Now a month into the 2024 WNBA season, we are getting a good idea of what teams will look like and which teams are separating themselves from the rest of the pack.
We have seen dominance atop the league standings, including strong starts to the year from the Connecticut Sun, New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx. We have also seen some disappointing starts to the year, including those from the Washington Mystics, Dallas Wings and others.
With that said, it’s time to update our Winsidr Power Rankings now a month-plus into the regular season and as we sit about a month away from the Olympic Break. Our Winsidr staff got together to update our ranking of all 12 teams in the WNBA, which includes some movement compared to our first edition at the beginning of the year.
Let’s jump right into our latest Winsidr Power Rankings.
Biggest Increase – Seattle Storm (+4)
The team that saw the biggest leap in our Power Rankings from the first volume is the Seattle Storm, who leaped four spots in our latest rankings.
Seattle got off to a bit of a slower start to the regular season, losing three of its four contests while working in Nneka Ogwumike, Skylar Diggins-Smith and other offseason additions to the roster. During that four-game span to begin the year, it felt like we hadn’t seen the Storm to its full potential, but that quickly has turned around over the past month or so.
Over its last 10 games, Seattle has been one of the hottest teams in the WNBA, winning eight of those games highlighted by a six-game winning streak spanning May 22-June 7. Over that 10-game stretch, the Storm have ranked in the top three in the league in both offensive rating (third) and defensive rating (second). The trio of Jewell Loyd, Ogwumike and Diggins-Smith have led that charge, all averaging north of 15 points per game this season.
Seattle has figured things out quickly after a slower start, which is expected from a team with a flood of talent who are still figuring out how to play together. Midway through the month of June, the Storm are now a top-four team in the WNBA.
Biggest Decrease – Dallas Wings (-5)
The squad which saw the biggest drop in our Power Rankings is the Dallas Wings, who are quickly sliding down the WNBA standings while seeing consecutive losses and injuries continue to pile up.
The Wings dropped five spots in our latest rankings, seeing their losing streak extend to eight in a row following a loss to the Minnesota Lynx on June 17, while inching closer to the bottom spot in the league. To Dallas’ defense, it has played some top-level talent over that losing streak, but its recent slide is concerning and there might not be much end in sight with health an even bigger concern.
Dallas was already dealing with the absences of Natasha Howard (foot) and Satou Sabally (shoulder), two key pieces who have yet to appear in a game this season. But the Wings are now faced with injury concerns with leading-scorer Arike Ogunbowale, who was an addition to the injury report ahead of the game against Minnesota with Achilles soreness.
The Wings were already having troubles staying afloat with Ogunbowale in the lineup, and now their three biggest pieces will have missed time this season, all while the team continues to slide. Dallas will have to try and figure things out quickly to jump up the WNBA standings before the season gets away from them.
Team to Watch – Las Vegas Aces
A team we are watching over the next few weeks is the Las Vegas Aces. The defending champions have hit a bit of a road bump to begin the 2024 season, looking like a different team than what we saw a season ago in a dominating journey to the WNBA title.
Granted, Las Vegas is somewhat of a different team with the absence of Chelsea Gray, who is still fighting her way back to the court from a foot injury she suffered during the 2023 WNBA Finals. If Gray was fully healthy, this Aces squad would look different and likely more dominant, but that isn’t the case until the point guard does return to the floor.
Las Vegas has once again been one of the top offensive teams in the WNBA, sitting second in the league in offensive rating at the midway point in June. But the defense of the Aces is what has dropped off so far this year, ranking 10th in the WNBA in defensive rating. As a result, Las Vegas has dropped six of its last 10 games heading into a battle against Dallas on June 19.
We’re watching the Aces to see if they are not only able to turn things around and get back to the level of which we saw the past few years, but if they are able to get onto the same page as a team and find their identity on both ends of the floor. That is something head coach Becky Hammon said earlier in the season the team still needed to improve upon if they wanted to return as league champions.
