We’re back this week with more results and data to use in our evaluation of all 12 teams in the WNBA.

While some teams haven’t seen the floor as much as others through the first week and a half of the season, a few have clearly separated themselves from the pack. For others, the return of players from overseas has brightened their outlook.

Who are the risers and fallers since we unveiled our first edition of the power rankings? Let’s get to it.

12. Indiana Fever (1-4) —

The Fever played a much cleaner game against the Mystics on Sunday, reducing their number of turnovers and personal fouls to get their first win of the season. They’ve still given up over 82 points per game through five games, and I’ll need to see more than better fundamentals and one win to move them out of this spot.

11. Los Angeles Sparks (0-2) -2

It’s tricky to compare outlooks at this point in the season when a team like the Sparks has played just two games and the Liberty have played six. What’s easier to see is that in those two games, Los Angeles has looked completely out of sync, surrendering over 90 points in each and ranking near the bottom of the league in almost every statistical category.

10. Atlanta Dream (1-2) +1

Other than getting out-rebounded in every game so far, the Dream are playing much better defense than last season, when they gave up the second-most points in the WNBA. If they can keep that up and get Chennedy Carter going on offense, they could compete, but it’s going to take more than a four-point win over the Fever to convince me.

9. Washington Mystics (1-3) +1

Hoping Tina Charles can score 34 points each night, as she did in the Mystics’ lone win against the Liberty, isn’t going to be a recipe for consistent success. Myisha Hines-Allen’s arrival should give this team a boost, but Elena Delle Donne’s extended stay on the sideline is becoming tougher and tougher for them to weather.

8. Minnesota Lynx (0-3) -3

OK, how does a winless, last-place team bump up this high in the power rankings? It starts with the return of Napheesa Collier, who’s been one of the most valuable players to her team over the past two years, and it ends with the fact that no Lynx player other than Sylvia Fowles has played up to their potential.

7. Dallas Wings (1-2) —

Dallas’ record doesn’t indicate how dangerous this team has looked through three games, especially since they’re no longer just relying on Arike Ogunbowale getting 20-plus points a night (which she’s doing anyway). Thirteen seconds away from beating the Storm in regulation over the weekend, the Wings showed they can play with the best.

6. Phoenix Mercury (2-2) —

It’s hard to fault the Mercury for their two losses to the Sun when no WNBA team has been able to solve Connecticut this season. They’ll need to score more than the 67 points they put up in their last game against the Sun, but I like their odds of shooting better than 38.2 from the field and 25 percent from 3 with the scorers they have on their roster.

5. Chicago Sky (2-1) -2

That the Sky played the Liberty close on Sunday while without Candace Parker and Allie Quigely is a good sign. Kahleah Copper, Astou Ndour-Fall and Ruthy Hebard have all stepped up while Chicago’s stars either get healthy or hit their stride. As a team, they need to take better control of the ball, currently turning it over 17 times a game.

4. Las Vegas Aces (2-2) —

The Aces don’t like to shoot a lot of 3s, so when a team can beat them at their own game in the paint, they’re in trouble. That’s what Connecticut did to them on Sunday, out-rebounding Las Vegas 44 to 26. The Aces didn’t help themselves by shooting 76.2 percent from the free-throw line. Bill Laimbeer will make sure they learn from the loss.

3. Seattle Storm (3-1) -2

Really, the only reason the Storm have moved down from the top spot is because the Sun and Liberty have more evidence of their team success. While the Wings outplayed the Storm for most of their matchup on Saturday, that Seattle fought back to pull out the win in overtime says a lot about the fortitude of this team.

2. New York Liberty (5-1) +6

The Liberty are making the biggest jump in this week’s power rankings, not only because they’re off to their best start since 2007, but also because Natasha Howard is finally with the team. That fortune could change if the knee injury that forced Howard to leave Monday night’s game in the fourth quarter is serious, but for now, New York is riding high.

1. Connecticut Sun (5-0) +1

If the Sun were still flying under the radar at 4-0, they’ve since captured the league’s attention with their win over Las Vegas. Connecticut is holding its opponents to a WNBA-leading 68.8 points per game, mainly by dominating on the glass, at the rim and from beyond the arc. How’s that for executing a game plan?

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.