The WNBA playoffs are upon us.

Wednesday and Thursday kick off four first-round matchups as part of the WNBA’s newly expanded playoff format: Aces vs. Mercury, Sky vs. Liberty, Sun vs. Wings and Storm vs. Mystics. Each best-of-three matchup brings its own unique storylines and points of intrigue.

Here’s what to keep an eye on as the games begin.

(1) Las Vegas Aces vs. (8) Phoenix Mercury

X-Factor: Offensive rebounding

The Mercury will certainly have their work cut out for them with the Aces, but one way they can get an edge is on the offensive boards. Las Vegas and Phoenix are 10th and 12th, respectively, in the WNBA when it comes to grabbing rebounds for second-chance points. If the Mercury can pick up a few easy buckets on the glass, that could be the difference between keeping it close and letting the Aces run away with it. On the flip side, any extra opportunities for an offensive powerhouse like the Aces will spell trouble for the Mercury.

Player matchup to watch: Kelsey Plum vs. Sophie Cunningham

While these two won’t necessarily be guarding each other, I can definitely see a situation where they start trading 3-pointers. Plum has been explosive offensively for the Aces, averaging a team-high 20.2 points per game on 42 percent shooting from 3. And Cunningham has been a consistent presence amid the chaos of the Mercury’s season, averaging 12.6 points per game on 40 percent shooting from 3.

Stat spotlight: PPG/Points allowed

The Aces are the top scoring team in the league at 90.4 points per game, while the Mercury give up more points per game than any other playoff team. In other words, the Mercury need to do everything possible to slow down the Aces, or this series will get out of hand fast.

Prediction: Aces in 2

Tune in:

• Game 1, Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Game 2, Saturday at 9 p.m. (ESPN2)
• Game 3, Aug. 23 TBD

(2) Chicago Sky vs. (7) New York Liberty

X-Factor: Bench production

For the Sky, that’s Azurá Stevens, Rebekah Garder and Julie Allemand. For the Liberty, it’s a slew of players, but my eye is on Marine Johannès, Sami Whitcomb and Han Xu. These teams both have the luxury of bringing talented players off the bench, and each player has a unique aspect to their game that the starters don’t necessarily provide. For example, there’s the distinctive way Gardner cuts to the basket, or the creative playmaking of Johannès. Whichever team gets the best out of its bench will have a clear advantage.

Player matchup to watch: Courtney Vandersloot vs. Sabrina Ionescu

These two All-Star guards run the show for their respective teams, and both are stat stuffers with multiple triple-doubles to their names. Vandersloot is averaging 11.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 6.5 assist and 1.2 steals a game, while Ionescu contributes 17.4 points, 7.1 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Whichever team comes out on top in this series will largely depend on which point guard has the better run of play.

Stat spotlight: Liberty’s 3-point rate

New York has made a league-high 394 3-pointers this season, and a league-low 687 2-pointers. That trend will likely continue against a Sky team that is second in the WNBA in blocked shots (155), and how consistently the Liberty can make their shots from deep will go a long way toward determining the outcome.

Prediction: Sky in 3

Tune in:

• Game 1, Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
• Game 2, Saturday at 12 p.m. (ESPN)
• Game 3, Aug. 23 TBD

(3) Connecticut Sun vs. (6) Dallas Wings

X-factor: Marina Mabrey

In the absence of Arike Ogunbowale, who’s been sidelined since undergoing a procedure to repair a pelvic injury and will miss the series against the Sun, Mabrey has upped her scoring from 13.6 points to 21.8 points per game. Mabrey’s performance is a big reason the Wings secured their playoff spot in the final week of the season, and if she continues at a similar clip, the former Notre Dame guard can give her team a shot at the upset. On the other hand, if Connecticut shuts her down, that is a big chunk of offense missing for the Wings.

Player matchup to watch: Teaira McCowan vs. Brionna Jones

Two strong, tough post players, McCowan and Jones will bring intensity to this matchup. The 6-foot-3 Jones has been a consistent piece off the bench for the Sun this season, averaging 13.8 points and 5.1 rebounds a game, while McCowan has blossomed in the last two months. She’s averaging 11 points and seven boards on the season, and in August, those numbers have increased to 17.4 points and 11.6 rebounds per game.

Stat spotlight: Offensive rebounding

The Sun average a league-best 10.2 offensive rebounds per contest, while the Wings are third with 9.6. It’s going to be a battle on the glass, and the team that controls the boards — by either grabbing more offensive rebounds or stopping the opponent from getting them — will have a clear edge.

