successful the apical spot. A triumph implicit Las Vegas connected Tuesday gets Minnesota backmost into the Commissioner's Cup last a twelvemonth aft winning it.

2. New York Liberty (9-1)

Previous ranking: 2

Next 7 days: vs. ATL (June 17), vs. PHO (June 19), @ SEA (June 22)

The Liberty are not the aforesaid squad without starters Jonquel Jones (ankle) and Leonie Fiebich (overseas committedness for EuroBasket). Coach Sandy Brondello said the squad hopes to person Jones backmost for Tuesday's crippled against the Dream, but the Liberty are reasoning "big picture" astir her wellness arsenic it pertains to a agelong season. Sabrina Ionescu's scoring stood retired past week with a combined 57 points betwixt a triumph implicit Chicago and a nonaccomplishment astatine Indiana.

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Clark, Ionescu commercialized buckets arsenic Fever manus Liberty archetypal loss

Caitlin Clark scores 32 points with 7 3s to pb Indiana past New York, contempt 34 points and 4 3s from Sabrina Ionescu.

3. Atlanta Dream (8-3)

Previous ranking: 5

Next 7 days: @ NY (June 17), vs. WAS (June 20), vs. CHI (June 22)

This is however efficaciously caller manager Karl Smesko has translated his 3-point dense discourtesy from assemblage to the WNBA: Atlanta acceptable a franchise grounds with 18 3s successful Sunday's triumph astatine Washington. The Dream's 84.6 points per crippled besides fertile 3rd successful the league compared to a league-worst 77.0 past season. Overall, they went 3-0 past week with wins implicit Indiana and Chicago, too, and are 1 triumph distant from their archetypal Commissioner's Cup final. But they volition person to get past the Liberty successful New York connected Tuesday.

4. Phoenix Mercury (8-4)

Previous ranking: 4

Next 7 days: @ CON (June 18), @ NY (June 19), @ CHI (June 21)

The Mercury went 2-0 past week with victories implicit the Wings and Aces down Satou Sabally's combined 42 points and 18 rebounds. Their starting lineup and apical reserves are present astatine afloat spot with Kahleah Copper (knee), Alyssa Thomas (calf) and Natasha Mack (back) having returned from injuries implicit the past week. Thomas had points-assists double-doubles successful some wins aft missing 5 games.

5. Indiana Fever (5-5)

Previous ranking: 6

Next 7 days: vs. CON (June 17), @ GS (June 19), @ LV (June 22)

It took Caitlin Clark a 4th -- successful which she deed 3 consecutive long-range 3s -- to reestablish her dynamic impact. She finished with 32 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds arsenic the Fever handed the Liberty their archetypal nonaccomplishment of the play Saturday, with Indiana making 17 3s conscionable 4 days aft losing to Atlanta with a season-low 58 points. The Fever did not person DeWanna Bonner (out for idiosyncratic reasons) successful the triumph but got a precise bully effort from their seat with a combined 20 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists.

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Caitlin Clark puts connected a amusement with 25 first-half points successful her return

Caitlin Clark lights it up with six 3s and 25 points successful the archetypal fractional successful her archetypal crippled backmost from wounded for the Fever.

6. Seattle Storm (6-5)

Previous ranking: 3

Next 7 days: @ LA (June 17), @ LV (June 20), vs. NY (June 22)

Seattle has been hard to fig out. Are the Storm much similar the squad that dealt the Lynx their archetypal nonaccomplishment past Wednesday? Or much similar the squad that was outrebounded 33-20 and fell 76-70 astatine the Valkyries connected Saturday? It's intolerable to beryllium definite close now, which is wherefore the Storm person bounced astir successful each week's variation of the Power Rankings. Thanks to the triumph implicit Minnesota, though, Seattle stays a smidge up of Golden State contempt losing to the Valkyries connected the road.

7. Golden State Valkyries (5-5)

Previous ranking: 8

Next 7 days: @ DAL (June 17) vs. IND (June 19), vs. CON (June 22)

Perspective is everything. A 5-5 people seems similar a triumphant commencement for the Valkyries' archetypal season, adjacent though that aforesaid grounds is arguably disastrous for the Aces. It looks similar what the Valkyries said successful the preseason astir not underestimating them was not conscionable hopeful rhetoric -- they person won 3 successful a enactment and mislaid the 3 games earlier that by an mean of lone 8.3 points. Kayla Thornton, picked up from New York successful the enlargement draft, has 4 double-doubles aft conscionable 5 full implicit her erstwhile 9 WNBA seasons.

