We’re nearly a month into the WNBA season, and due to injuries and international commitments, we still haven’t seen some teams at full strength.

What we have had are competitive matchups and thrilling finishes, with three games this past week ending on last-second 3-pointers.

We only hope you can find as much excitement in this week’s edition of the JWS power rankings.

12. Indiana Fever (1-9) —

The Fever have lost five in a row and their smallest margin of defeat during that streak was 15 points against the Storm. Indiana is scoring the fewest points per game in the league (74.7) and surrendering the most (89.6). You have to wonder when coach Marianne Stanley will start giving first-round draft picks Kyrse Gondrezick and Lauren Cox more playing time.

11. Chicago Sky (2-7) -3

The only losing streak worse than Indiana’s is Chicago’s. The Sky have lost seven straight games since winning their first two and they’ve yet to play any of the top three teams in the league. Their defense has kept them in games and given them a chance to win, but turnovers and inefficient shooting continue to plague them.

10. Washington Mystics (2-5) —

The Mystics have the individual talent to keep up with some of the best teams, which explains how they played both the Sun and Aces close this past week. But when you’re shooting as many 3-pointers as Washington does — currently leading the league with 29.1 attempts per game — you have to connect on more than 32.4 percent of them to close out games.

9. Los Angeles Sparks (4-3) +2

The Sparks’ wins have come against the two worst teams in these power rankings. They’ve tightened up their defense since surrendering 90-plus points in each of their first two games, but they haven’t been tested as much as other teams. Amanda Zahui B. should at least help the Sparks improve on the glass, where they rank last in the WNBA.

8. New York Liberty (5-4) -4

The Liberty are pin-balling around these power rankings, and you might disagree with their placement here given they’re sixth in the actual league standings. For the middle tier, I accounted for head-to-head results, common opponents and strength of schedule. For New York and Atlanta, who have similar track records up to this point, it comes down to the fact that the Liberty have lost three straight, with one of those losses being to Atlanta.

7. Atlanta Dream (4-4) -2

The Dream dropped two straight to the Lynx since going on a four-game winning streak, which is more excusable now that the Lynx are looking like the team many believed to be a contender. The Dream are still scoring at will and third-leading scorer Chennedy Carter should return to the lineup this month after missing two games with a hyperextended elbow.

6. Dallas Wings (3-5) +3

The Wings get the award for the best team with the worst record. Each of their losses this season have been by single digits and they’ve played the Storm — No. 1 in our power rankings — close every time, which translated to a win over Seattle on Sunday and makes you believe more are coming. They’re a young team, but their bench is deeper than most.

5. Minnesota Lynx (3-4) +2

This is why I wasn’t sleeping on the Lynx when they lost four straight to open the season. Napheesa Collier has given the team a jolt of confidence in her return, not only getting hers but also drawing defenders to take some of the pressure off her teammates. Crystal Dangerfield is also settling into her role as the first player off the bench, giving Minnesota another weapon.

4. Phoenix Mercury (5-3) +2

The Mercury haven’t been overpowering opponents, but they’re showing the value of their veteran lineup by closing out tight games. Skylar Diggins-Smith and Brittney Griner are averaging 24.3 and 18.7 points per game, respectively, during Phoenix’s three-game win streak. That Kia Nurse is looking more comfortable, too, is only a good sign for this team while it waits for Diana Taurasi to return.

3. Las Vegas Aces (7-3) —

When you have six players who can step up and lead you to victory on any given night, as the Aces do in their starting lineup plus Dearica Hamby and Kelsey Plum off the bench, you’re set up for success. They showed that this past week, holding on to defeat the Liberty and Mystics despite suffering defensive breakdowns at times.

2. Connecticut Sun (8-2) —

We’ve written before about the powerhouse offensive duo of Jonquel Jones and DeWanna Bonner. An underrated aspect of the Sun’s surge this season is their defense, which is giving up the fewest points per game in the WNBA and consistently winning on the glass. That could be what sustains them while Jones misses at least four games for EuroBasket.

1. Seattle Storm (7-2) —

If there’s anything for the Storm to worry about, it’s that no one outside of their Big 3 of Breanna Stewart, Jewell Loyd and Sue Bird has emerged as a consistent offensive weapon. That was evident in their loss to the Wings on Sunday, when the most any other player scored was four points. The good news is those three have already led them to seven wins and the role players are bound to improve.

USWNT stalwart Alex Morgan will miss at least one week of NWSL action after suffering a left ankle knock in her last club appearance, Wave manager Casey Stoney said on Thursday.

