A lot has gone down in the WNBA since the unprecedented bubble season ended in October. Rosters have turned over, stars have switched teams, injuries have taken their toll and draft picks are ready to make their mark.

It all amounts to what could be one of the most entertaining seasons in the WNBA’s 25th year.

With limited preseason games this year, it’s hard to project where every team stands heading into the season openers Friday night. But based on what we’ve seen and heard out of training camps, here are our inaugural WNBA power rankings for the 2021 season.

Check back every week for updated rankings and fresh analysis as the games unfold. (Note: Records in parentheses indicate those from the 2020 regular season.)

12. Indiana Fever (6-16)

It’s been five years since the Fever last made the WNBA playoffs. Their chances of breaking that drought this season are riding on their defense. In 2020, Indiana gave up 89.5 points per game to opponents, the most in the league. Teaira McCowan has been a menace on the boards in each of her two WNBA seasons, averaging 8.2 rebounds and 1.2 blocks in that span, but she can’t do it alone.

Kelsey Mitchell is in line for a breakout year offensively, Julie Allemand is one of the best distributors in the league, and No. 4 draft pick Kysre Gondrezick should get plenty of chances to produce. Can they put it all together to bring playoff basketball back to Indiana? The rebuild might need one more year.

11. Atlanta Dream (7-15)

The team that gave up the most points next to the Fever? That would be the Dream, who surrendered 87.6 points per game in the bubble and recorded their second-straight losing season. Now, their head coach is gone (with Nicki Collen taking the job at Baylor in the middle of training camp) and they’ll be starting the season under interim head coach Mike Petersen while the front office searches for Collen’s permanent replacement.

Along with the turnover at the top comes many new faces on the roster. Tianna Hawkins, Cheyenne Parker and Odyssey Sims will bring much-needed veteran experience, while Elizabeth Williams and Tiffany Hayes bring stability. The biggest X-factors will be second-year player Chennedy Carter and No. 3 pick Aari McDonald, who could blow by teams in transition.

10. Dallas Wings (8-14)

The Wings will be one of the most intriguing teams in the league this season. They came one Mystics loss away from making the playoffs last year, and the young players who led them there are now one year older. How quickly their four rookies adjust to the league will go a long way toward their ability to break the franchise’s two-year playoff drought.

Those chances largely rest on the shooting hand of Arike Ogunbowale, who led the WNBA last season with 22.8 points per game. First-year head coach Vickie Johnson will be looking to her to run the offense. No. 1 pick Charli Collier, who posted a double-double in Dallas’ only preseason game, and second-year forward Satou Sabally (when she returns from German national team duties) will carry a heavy load in the paint.

9. New York Liberty (2-20)

Here’s where the power rankings get particularly interesting. I’m not yet convinced the Liberty, a team with many moving parts under a second-year head coach, are ready to contend with the best teams in the league. That said, they have just the tools to prove me wrong.

Sabrina Ionescu recorded barely 2 ½ games of play before going down with an ankle injury last season, but her numbers in that span were a scary sign of what’s to come — 18.3 points, 4.0 assists and 4.7 rebounds per game. 2020 Most Improved Player Betnijah Laney and 2019 Defensive Player of the Year Natasha Howard now enter the picture to make this team formidable on both sides of the ball. How effective their supporting cast is — notably, rookies Michaela Onyenwere and DiDi Richards, as well as Jazmine Jones and Layshia Clarendon — will be the difference-maker for the Liberty.

8. Washington Mystics (9-13)

The season-ending foot injury Alysha Clark suffered overseas was a devastating blow to this team. With her, the Mystics would have more insurance while Elena Delle Donne eases into game shape after undergoing two back surgeries in the past year. Now, how quickly Delle Donne can get back to her old MVP self will likely determine the Mystics’ postseason path two years after they won it all.

The return of emotional leader Natasha Cloud, who sat out last season to focus on social justice initiatives at home, is key for this team. She’s joined by Tina Charles, the seven-time All-Star suiting up for Washington for the first time, and 2020 offensive leaders Myisha Hines-Allen and Ariel Atkins. Emma Meesseman, the 2019 Finals MVP, remains an unrestricted free agent and said she will not return to the WNBA until after the Olympics, if at all.

7. Los Angeles Sparks (15-7)

The Sparks will be an interesting case study this season in team chemistry. The past few years, they have had the individual talent to go the distance but were ousted from the playoffs in the second round or semifinals. Gone this season are Candace Parker and Chelsea Gray, and in their place are Erica Wheeler and Amanda Zahui B. While less proven stars, Wheeler had a breakout 2019 season and Zahui B. recorded her best season as a pro in 2020.

