WNBA playoffs rooting guide: Why you should back Caitlin Clark’s Fever and every team still in the race—find out the key reasons. Giang.

One of the most momentous regular seasons in WNBA history is entertaining us up until the very last week, as the Dream, Mystics and Sky are all still battling it out for the final playoff spot.

If the Dream beat the No. 1 seed Liberty Thursday, they’re in. But if they lose, things get pretty complicated: The Mystics need all three teams to end up with the same record to come out on top of a three-way tiebreaker. For the Sky, well let’s just say they need even more help.

While we await the No. 8 seed to complete the playoff field, New York, Minnesota, Connecticut, Las Vegas, Seattle, Indiana, and Phoenix have all punched their tickets. If you’ve been dipping your toes into watching the WNBA this season but haven’t picked a favorite team yet, it’s not too late.

Before the playoffs kick off Sunday, here’s a reason you should or shouldn’t bandwagon each team who has made it this far.

Look, there’s nothing wrong with rooting for the dynasty, especially when MVP favorite A’ja Wilson just became the first player in WNBA history to score 1,000 points in the regular season.

While it’s a bummer if you missed out on her legendary season that was much-watch basketball on a nightly basis, at least you’re showing up and picking a team wisely now…or are you?

Despite the best year of Wilson’s illustrious career, the back-to-back champion Aces have struggled more this season than they had in the past. They’re fourth in the league with a .667 win percentage and a 26-13 record, when they ended the past two years at the top of the league. Part of this is due to key injuries at the beginning of the season, but you could also argue the competition and parity has never been stiffer in the W than it is today.

It’s worth noting most of Vegas’ struggles happened early on, so it’s not like the Aces fell apart late. Perhaps some adversity will actually serve them well and contribute to urgency, too.

At the end of the day, A’ja Wilson is A’ja Wilson, and the best center the game has ever seen is in her prime. The supporting cast of guards like Kelsey Plum (averaging 17.8 points per game) and Jackie Young (15.8 points per game) has been highly entertaining throughout the years, too.

If you’re someone who is a fan of dynasties, odds, and cheering for the best player, feel free to jump on the Aces bandwagon. If you’re someone who prefers to be ahead of the curve or is looking to experience the entirety of a team’s prime, I’d say you missed the boat.

The New York Liberty are the best team in the league that hasn’t won a championship yet, but it feels like they’re dangerously close this time.

They own three conference championships and have played in the WNBA Finals five times, falling to the Houston Comets in 1997, 1999 and 2000, losing to the Los Angeles Sparks in 2002 and losing to the Las Vegas Aces in 2023. They have the most appearances in the WNBA Finals without a championship and are the only remaining original franchise in the league without a title.

New York came back after a brutal Finals loss to the Aces and dominated this regular season with a league-best 31-7 record. The team’s been consistent on both sides of the court all season, and the duo of Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu has been cooking.

Stewart is fourth in the league with 20.6 points per game, meanwhile 2020 first overall pick Ionescu is fifth in assists with 6.2 and fifth in three-pointers made (106). The team as a whole shoots a lot, makes a lot of those shots, and brings a high energy fit for the best mascot in sports—Ellie the Elephant.

The Minnesota Lynx (30-9) weren’t as hyped as the New York Libertys and Las Vegas Aces of the world headed into the season, and Coach of the Year front-runner Cheryl Reeve was quick to point that out when her team won the Commissioner’s Cup earlier in the season.

“You got to talk about us now, you’ve got no choice,” Reeve told ESPN’s Michael Voelpel when the Lynx defeated the Liberty in late June. “We don’t really care what you think, except for right now, when we get to say to you, ‘You’ve got to talk about us.’ …We just beat a superteam. You know how hard that is to do? Because you guys love your superteams. That’s all you want to talk about. But we just beat a superteam. Let’s talk about it.”

The Lynx have been among the most dominant teams post-Olympic break, too. They’ve won 13 of 14 games since their star Napheesa Collier played a significant role in Team USA’s gold medal run. Collier has been averaging 20.7 points, 9.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists since the break, and ranks top-five in points and top-three in steals leaguewide.

The Lynx, who won four titles from 2011 to 2017, run on the most consistent defense and the best coaching in the league. If you’re into the cliche (which is repeated so often because it’s true) that defense wins championships, this is the team for you.

The Connecticut Sun have been one of the most consistently solid teams in the league this year, and it’s resulted in the third-best record at 27-12 and .692. They’ve done it via grit, teamwork, and a rare deadline trade for Marina Mabrey.

DeWanna Bonner and Mabrey lead the team in scoring, averaging 15.1 and 14.4 points per game, respectively, then Brionna Jones is sitting at 14.0, while Most Improved Player candidate DiJonai Carrington is averaging 12.7. Meanwhile, Alyssa Thomas is leading the team in assists per game with a whopping 7.9 and rebounds per game with 8.5.