Prediction: Sun in 3

Tune in:

• Game 1, Thursday at 8 p.m. ET (ESPNU, NBATV)
• Game 2, Sunday at 12 p.m. (ABC)
• Game 3, Aug. 24 TBD

(4) Seattle Storm vs. (5) Washington Mystics

X-Factor: Post players on defense

In her second year, Seattle’s Ezi Magbegor is second in the league with 1.8 blocks per game. In her rookie season, Washington’s Shakira Austin is 18th with 0.8 per game. Both provide length inside and have the ability to alter and outright block shots. The way they impact the other team’s offense can change the outcome of the game — and the series.

Player matchup to watch: Jewell Loyd vs. Ariel Atkins

In the three meetings between the Mystics and Storm this season, Loyd and Atkins have performed at a high level each time. Loyd recorded 22, 17 and 15 points, and Atkins put up 11, 13 and 23 points as the Storm took the regular-season series 2-1. Loyd’s elite playmaking against Atkins’ stingy defense also has the potential to bring excitement to this matchup.

Stat spotlight: Assists

Seattle is second in the league in assists with 813 on the year, while Washington slots in at seventh with 729. The Storm are more likely to lean on ball-movement and creating for each other to score, while the Mystics like to create offense in one-on-one situations. Those differing styles should make this one of the most competitive series of the first round.

Prediction: Storm in 3

Tune in:

• Game 1, Thursday at 10 p.m. ET (ESPN2)
• Game 2, Sunday at 4 p.m. (ESPN)
• Game 3, Aug. 24 TBD

Eden Laase is a Staff Writer at Just Women’s Sports. Follow her on Twitter @eden_laase.

The Chicago Sky showed up in a big way on Tuesday night, taking down 2023 WNBA Finals runners-up New York Liberty by an impressively wide margin. 

The Sky walked away with a 101-53 win, boasting a 48 point swing that still looms large despite the fact that it's only preseason. Perhaps the team felt extra pressure to perform — not only did WNBA League Pass follow through on their promise to stream the game for free, but Chicago Bears rookies Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze also happened to be watching on from the stands.

“I’m gonna just say — it’s about time," said Sky guard Dana Evans in response to the star-studded turnout at Wintrust Arena. "Everybody wants to watch women’s basketball. I feel like we’ve been doing a really good job of doing stuff on the court and off the court. So just having them support us is great — but keep bringing them out."

Chicago's Marina Mabrey was lights out with four threes and 20 points on the night, while training camp addition Chennedy Carter racked up 11 points and two steals. 

Sky rookie Angel Reese proved that she can do it all, putting up 13 points, five rebounds, and two steals in 19 minutes — all less than 24 hours after she walked the Met Gala red carpet in New York. The 6-foot-3 top draft pick out of LSU even knocked down a layup over 2023 WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart in one of the night's many highlights.

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"So now yall can delete them drafts & tweets saying i shouldn’t have gone to the met gala & i can’t do both," she later wrote on social media. 

While some may chalk it up to preseason coaching choices and the fact that it was the Liberty’s first real game outside of training camp scrimmages, New York head coach Sandy Brondello still voiced disappointed in her team’s result.

"We just got our butts kicked, everywhere. I mean everything. It’s an embarrassing effort, I don’t care that it’s preseason," she said in a postgame press conference. "Our starters didn't get us off to a good start. We missed a lot of layups early, but they just took us out of everything."

On a lighter note, the third-year Liberty coach had some kind words for undrafted rookie Jaylyn Sherrod, who showed real effort on defense.

"She has speed," remarked Brondello. "She could guard Dana Evans. No one else could."

As the WNBA plans to implement league-wide charter flights, the NWSL is struggling with some travel issues of its own. 

Missed flights, inclement weather, and a stretch of midweek games have spurred workload and logistical concerns for a number of NWSL teams. Last week, three games were played Wednesday night, while another three games are set to be played tonight. 

"You can't play your best XI right now because of the amount of games you have," said Red Stars head coach Lorne Donaldson after last Wednesday's 4-2 loss to Washington. Donaldson emphasized the importance of rotating through the team’s depth so as to avoid injury.

"You have to get to about 16 deep where you can," he continued. "Or else your best XI is going to be injured or walk off the field and they can’t finish the season."

Kansas City has faced some of the league's most extreme turnaround times this season. On Sunday, the Current missed an evening flight to Seattle due to a multi-hour rain delay in Houston, throwing off their training schedule ahead of their midweek match against the Reign. The NWSL eventually gave them the green light to charter a plane, but not before frustration spread throughout the team.

"We lost the whole day of the opportunity to recover," said Current head coach Vlatko Andonovski after the Current's weekend draw against the Dash. "So the schedule, it's already challenging to begin with. We have by far the worst schedule in the league, and this just made it even worse.

"We don't have a hotel, we got to figure out a hotel. We don't have flights for tomorrow, we got to figure out flights. We had trainings for some players that we believe needed training time to be able to perform on Wednesday.”

