The WNBA’s 26th season tips off with a quadruple-header on Friday night, ushering in another year full of on- and off-court intrigue. As teams take the next step in their rebuilds, and others make a push for championship contention, the league is on the cusp of one of its most competitive seasons yet.

Just Women’s Sports WNBA experts Rachel Galligan and Lyndsey D’Arcangelo got together to break it all down, analyzing the impact of teams’ offseason moves and making their predictions for WNBA champion, individual awards and other fun categories. Let’s get to it.

Prediction for champion

Chicago Sky

It is nearly impossible at this stage to determine who will win it all between the Connecticut Sun, Chicago Sky and Seattle Storm. I give the nod to the Sky based on their experience winning the 2021 championship and their free-agent acquisitions of Emma Meesseman and Julie Allemand. Did the Sky just catch lightning in a bottle when they peaked in the playoffs as the No. 6 seed and won it all last year? I don’t think so, and I don’t expect a team led by Candace Parker, Allie Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot to be complacent. We have yet to see this team be consistently dominant over the course of a season, as Parker alluded to earlier this week. This season could be it. — Rachel Galligan

Connecticut Sun

The Sun have been in the championship conversation for the past few seasons, making the WNBA Finals in 2019 and the semifinals in 2020 and 2021. This year could finally be their breakthrough. Jonquel Jones is primed to be a frontrunner again for MVP, Alyssa Thomas is healthy, Courtney Williams is back with the team for another run and the entire roster is as solid as it has ever been. If Connecticut can find a second gear in the playoffs and capitalize on their fine-tuned regular season chemistry, a WNBA trophy will be the result. — Lyndsey D’Arcangelo

Prediction for MVP

Breanna Stewart, Seattle Storm

Sue Bird’s final ride is motivation enough for the Storm to be a favorite to win it all, and I expect Breanna Stewart to be back at 100-percent superstardom after signing a one-year deal of her own in the offseason. Stewart’s 2021 season was cut short when she suffered a left foot injury in early September, and the Storm stumbled into a fourth-place finish and single-game elimination in the playoffs. Stewart has a track record of bouncing back from injuries, most recently when she was named 2020 Finals MVP after missing all of the 2019 season. — Galligan

Tina Charles, Phoenix Mercury

The Brittney Griner situation is delicate, and with each day that passes, the urgency to secure her safe return home grows. The U.S. State Department recently reclassified Griner as “wrongfully detained” by Russia. Basketball, of course, is secondary to her well-being. But in her absence, the Phoenix Mercury will need to rely more on Tina Charles in the post, and Charles is used to fulfilling that role. Last season, she was the go-to player for the injury-riddled Washington Mystics and led the league in scoring with 23.4 points per game. With Charles having already teamed up with Diana Taurasi and Skylar Diggins-Smith on Team USA, chemistry shouldn’t be an issue for the Mercury. The 6-foot-4 center will get plenty of looks and opportunities to dominate in the lane. — D’Arcangelo

Prediction for Defensive Player of the Year

Sylvia Fowles, Minnesota Lynx

Even as she enters her farewell season in the WNBA at 36 years old, Fowles is still playing some of the best basketball of her career, especially on the defensive end of the floor. The 14-year veteran’s imposing size, agility, rim protection and rebounding abilities are tough for any opponent to match up with, and I expect her to leave it all on the line for the Lynx this year. — Galligan

Sylvia Fowles, Lynx

How cool would it be if Sylvia Fowles added yet another Defensive Player of the Year honor to her resume in her last season in the WNBA — bringing her grand total to five and tying the legendary Tamika Catchings? Fowles has been one of the most dominant and versatile defensive players in the league during her career. She not only blocks shots, but she also excels at bodying-up opponents, making them uncomfortable in the lane and forcing them into bad shots. Every game day is just another one at the office for Fowles. — D’Arcangelo

Prediction for Rookie of the Year

Rhyne Howard, Atlanta Dream

Rhyne Howard, the No. 1 pick in last month’s draft, enters a situation in Atlanta that’s perfectly suited for the 6-2 guard to gain valuable minutes, experience and confidence on the floor. And as we learned from her stellar career at Kentucky, when Howard gets minutes, she racks up points. As the franchise looks to rebuild from the ground up, Howard should have the ball in her hands often with every opportunity to make her mark on the WNBA. — Galligan