If they mesh well with Nneka Ogwumike, Chiney Ogwumike and Kristi Toliver in coach Derek Fisher’s system, the Sparks could be a force to be reckoned with in the WNBA. Also keep an eye on second-year guard Te’a Cooper and No. 7 pick Jasmine Walker, who dropped 23 points and drained 7-of-11 3-pointers in Los Angeles’ final preseason game.

6. Phoenix Mercury (13-9)

The Mercury had a target on their back last season after adding Skylar Diggins-Smith in free agency and forming a Big 3 with her, Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner. They got off to a slow start, losing seven of their first 13 games in the bubble. Then Phoenix hit its stride in late August, riding Taurasi’s hot hand to a six-game win streak and a spot in the playoffs. It offered a sign of what this team can be in 2021.

Making the Mercury even more dangerous this year is their supporting cast. Bria Hartley is coming off a season in which she recorded career highs in nearly every category, and Kia Nurse joins the team after three steady years with the Liberty and one All-Star nod. Guard Sophie Cunningham and forward Alanna Smith also provide a spark off the bench.

5. Chicago Sky (12-10)

The Sky could easily move into the upper tier of the power rankings if they perform to the level they’re capable of on paper. Candace Parker, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, will immediately draw defenders and take some of the pressure off Chicago’s playmakers and sharpshooters, like Courtney Vandersloot and Allie Quigley. Diamond DeShields is healthy and primed to return to her All-Star form from 2019.

The question remaining for the Sky is whether they can win when the stakes are highest. Despite having good teams and winning records the past two years, they haven’t advanced past the second round, losing by 13 points to the Sun in the first round last season.

4. Connecticut Sun (10-12)

The Sun like to use a perceived lack of respect as a motivational tactic, and for the past two years, it’s worked out quite well for them. They have a case for beating that drum again this season with the way free agency has people talking about the other top teams.

Connecticut will have to adjust to the loss of Alyssa Thomas, who’s out indefinitely with a torn Achilles tendon after dominating in the playoffs last season. This team gets a huge boost, however, with the return of Jonquel Jones, a two-time WNBA All-Star who’s been overseas winning EuroLeague championships with UMMC Ekaterinburg. The combination of Jones, DeWanna Bonner and Jasmine Thomas has me liking the Sun’s chances in 2021.

3. Minnesota Lynx (14-8)

The Lynx have been the most consistently good team in the WNBA in the past decade, and it doesn’t look like that trend is changing anytime soon. If there’s one thing that held the Lynx back last season, it was that they didn’t have enough offensive weapons to spread defenses out and score enough points to beat the best teams. That showed in the semifinals, where they were swept 3-0 by Seattle.

This year, Minnesota welcomes Kayla McBride and Aerial Powers to an already potent lineup led by six-time All-Star Sylvia Fowles and reigning Rookies of the Year Napheesa Collier and Crystal Dangerfield. McBride and Powers each shot over 34.0 percent from 3 last season, giving the Lynx two more threats from deep along with Rachel Banham and Bridget Carleton. Minnesota also has Damiris Dantas coming off her best year in the league and 2020 second-round pick Jessica Shepard returning from an ACL injury.

2. Las Vegas Aces (18-4)

The Aces were without Liz Cambage and Kelsey Plum last season and still made a run at the WNBA championship. That was in large part because of A’ja Wilson, who put up ridiculous numbers (20.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.0 blocks per game) in her MVP season.

Now, the Aces return Cambage and Plum and have free-agent signee Chelsea Gray to run the offense alongside 2019 No. 1 pick Jackie Young. Angel McCoughtry’s season-ending ACL and meniscus tear is a tough blow for this team, but Las Vegas has the depth to overcome it. Two-time Sixth Woman of the Year Dearica Hamby should lead the effort off the bench.

1. Seattle Storm (18-4)

The Storm lost a few key players from their championship team in the offseason, but I am not buying that those roster shake-ups will set them back this year. If not for Wilson’s dominant 2020 season, Breanna Stewart likely would have won her second MVP trophy. She leads Seattle’s title defense and is only 26 years old.

Sue Bird, meanwhile, is 40 and on the backend of her career, but she’s still dishing out assists. Jewell Loyd was a more efficient shooter last season, averaging 44.3 percent from the field and 39.0 percent from deep, and Jordin Canada continues to be a steady contributor. The Storm will miss Alysha Clark and Natasha Howard, but they’ve patched holes with additions like Candice Dupree and Mikiah Herbert Harrigan, and third-year player Ezi Magbegor’s tantalizing potential could come to fruition this year.