While the team was given permission to charter a plane, navigating such approvals has proven difficult in the past. This past July, the NWSL fined Kansas City $55,000 over the unauthorized use of a charter flight.

Recently retired WNBA superstar Candace Parker has her next gig lined up: president of women’s basketball at Adidas.

Parker announced her retirement at the end of April, bringing a close to a 16-year professional career spanning three WNBA championship titles with three different teams. And now, she’s stepping into a slightly different role — this time off the court — with longtime sponsor Adidas.

"The brand and I have grown together, and we’ve done some amazing things," she told Fast Company in an exclusive interview published Wednesday morning. "I’m excited about what the future holds on this side of things, because I’m so passionate about growing the game of basketball."

Parker initially signed with Adidas at the end of her first professional season in 2008, going on to spend the vast majority of her illustrious WNBA career linked to the German athletic brand. In 2010, she became the first woman to receive a signature Adidas shoe: the ACE Commander.

Her most recent Adidas collaborations include basketball sneakers Exhibit B (2022) and Exhibit Select (2023) in a variety of different colorways, as well as limited edition off-court apparel.

In 2022, Parker led a mentorship program for the brand’s first class of NIL-sponsored college athletes, a stacked roster that involved the likes of rising star Hailey Van Lith, among others. In her new position, she’ll be "overseeing pretty much everything" when it comes to the brand’s women’s basketball operations.

That "everything" includes weighing in on shoe and clothing design, navigating new and existing athlete partnerships, and taking control of Adidas' grassroots growth strategies. She’ll also help with "how we actually speak to the women’s basketball consumer," Eric Wise, who leads the brand’s global basketball business, told Fast Company.

According to Parker, the decision to accept the offer hinged on her desire to be more than just "the face" of Adidas women’s basketball.

"I said to [Adidas], 'I don’t want to be a mascot,'" Parker said. "'I really want to be in the meetings, and I want to be a part of making decisions.'"

Charter flights are on the horizon for the WNBA, with commissioner Cathy Engelbert saying on Tuesday that the league will provide teams with full-time private travel services beginning as soon as this season. 

The move is set to address years of player safety concerns, among other issues. Engelbert told AP Sports Editors that the league aims to launch the program "as soon as we can logistically get planes in place."

The initiative is projected to cost around $25 million per year over the next two seasons.

The WNBA has previously provided charter flights on a limited basis, including during the postseason and when teams were scheduled to play back-to-back regular season games. Individual owners seeking to independently provide their teams with private travel — such as the New York Liberty’s Joe and Clara Wu Tsai back in 2022 — faced significant fines for using unauthorized charters.

While players and team staff have been calling for league-wide charters even before Caitlin Clark and other high profile rookies joined the league, Engelbert has routinely cited steep year-to-year costs as the reasoning behind sticking to commercial flights. 

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However, the WNBA's surging popularity means increased visibility, and a subsequent uptick in security concerns — especially when it comes to big name newcomers like Clark — has Englebert reconsidering her previous decision. 

WNBA Players Association president Nneka Ogwumike called the move "transformational," and credited the WNBPA as well as the league for its implementation. 

"Our league is growing, the demand for women's basketball is growing," Ogwumike told ESPN. "That means more eyes on us, which is what we want, but that means more protection from the organization that we play for, the whole W that we play for.

"Chartering flights not only is a safety measure, the biggest thing, and then obviously what it means to be able to play a game and go home and rest and recover and be the elite athletes that we try to be every single night when we step out onto this court."

Aces coach Becky Hammon called the immediate response to the charter announcement "great" but noted that there are still kinks to be worked out. 

"What it all looks like, we’re still gathering information, we don’t know," she said Tuesday.

Several players emphasized the importance of safety, highlighting how last season the Phoenix Mercury’s Brittney Griner was harassed in an airport while traveling commercial.

"All these players and these faces are becoming so popular that it really is about that as much as it as about recovery," Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier said.

"Above everything else, I think it's the safety of our players," Mercury player Natasha Cloud added. "We have a prime example with BG on our team that needs to be safe. At airports, it's like a madhouse. You see Caitlin Clark walking through airports, people following her, people trying to touch her, get pictures with her. It's just a safety measure, through and through. You would never have an NBA team walk through an airport."

Prior to Tuesday's announcement, the league had said it would charter flights for the playoffs and back-to-back games via a program introduced last year. The latest news, however, promises that teams will also be provided charters to and from all regular season games.

"Our safety is being taken seriously now, finally. In no world should our security not be a priority," Griner told ESPN. "If we want to be the league that we want to be and have the respect that we have, it comes with some risks. Sometimes people want to get close to you and it's not people you want, so I'm just glad that we don't have to deal with that anymore."