Rhyne Howard, Dream

In the past couple of seasons, we’ve seen the Rookie of the Year award come down to which player gets the most playing time and opportunities to impact the game. This year, there will be plenty of rookies thrust into larger roles, notably the Indiana Fever’s five rostered draft picks, but Howard could have the biggest effect of them all. She’s going to have a chance to showcase her talent in full capacity for the Dream, and she has all the tools to make the most of it. — D’Arcangelo

Prediction for Coach of the Year

James Wade, Chicago Sky

Chicago had a rollercoaster 2021 regular season, following up a seven-game losing streak at the beginning to the season with a seven-game win streak and entering the playoffs as the No. 6 seed before winning it all. I do not expect that to be the case this year. James Wade has the entire package of superstar talent, veteran experience, chemistry and confidence to keep his team near the top of the standings all season long. His offseason acquisition of Messeeman immediately enhances this roster. — Galligan

Sandy Brondello, New York Liberty

The Liberty are ready to take that next step, and Brondello has the experience and coaching pedigree to get them there. Sabrina Ionescu was considered a franchise player when she entered the league as the No. 1 pick in 2020, but experienced a setback when she suffered an ankle injury early in her rookie season. With Brondello at the helm (and Ionescu saying she finally feels healthy), the guard could have the kind of breakout season Liberty fans have been waiting for. — D’Arcangelo

Team with most breakout potential

Dallas Wings

In 2021, the Wings emerged as one of the most dangerously young and talented teams in the WNBA, capable of causing opponents fits on any given night. With another year of experience, I could see the Wings taking the next step in their progression, from a seventh-place finish last season to a top-five team in the league and a playoff contender. To get there, they will need to improve most drastically on the defensive end of the floor. — Galligan

New York Liberty

I agree with Rachel that the Wings are primed for a breakout season, as they have been on the cusp for a couple of years now. But the Liberty are also ready to raise their game to another level, especially with Stefanie Dolson in the mix and Natasha Howard healthy. This team has a lot of weapons, and although the bulk of the roster is still young, there’s a good balance of experienced vets who can help lead the way. — D’Arcangelo

High-risk, high-reward team

Los Angeles Sparks

In 2021, Los Angeles battled injuries, inconsistencies and an inability to score the basketball. Derek Fisher and the Sparks’ front office addressed those shortcomings with some of the biggest moves of the offseason, signing Liz Cambage, Chennedy Carter and Katie Lou Samuelson. When you combine the newcomers with the veteran returners, the Sparks have an extremely talented roster on paper. How quickly the Sparks can build chemistry and gel on the floor will make or break them this season. — Galligan

Los Angeles Sparks

Los Angeles took a big swing in free agency, bringing in Cambage and trading for Carter and Samuleson. All three players have the potential for breakout offensive performances, which the Sparks desperately need after finishing last in the league in points per game in 2021. Still, the combination of big personalities like Cambage and Carter has the potential to backfire, because what happens in the locker room directly impacts the outcome on the court. But if the Sparks can mesh as a team and work together toward a common goal, the payoff could be a playoff appearance and possibly more. — D’Arcangelo

Best comeback story

Alysha Clark, Washington Mystics

The Mystics’ success this season hinges on the health and consistency of their roster, and that starts with Elena Delle Donne and Alysha Clark. Clark missed the 2021 season with a foot injury she sustained while playing overseas, and the former Storm guard has yet to play a game in a Mystics jersey. While recovery from any season-ending injury requires patience, if Clark is back to playing her best basketball mid-season, she can help lead the Mystics on a deep playoff run with her tenacity on defense and versatility on offense. — Galligan

Elena Delle Donne, Mystics

The Mystics were just not the same team without Delle Donne on the floor the past two seasons. After the 2019 MVP underwent multiple back surgeries to repair herniated discs, what happens from here is anyone’s guess. But if Delle Donne can stay on the court and dominate the way she is capable of, alongside an equally healthy Clark, Washington has a legitimate chance to not only make the playoffs this year, but to compete for another WNBA championship. — D’Arcangelo