The 2024/25 Champions League quarterfinals are officially set, with UEFA drawing the remaining eight teams into the field early Friday morning.

The annual season-long competition pits Europe's top leagues against each other. This season, 72 clubs across 50 different leagues qualified for the contest. From the UK to Ukraine, all teams have been vying for the continent's top-dog status amidst a cutthroat atmosphere and a growing sense of parity in the sport.

Two qualifying rounds narrowed the initial teams down to the 16 contending in the tournament's official group stage. Each played six group-stage matches from October through December to determine the eight clubs that advanced to Friday's final draw.

The road to Champions League glory in Lisbon

All remaining clubs are now eyeing the May 24th final in Lisbon, Portugal, and Friday's draw mapped each team's path to that championship match. The 2024/25 quarterfinals will feature four former champions and four seeking a first-ever trophy, with both familiar fights and rarely tested toss-ups on deck.

Both the March quarterfinals and April semifinals employ a two-leg format, offering teams who suffer narrow first losses a shot at second-match redemption.

Friday's draw determined that WSL contenders Arsenal will kick off the tournament's quarterfinals against Real Madrid on March 18th, with Germany's Bayern Munich taking on France's 2024 UWCL runners-up Olympique Lyonnais shortly afterwards.

The following day, Bayern's Frauen-Bundesliga foes Wolfsburg will face Spain's 2024 UWCL champs FC Barcelona. Closing out the initial tilts is a WSL standoff between Manchester City and the UK league's undefeated titans Chelsea FC.

Increased global parity to test UWCL dynasties

With eight of the tournament's 23 titles under their belts, Lyon is the winningest team in UWCL history. Meanwhile, current back-to-back champions Barcelona claimed three of the last four trophies.

Despite the recent two-team domination, capturing this season's title will be a challenge. Hoping to spoil Lyon's and Barcelona's dynastic runs is four first-time title-hunters, plus two-time winners Wolfsburg and early champion Arsenal — who won the trophy in 2007, when the tournament was called the UEFA Women's Cup.

All in all, the European crown has never been tougher to claim, with leagues across the continent increasingly stocking up on standout — and potentially game-changing — players from beyond their borders.

Portland is going all in on women's sports, with RAJ Sports — the ownership group behind both the NWSL's Thorns and Portland's incoming WNBA team — announcing the development of a new $150 million sports performance complex on Thursday.

The 12-acre dual-sport performance center will be the first-ever facility housing both a pro women's soccer squad and a pro women's basketball team.

View this post on Instagram

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

Innovation and amenities lead Portland design

At 63,000 square feet, the incoming NWSL x WNBA training facility will feature two basketball courts, two soccer pitches, a 17,000-square-foot practice gym, a state-of-the-art strength training facility, and a laundry list of additional top-of-the-line amenities.

According to the Thorns' announcement, the center aims to "[elevate] the standard of athletic development by integrating cutting-edge training, advanced recovery, and holistic wellness with lifestyle elements specific to the needs of female athletes in a collaborative multi-team setting."

The wellness additions include recovery lounges and pools, hyperbaric therapy, red-light therapy, and a yoga and pilates room, plus access to a full-time chef and nutritionist via the center's kitchen and dining hall.

"This kind of high-performance training facility allows us to elevate every part of our game, becoming better and more well-rounded athletes," said Thorns forward Sophia Wilson (née Smith).

"Having a space designed specifically for female athletes gives us yet another leg up on the competition and will be vital to our future successes."

Portland joins other WNBA and NWSL teams building own facilities

Portland is just the latest in a wave of women's teams across top-tier US leagues breaking ground on dedicated performance facilities.

Earlier this week, WNBA newcomer Golden State unveiled their own custom-built Valkyries Performance Center. Last month, NWSL side Angel City cut the ribbon on their dedicated training facility.

RAJ Sports’ effort to continue the investment trend comes barely a year after their January 2024 purchase of the Thorns. That move was finalized a little over eight months before the WNBA accepted their expansion bid, making the Bhathal family — who also have a stake in the NBA's Sacramento Kings — the first-ever ownership group to oversee pro women's teams in two different sports.

WNBA roster shakeups kept rolling this week, with a deluge of moves radically reshaping the 2022 and 2023 league champion Las Vegas Aces.

