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WNBA Power Rankings: Las Vegas Aces take over the top spot

(Abbie Parr / Getty Images)

It seems crazy, but teams have just about two and a half weeks left to position themselves in the standings before the WNBA breaks for the Olympics.

The power rankings are designed to give you a better understanding of who’s likely to improve and decline in the weeks ahead. So, let’s get to it.

12. Indiana Fever (1-14) —

Wins are going to be hard to come by when you’re surrendering nearly 90 points per game and are not succeeding at your own game of scoring in the paint and winning on the boards. So is life in the WNBA for the Fever this season.

11. Los Angeles Sparks (5-7) —

The Sparks are playing better defense than the Dream, but their offense continues to rank last in the WNBA. It doesn’t help that their leading scorer and rebounder and most efficient shooter, Nneka Ogwumike, hasn’t played since June 1 because of a knee sprain.

10. Atlanta Dream (5-7) -2

Say what you want, but offense wins games in today’s WNBA — three of the four teams with the best offensive ratings sit atop the WNBA standings. The Dream can get it done on offense, currently fifth in offensive rating at 101.7, and you have to think that will translate to more wins especially when Chennedy Carter returns.

9. Minnesota Lynx (5-7) -3

The Lynx play a fast-paced game that often stifles ball movement and leads to more turnovers. Opponents are currently scoring 20.3 points per game off of their turnovers, which is the most in the league. If they can limit those mistakes and get out to earlier leads, they have the offensive talent to close out more games.

8. Phoenix Mercury (6-7) -1

The Mercury run their offense through their post players, with 44.9 percent of their points this season coming in the paint. When you have a 6-foot-9 center in Brittney Griner, that strategy makes sense. The problem is they’ve become too one-dimensional, shooting just 22.3 percent from 3 during their recent four-game losing streak.

7. Washington Mystics (6-6) +2

The Mystics, ravaged by injuries, are still playing .500 basketball thanks to a combination of Tina Charles and unlikely heroes. In Washington’s last two wins, that player was Theresa Plaisance, who’s scored in double figures in four straight games. Leave it to Mike Thibault to find a way through adversity.

6. New York Liberty (7-6) -1

The Liberty are close to being at full strength, with Sabrina Ionescu back in the mix and Natasha Howard eyeing early July for her possible return from an MCL sprain. The team needs them considering the Liberty haven’t proven they can beat top competition. In their four games against the Sun and Aces, they’ve lost by an average of 20.5 points.

5. Chicago Sky (7-7) +5

So, this is the Sky team we had high hopes for in preseason. During their five-game win streak, which has helped them recover from a disastrous start, the Sky are turning the ball over nearly four fewer times than their season average and are shooting more efficiently from all areas on the floor.

4. Dallas Wings (6-7) —

The Wings continue to show more potential than their losing record indicates, as they’ve played one of the toughest schedules in the league so far. Interestingly, the free-throw line is their biggest enemy right now. Dallas is committing a league-leading 21.5 personal fouls per game, allowing teams an average of 9.5 trips to the line.

3. Connecticut Sun (8-5) —

The absences of Jonquel Jones and coach Curt Miller have hampered the Sun perhaps more than expected, though their three losses have come against the Storm and the surging Sky. For a team that scores 45 percent of its points in the paint, Jones’ presence down low is particularly key to its success.

2. Seattle Storm (12-2) -1

Comparing the Storm and the Aces, who are both on five-game winning streaks, is a game of inches. They’re 1-1 against each other and the Storm have the better record. They’re both playing great defense, so what’s separating them is offense. And right now, the Aces’ is more potent, with the most 100-point games (four) and the best offensive rating in the league (108.1).

1. Las Vegas Aces (10-3) +1

One other factor the Aces have going for them is their rotation. As players like Kelsey Plum, Dearica Hamby and Riquna Williams continue to step up, Las Vegas only gets more dangerous.

Cameron Brink likes Caitlin Clark for 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year

Cameron Brink poses with Caitlin Clark at 2024 wnba draft in new york
Cameron Brink poses with fellow draftee — and possible WNBA ROY —Caitlin Clark. (Photo by Emily Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images)

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:

Dash winger Maria Sanchez confirms trade request a day shy of NWSL deadline

María Sanchez of Houston Dash during a NWSL game
In December, Sanchez signed a new three-year contract with the club worth $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. (Photo by Marcus Ingram/Getty Images)

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.

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.

Seattle Storm debut state-of-the-art $64 million practice facility

Jewell Loyd #24 of the Seattle Storm during warms up during practice on July 11, 2020 at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida
Jewell Loyd, seen here practicing at Florida's IMG Academy, and her team are in for a major upgrade this season. (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images)

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."

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.

Mystics relocate game to accommodate Caitlin Clark fans

Maya Caldwell, Erica Wheeler, and Lexie Hull of the Indiana Fever celebrate Caitlin Clark
Get ready — Caitlin Clark is coming to town. (Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)

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.

"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.

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