Biggest impact on a new team

Liz Cambage, Los Angeles Sparks

While the Sparks won’t need to pound the ball inside to Cambage over and over, like we saw with the Wings in 2018, the center has the opportunity to thrive in an offensive system designed to put her in situations where she’s at her best. That includes playing with her back to the basket, facing up and owning the paint with Nneka Ogwumike. The Sparks made sure to add 3-point threats in the offseason between Samuelson and their draft class, which should allow them to challenge defenses and open up the floor for Cambage to do damage down low. — Galligan

Indiana’s rookie class

We’ve never seen a rookie class like the one the Indiana Fever have put together this season. NaLyssa Smith, Emily Engstler, Lexie Hull, Queen Egbo and Destanni Henderson are essentially a college All-Star team, and Fever interim general manager Lin Dunn has stressed that these players were drafted to play a lot of minutes away. For a team in the midst of a long rebuild, how can they not have an impact? — D’Arcangelo

Other storyline you have your eye on

Connecticut finally at 100-percent health

We have yet to see the Sun’s vision for their Big Three of Jonquel Jones, Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner come to fruition. Jones missed the 2020 bubble season, and Alyssa Thomas missed the majority of the 2021 season while recovering from a torn Achilles. Finally at full strength, the Sun are poised to make a run at their first WNBA championship if they can stay healthy. — Galligan

Brittney Griner

As the WNBA season gets underway, Griner’s situation hangs over the games. The league stated earlier this week that getting the Mercury center home is paramount, and throughout the season, her initials and numbers will be displayed on every team’s court. The gesture is a show of solidarity and offers a constant reminder that Griner is on everyone’s mind. — D’Arcangelo

Rachel Galligan is a basketball analyst at Just Women’s Sports. A former professional basketball player and collegiate coach, she also contributes to Winsidr. Follow Rachel on Twitter @RachGall.

Lyndsey D’Arcangelo is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports, covering the WNBA and college basketball. She also contributes to The Athletic and is the co-author of “Hail Mary: The Rise and Fall of the National Women’s Football League.” Follow Lyndsey on Twitter @darcangel21.

Seven-time Olympic gold medalist Katie Ledecky will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, at a White House ceremony this afternoon. 

The Team USA standout is the most decorated women’s swimmer in the sport’s history. In addition to her seven Olympic golds, she’s also won a total of 21 gold medals at the World Championships, the most of any swimmer regardless of gender. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

The esteemed award recognizes those who have "made exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors," according to a White House press briefing. 

Ledecky is one of 19 medal recipients chosen by the Biden administration this year. She joins a class that spans the worlds of politics, sports, film, human rights, religion, and science. Her fellow 2024 awardees include Everything Everywhere All at Once actress Michelle Yeoh, pioneering Hispanic astronaut Dr. Ellen Ochoa, and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, plus posthumous winners Jim Thorpe, the first Native American to win an Olympic gold medal for the US, and assassinated civil rights leader Medgar Evers. 

Olympic gymnast Simone Biles and USWNT legend Megan Rapinoe were among 2022’s class of Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients. Biles and Rapinoe were the fifth and sixth women athletes to be given the honor, making Ledecky the seventh.

After an illustrious career for both club and country, Gotham FC and U.S. Women’s National Team defender Kelley O’Hara announced today via Kelley on the Street that she will be retiring from professional soccer at the end of this year, making the 2024 NWSL season her last.

"I have always said I would play under two conditions: that I still love playing soccer, and if my body would let me do it the way I wanted to," O’Hara told Just Women’s Sports in the lead-up to her retirement announcement. "I realized a while back that I was always going to love it, so it was the physical piece that was going to be the deciding factor."

The 35-year-old will retire as a two-time World Cup champion, an Olympic gold medalist, and at least a two-time NWSL champion, depending on where Gotham finishes this season. Her legacy as a player is hard to fully encapsulate, and will forever run through some of the biggest snapshots in USWNT and NWSL history. 

In 2012, O’Hara played every minute of the USWNT’s Olympic gold medal run, after having recently converted into a defender. Her soaring goal off the bench in the 2015 World Cup semifinal is the stuff of legend. And her return from lingering injury to play in every knockout match of the national team’s 2019 World Cup win cemented a storybook international career. 