After three seasons in Las Vegas, backup guard and popular locker room presence Sydney Colson signed a one-year deal with Indiana on Thursday. The Fever, who've been aggressive about inking athletes they believe will bring a title back to Indianapolis, targeted Colson for her veteran experience.

"[Colson] brings a championship pedigree to the Fever, adding depth to our point guard position, said Fever COO and GM Amber Cox in the team's announcement. "We have the utmost confidence in her ability to step into any situation and deliver on both ends of the floor."

Joining Colson in leaving Las Vegas is forward Alysha Clark. A key factor in the Aces' 2023 title run — which ultimately earned her the WNBA's Sixth Woman of the Year award — Clark is returning to the Seattle Storm, where she played from 2012 to 2020.

The Aces are also losing their 2024 Sixth Woman of the Year, Tiffany Hayes. Despite the Aces protecting her in December's expansion draft, the free agent guard will take her talents to incoming franchise Golden State. There, she'll link up with former Las Vegas assistant coach-turned-Valkyries boss Natalie Nakase.

"Having coached Tiffany last season in Las Vegas, I know firsthand the impact she brings both on and off the court," Nakase noted. "Her versatility, intensity, and ability to score will be invaluable as we build our team's identity."

Las Vegas Aces take aim at refreshed dynasty

After falling short of a three-peat championship last season — despite three-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson's outstanding 2024 performance — a significant Aces roster reshuffling was all but guaranteed ahead of the 2025 season.

Las Vegas kicked things off by shipping All-Star guard Kelsey Plum off to the LA Sparks last month. The blockbuster three-team trade sent Seattle's two-time champ Jewell Loyd to the Aces in return.

To shore up their front-court, Las Vegas inked 6-foot-4 power forward Cheyenne Parker-Tyus on Thursday. The 2023 All-Star averaged 15 points and 6.7 rebounds for Atlanta that season, and was on her way to matching that production last year when an ankle injury curbed her 2024 run.

Ultimately, Las Vegas's roller coaster offseason reflects both the WNBA's shifting landscape and the Aces' quest to revive their former dynasty, hoping a fresh start can fuel them all the way to another league title in 2025.

No. 19 Tennessee notched the first major win of their Kim Caldwell era on Thursday night, stifling No. 5 UConn 80-76 to capture their first Top 10 basketball victory of the season — and first win over the Huskies since 2007.

Bolstered by a 13-0 run in the third quarter, Tennessee out-rebounded UConn 46-34 to hold the Huskies at bay.

On defense, the Vols managed to limit UConn star and projected 2025 WNBA Draft No. 1 pick Paige Bueckers to just 5-of-16 from the field and 2-of-6 from beyond the arc.

"We had poise down the stretch. I think we played with confidence. I think we played to win, as opposed to afraid to lose," commented first-year Tennessee head coach Caldwell after the game.

View this post on Instagram

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

Tennessee flips the historic rivalry script against UConn

Once one of the most heated historic rivalries in NCAA basketball, Tennessee and UConn met 22 times from 1995 to 2007. The Huskies took 13 victories over that stretch.

Since the teams rebooted their non-conference series in 2020, UConn has taken the win in all four meetings — until Tennessee halted the Huskies on Thursday.

A big upset win from the Vols has felt increasingly inevitable this season, as Tennessee has come wildly close to claiming multiple top-tier upsets. They fell to No. 4 Texas by just four points, No. 6 LSU by two points, and logged one-point losses against both No. 15 Oklahoma and No. 24 Vanderbilt.

Last week, the Vols lost to No. 2 South Carolina 70-63. Subsequently, Tennessee became just the second team to limit the reigning NCAA champs to a single-digit win this season.

Despite Tennessee’s recent rise, Thursday's result was a blow to UConn. The Huskies are now 21-3 in 2024/25 play, with all three losses coming against Top 10 teams. UConn likely has just one regular-season Top 10 matchup left by way of a February 16th clash with South Carolina.

"The bottom line is we have some players on our team that are supposed to be our best players and they've got to play better. That's all there is to it," said UConn head coach Geno Auriemma in response.

How to watch top-ranked NCAA basketball this weekend

As tough as the SEC has been, there's little rest for the weary, with No. 19 Tennessee gearing up for a rematch with No. 6 LSU at 4 PM ET on Sunday. Live coverage will air on ESPN.

In Top 10 weekend action, No. 8 Ohio State will cap their West Coast trip against No. 7 USC at 9 PM ET on Saturday, live on Fox Sports.

Then on Sunday, No. 4 Texas will host No. 2 South Carolina at 2 PM ET, with ESPN broadcasting live.