Of course this goes for any successful team, but the Sun have relied on an overall reliable game and their depth arguably more than any other playoff squad. If you love a good team effort and wholesome vibes, Connecticut might be the sleeper bandwagon for you.

Look, the Seattle Storm have been inconsistent this season, and that’s a testament to how good they can be since they’ve still managed a 24-15 record.

The team started the season with the “core four” made up of two familiar stars, Jewell Loyd and Ezi Magbegor, and two new-to-the-team stars, Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins-Smith. The first half of the season ended with a respectable 17-8 record, but the Storm dropped five of their next eight upon returning from the Olympic break.

The re-addition of Gabby Williams has been a bit of a wake-up call for the Storm, though. She’s been acting as a utility player, adding a boost to various roles in the lineup that need attention as the Storm have returned to form.

The Storm are 5-2 in their last seven, and Williams’ impact includes averaging 13.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.7 steals while shooting 61 percent from the field during a 5-1 run ahead of Tuesday. Speaking of “wake-up calls,” Seattle has struggled with starting games on time but often has the raw talent to come back.

Much like the team, this has been all over the place, and the point is: If you like a challenge and a redemption arc, the Storm have done well enough down the stretch to make things interesting for you.

She’ll be the first to tell you she didn’t just do it herself, but Rookie of the Year front-runner Caitlin Clark has been a force in bringing new eyes to the WNBA and breaking attendance records to boot.

She’s breaking individual records, too, like the rookie scoring record and the single-season assist record among all players. Arguably the best part, though, has been the stark turnaround of the whole Indiana Fever team. Patience not required—the team punched its first ticket to the postseason since 2016 in Clark’s first year, and there’s still time for you to join the hype train.

The cast of characters surrounding Clark stepped up to make her first year count. Kelsey Mitchell is leading the team with 19.6 points per game as Clark has crept up with 19.5. Aliyah Boston, who has found chemistry with Clark along the way that has benefited them both, has a whopping 9.0 rebounds per game. Clark, of course, is leading the league with 8.4 assists per game. Lexie Hull is connecting on 47.8 percent of her many three-point attempts, and her accuracy has significantly improved as the season has gone on.

The best part? The story of this Fever core is just beginning. If you’re looking to stick around and enjoy the WNBA for a while, there’s nothing wrong with going for the obvious choice.

The Phoenix Mercury aren’t bad enough that it would be some historically exciting event if they actually won, but they haven’t been quite “good enough” this year to feel particularly confident in them. So why bandwagon them?

Well, Kahleah Copper immediately comes to mind. Not only is she your favorite player’s favorite player, but she’s No. 3 in the league in scoring with 21.6 points per game and is electric to watch.

You’ve also got absolute legend veterans like Brittney Griner and Diana Taurasi’s twilights to enjoy. Plus, the Mercury have some of the best jerseys in the game, and hey, it might be fun to take a team not many are talking about and become a complete expert regardless of this year’s result.

You know for sure Copper, Griner and Taurasi will be keeping it interesting regardless of how it plays out.

It takes a certain type of person to look at a field of teams to bandwagon and think, “I’m going to pick the absolute last team to squeak in, which will be determined on the last day of the season.”

Perhaps it’s the most honest form of bandwagoning because you’re admitting you didn’t pick a team until the last second and you’re accepting your fate.

Some things to know about the three potential teams as we await Thursday’s final games.

Atlanta: The Dream have had a rough time down the stretch, now 3-8 in their last 11 with Tuesday’s win over the Sky. Still, their active roster is probably pound-for-pound the one with the best chance to upset of the three. They currently own the No. 8 spot and could decide their own fate, automatically clinching if they beat the Liberty on Thursday. A big “if,” I fear.

Sky: The Sky, gasp, took a big and immediate hit after trading Marina Mabrey to the Sun ahead of the deadline. The situation didn’t improve with Angel Reese out for the season. Still, it’s fun to watch Kamilla Cardoso establish herself as the league’s next star center, and it’s been great to see Chennedy Carter rise to the occasion and thrive. The Sky need to seek more offensive help in the offseason, but the pieces have been fun to watch even if it’s unlikely to see them in the playoffs at this point.

Mystics: The Mystics own the tiebreaker against the Dream at a 3-1 advantage, so if they beat the Fever on Thursday and the Liberty beat the Dream, they’ll take over the final playoff spot at the last second. I wonder if the Liberty will rest stars like Stewart and Ionescu. If the Mystics end up squeaking in, you should know this is a solid team on paper that has been plagued with injury after injury throughout the season. They’re 6-4 in their last 10 and went on a pretty convincing streak in September despite dropping their last two.