It was O’Hara who scored the overtime goal in 2021 to earn the Washington Spirit their first-ever NWSL championship, and O’Hara who returned to help see Gotham earn a title in 2023 after years spent in the trenches with the club’s previous iteration, Sky Blue. Her 15-year career spanned two professional women’s soccer leagues in the U.S. (she earned her first professional title in 2010 with WPS’s FC Gold Pride), as well as sweeping changes to the sport both on and off the pitch.

On the field, O’Hara has always been known for a motor that never quits, making the right flank her domain in attacking possession and defensive transition. In recent years, she’s also been celebrated for a competitive fire that raises the level of her teammates, whether she’s in the starting XI or supporting from the bench.

But injuries take a toll, a reality not always seen by the fans watching from home. "I've never taken anything for granted, and I feel like I've never coasted either," O’Hara said of her late-career success in the NWSL despite battling injuries. "I've always been like, 'I gotta put my best foot forward every single day I step on this field' — which is honestly probably half the reason why I'm having to retire now as opposed to getting a couple more years out of it. I've just grinded hard."

Recently, O’Hara has been sidelined at Gotham with ankle and knee injuries, and the situation motivated her to really prioritize listening to her body. "To get injured and come back, and get injured and come back, and just keep doing it, it really takes a toll on you.

"People don't see the doubt that's associated with injury,” she continued. "As athletes we feel a certain way, we perform a certain way, our body feels a certain way, we're very in tune with our bodies. And there's always so much doubt surrounding injury. It’s like, 'Can I feel the way I felt before?' The reality is sometimes you don't."

O’Hara didn’t arrive at the decision to move on from her playing career lightly. But once she began seriously considering making 2024 her final year during the last NWSL offseason, it felt right. "Once I was like, 'Alright, you know what, this will be my last year,' I have had a lot of peace with it," she said. "Truly the only thing I felt was gratitude for everything that my career has been, all the things I've been able to do and the people I've been able to do it with."

She said she’ll miss daily interactions with her teammates and all the amazing memories they’ve created, though she feels lucky to have formed relationships that go beyond sharing a locker room. "You're basically getting to hang out and just shoot the shit with your best friends every day," she reflected. "Which is so unheard of, and I just feel very lucky to do it for so long."

The Stanford graduate also mentioned that the NWSL’s suspension of regular season play in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic made her realize how much playing allowed her the space to simply be creative every day. The tactical elements of soccer provided O’Hara an outlet for problem solving and made use of her naturally competitive edge.

She’s now gearing up to channel her on-field intensity into her post-playing career full time, which is a new chapter she’s excited to begin. "I don't know if the world's ready for it, like the fact that I'm not going to be putting all of my energy into football all the time," she said with a laugh. 

O’Hara said she would like to stay connected to the game in some fashion, whether it be as an owner, coach, or member of a front office. She’s also interested in the growing media space surrounding women’s sports, having provided on-camera analysis for broadcasters like CBS Sports in addition to starting a production company with her fiancée.

"I just feel like I have a lot of passions, and things that excite me," she says. "And I do want to stay as close as I can to the game, because I feel a responsibility — and I'm not sure in what capacity — to continue to grow it."

A sense of responsibility to grow the game has been a consistent refrain for the USWNT and NWSL players of O’Hara’s era, who ushered in a new age of equal pay for the national team and collectively bargained protections for those in the league. The landscape for new players looks different than it did 14 years ago, in large part due to this pivotal generation.

"I feel an immense sense of pride around that, because I don't know if any of us knew that was gonna happen," she said. "We kind of, as things unfolded, took the next step towards changing what women's football looks like in this country and around the world.

"I'm really grateful to have been part of this era with the players that I was [with], not backing down and pushing and knowing that was the right thing to do."

Whatever the future holds, O’Hara is going ahead full throttle. It’s a piece of advice she’d also give to the next generation of professionals looking to make their own impact.

"Whatever you do in life, do it because you love it, and the chips will fall in place," she said. "If you love something, you're willing to do what it takes. You're willing to make the sacrifices, you're willing to handle the roller coaster.

