WNBA midseason grades: Why Liberty, Lynx, Sun get high marks

The WNBA team in the Big Apple is at the top of the class. The two-time defending champion is above average. And a playoff team from last season needs study hall.

With the league’s 12 teams at or near the halfway point of the 40-game schedule, it’s time for the WNBA midseason report card.

Grades are always somewhat subjective, but the top three — the New York Liberty, Minnesota Lynx and Connecticut Sun — were clear. The Liberty have a slight grading edge with three more wins than the Lynx, although New York also has played one more game.

The 17-3 Liberty’s high grade isn’t unexpected; they returned all the key players from the 2023 team that lost to the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA Finals. But New York’s depth and cohesion were on display when it played an eight-game stretch without point guard Courtney Vandersloot, who was away because of her mother’s death.

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Last year’s experience with a new-look team — the Liberty brought in forwards Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones in addition to Vandersloot — helped prepare New York for what it hopes is the franchise’s long-awaited championship run.

Minnesota (14-5) won the in-season Commissioner’s Cup title and hopes to get back to the WNBA Finals for the first time since the Lynx won their fourth championship in 2017. The 15-4 Sun, like the Liberty, are still seeking the franchise’s first WNBA championship, but once again they are in the mix.

The back-to-back champion Aces are 11-6 and not in the “A” grades now. But after hitting what for them seemed like rock bottom with a .500 record on June 15, things have gotten considerably better, as they match the Liberty’s current five-game winning streak. The Aces’ grade has improved a lot in the past two weeks.

Rookies Angel Reese of the Chicago Sky and Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever both would get As for how quickly they’ve adjusted to pro ball. Their teams don’t grade that high, but the Sky and Liberty should feel good about being in the playoff discussion.

The teams at the bottom of the report card aren’t out of playoff contention yet. But things must change a lot for them to climb into the top eight.

The Liberty haven’t been perfect, but they’ve been pretty darn good. They made the Commissioner’s Cup final, losing to Minnesota, and they also have gone 1-1 vs. the Lynx in the regular season. New York is 9-1 in its past 10 games (not counting the Cup final) and ranks second in the league in scoring (87.2) and first in rebounding (36.3) and 3-pointers per game (10.5). Extra credit: Mascot Ellie the Elephant is killing it.