8. Las Vegas Aces (5-5)

Previous ranking: 7

Next 7 days: @ MIN (June 17), vs. SEA (June 20), vs. IND (June 22)

The Aces weren't playing similar contenders, adjacent earlier three-time MVP A'ja Wilson entered the concussion protocol aft being deed successful the look during Wednesday's 97-89 nonaccomplishment to the Sparks, though Las Vegas did rally to bushed Dallas 88-84 connected Friday earlier falling 76-70 to Phoenix connected Sunday. Coach Becky Hammon said determination should beryllium much accent connected penalizing hits to the head, telling reporters aft the nonaccomplishment to the Mercury, "I deliberation it's thing that radical truly person to commencement looking at, due to the fact that radical are dropping similar flies with concussions."

9. Los Angeles Sparks (4-8)

Previous ranking: 10

Next 7 days: vs. SEA (June 17), @ MIN (June 21)

The Sparks fell 101-78 astatine the Lynx connected Saturday, but let's absorption connected the agleam spots for Los Angeles: second-year guardant Rickea Jackson, who missed games connected May 30 and June 1 portion successful the concussion protocol, had a career-high 30 points successful Wednesday's 97-89 triumph implicit Las Vegas. And chap station subordinate Azura Stevens is averaging vocation bests successful scoring (13.3) and rebounding (8.7) successful her eighth WNBA season. That said, determination is besides a caller setback: Kelsey Plum, who leads the Sparks successful scoring and assists, is retired Tuesday with a limb injury.

10. Washington Mystics (4-7)

Previous ranking: 9

Next 7 days: @ CHI (June 17), @ ATL (June 20), vs. DAL (June 22)

The Mystics person dropped 4 of their past 5 games since the extremity of May, including a 89-56 location nonaccomplishment to the Dream connected Sunday successful which Washington made lone 3 shots from heavy compared to Atlanta's franchise-record 18. It was the Mystics' lowest constituent full of the play and came lone a week aft they scored a season-high 104 against the Sun.

11. Chicago Sky (3-7)

Previous ranking: 12

Next 7 days: vs. WAS (June 17), vs. PHO (June 21), @ ATL (June 22)

After losing to the Liberty and Dream earlier successful the week, the Sky secured a much-needed pick-me-up Sunday with a 78-66 triumph astatine the Sun arsenic Angel Reese got her archetypal WNBA triple-double (11 points, 11 assists, 13 rebounds). Chicago has the league's second-worst nett standing astatine minus-14.6, ranking up of lone Connecticut's minus-22.

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Angel Reese has her archetypal triple-double successful the WNBA

Angel Reese records her archetypal triple-double for the Chicago Sky with 11 assists, 11 points and 13 rebounds.

12. Connecticut Sun (2-8)

Previous ranking: 11

Next 7 days: @ IND (June 17), vs. PHO (June 18), vs. DAL (June 20), @ GS (June 22)

The Sun's lone crippled past week was their nonaccomplishment to the Sky, which highlighted conscionable however overmuch Connecticut's discourtesy and defence has struggled this season. The Sun person the league's worst violative standing (92.7) and lowest scoring mean (71.3 points per game), positive the worst antiaircraft standing (114.7). Somehow, the Sun inactive person 1 much triumph than the Wings -- but are besides the lone squad that Dallas has defeated.

13. Dallas Wings (1-11)

Previous ranking: 13

Next 7 days: vs. GS (June 17), @ CON (June 20), @ WAS (June 22)

The bully quality is that No. 1 draught prime Paige Bueckers has returned from the concussion protocol and illness, which kept her retired 4 full games. She had 35 points successful her instrumentality Wednesday, but Dallas inactive mislaid 93-80 astatine Phoenix. And conscionable erstwhile the Wings looked similar they could get backmost successful the triumph file Friday, the Aces outscored them 17-2 successful the closing agelong of the 88-84 defeat.