"To me, it's simple. Don't do it for any other reason but that, and I think you'll be alright."

The Phoenix Mercury center spoke with Robin Roberts about her 10-month incarceration, reflecting on her poor living conditions and shaky mental state ahead of her May 7th memoir.

"The mattress had a huge blood stain on it. I had no soap, no toilet paper," Griner told the ABC News anchor in last night’s 20/20 special. "That was the moment where I just felt less than a human." 

She also detailed some of her lowest moments during that time, saying with tears in her eyes that she went so far as to consider taking her own life on more than one occasion. However, the thought of Russian officials not releasing her body back to her family made her reconsider.

"I just didn't think I could get through what I needed to get through," said Griner.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

In February 2022, Griner was arrested and charged with drug possession and smuggling by a Russian court after Sheremetyevo International Airport police found vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage. The cartridges were prescribed by Griner’s doctor for chronic pain back in Arizona, where medical marijuana is legal. In the interview, the two-time Olympic gold medalist said she had a "mental lapse" while packing, and never intended to bring the cannabis products with her when she returned to play for UMMC Ekaterinburg.

"It's just so easy to have a mental lapse," Griner said. "Granted, my mental lapse was on a more grand scale. But it doesn't take away from how that can happen." 

She was later sentenced to nine years behind bars after her Russian attorneys advised her to plead guilty the following July. Griner was then sent to a remote penal colony where she was forced to spend her days cutting cloth to make military uniforms. From there, it only got worse.

"Honestly, it just had to happen," she said when asked about her decision to cut off her signature long locks. "We had spiders above my bed making nests.

"My dreads started to freeze," she added. "They would just stay wet and cold and I was getting sick. You've gotta do what you've gotta do to survive."

Shortly after Griner’s initial arrest, the U.S. State Department classified her case as wrongfully detained, escalating its urgency within the government and calling even more attention to the situation. On December 8th, she was freed in a prisoner exchange negotiated by the Biden administration.

While she told Roberts she was "thrilled" when she got the news, she was also very upset about having to leave fellow wrongful detainee Paul Whelan behind. She also continues to carry guilt about her arrest, saying "At the end of the day, it's my fault. And I let everybody down."

Griner’s memoir, Coming Home, hits shelves on May 7th.

"Coming Home begins in a land where my roots developed and is the diary of my heartaches and regrets," Griner told ABC News in an exclusive statement. "But, ultimately, the book is also a story of how my family, my faith, and the support of millions who rallied for my rescue helped me endure a nightmare."

Longtime USWNT fixture Carli Lloyd took to Instagram Wednesday morning to announce that she’s pregnant with her first child. 

"Baby Hollins coming in October 2024!" she wrote. The caption framed a collaged image of baby clothes, an ultrasound photo, and syringes indicating what she described as a "rollercoaster" fertility journey.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

In a Women’s Health story published in tandem with Lloyd’s post, the Fox Sports analyst and correspondent opened up about her struggles with infertility and the lengthy IVF treatments she kept hidden from the public eye.

"Soccer taught me how to work hard, persevere, be resilient, and never give up. I would do whatever it took to prepare, and usually when I prepared, I got results," Lloyd told Women’s Health’s Amanda Lucci. "But I found out that I didn’t know much about this world. I was very naive to think that we wouldn’t have any issues getting pregnant. And so it began."

Lloyd went on to discuss her road to pregnancy in great detail, sharing the highs and lows of the process and expressing gratitude for the care and support her family and medical team provided along the way. She rounded out the piece with a nod toward others navigating the same challenges, encouraging people to share their own pregnancy journeys, painful as they may be.

"My story is currently a happy one, but I know there are other women who are facing challenges in their pregnancy journey. I see you and I understand your pain," she said. "My hope is that more and more women will speak up about this topic, because their stories helped me. I also wish for more resources, funding, and education around fertility treatments. There is much to be done, and I hope I can play a role in helping."

The 41-year-old New Jersey native retired from professional soccer in 2021, closing out her decorated career with 316 international appearances, the second-most in USWNT history, in addition to 134 international goals. A legend on the field, Lloyd walked away from the game with two World Cups, two Olympic gold medals, and two FIFA Player of the Year awards.