Morgan was helped off the field after rolling her ankle in the later stages of the Wave’s 1-0 loss to the Orlando Pride last weekend, despite the San Diego side being out of available substitutes.

“She's got an ankle injury and she's out for this weekend, and then it'll be week by week from there,” Stoney said, confirming that Morgan’s been ruled out for Saturday’s showdown with NWSL newcomer Bay FC.

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Depending on its severity, Morgan’s ankle issue might have larger ramifications than missing a few weeks of NSWL play. Morgan was added to the team's Gold Cup roster after an ACL injury sidelined young striker Mia Fishel, and she's since made a number of USWNT starts in the team's Gold Cup and SheBelieves wins. A long-term injury could potentially derail the center forward’s Olympic plans.

With her return timeline uncertain, it's possible the injury could also impact Morgan's ability to participate in new head coach Emma Hayes' first U.S. friendlies in June and July.

Morgan's injury concerns aren't uncommon in the U.S. player pool, but add a sense of urgency as Hayes eyes the NWSL for top-performing players in the upcoming weeks. Gotham's Tierna Davidson and Rose Lavelle have also been dealing with injuries: Lavelle has yet to appear for Gotham, while Davidson exited last weekend's match early with a hamstring injury.

Gotham has yet to issue an update concerning Davidson's status.

This week, legendary Brazilian superstar Marta announced that she’ll retire from the national team at the end of 2024.

In an interview with CNN Esportes published Thursday, the iconic footballer confirmed that she would be hanging up her boots regardless of whether or not she ends up making Brazil's 18-player roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

“If I go to the Olympics, I will enjoy every moment, because regardless of whether I go to the Olympics or not, this is my last year with the national team,” she said. “There is no longer Marta in the national team as an athlete from 2025 onwards.”

Marta will retire as a giant of the women's game, having appeared in five Olympics and multiple World Cups. When discussing her retirement, she stressed confidence in the rising generation of Brazilian players, noting that she was, “very calm about this, because I see with great optimism this development that we are having in relation to young athletes." 

The statement echoes back to a plea she made during the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup after Brazil lost to France 2-1 in the Round of 16. “It's wanting more. It's training more. It's taking care of yourself more. It's being ready to play 90 plus 30 minutes. This is what I ask of the girls,” she said then, addressing the young players following in her footsteps. 

In 2023, she signaled a farewell to World Cup competition with the same sentiment, telling media, “We ask the new generation to continue where we left off.”

If selected for the 2024 Olympic team, Marta has a shot at extending her own consecutive-scoring record with the ability to score in an unbelievable sixth-straight Olympic Games. She currently stands as Brazil’s top goalscorer, racking up 116 career goals in 175 matches, as well as the leading goalscorer in any World Cup, women’s or men’s, with 17 to her name. 

Marta will continue to play for the NWSL’s Orlando Pride through at least the end of 2024. The longtime forward and club captain has already contributed to multiple goals this season.

U.S. Soccer announced Tuesday that the USWNT will play their last home game on July 16th in the lead-up to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris.

The 2024 Send-Off Match against Costa Rica will take place at Washington, DC’s Audi Field — home to both the Washington Spirit and DC United — at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 16th. The friendly rounds out a four-game Olympic run-up campaign under incoming head coach Emma Hayes’ side, with the last two set to feature the finalized 2024 U.S. Olympic Women’s Soccer Team roster.

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Hayes will appear on the USWNT sideline for the first time this June, helming the team as they embark on a two-game series against Korea Republic hosted by Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Commerce City, Colorado on June 1st followed by Allianz Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota on June 4th. 

The team is then scheduled to meet a talented Mexico squad on July 13th at Gotham FC’s Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey, where the Olympic-bound lineup will attempt to rewrite February’s shocking 2-0 loss to El Tri Femenil in the group stages of this year’s Concacaf W Gold Cup. And while clear roster favorites have emerged from both of this year’s Gold Cup and SheBelives Cup rosters, a spate of recent and recurring injuries means making it to the Olympics is still largely anyone’s game.

Broadcast and streaming channels for the USWNT's final July 16th friendly at Audi Field include TNT, truTV, Universo, Max, and Peacock.

The USA Basketball Women's National Team is still considering Caitlin Clark for a spot on the Paris Olympics squad, says selection committee chair Jennifer Rizzotti. 

On Monday, Rizzotti told the AP that the committee will be evaluating the college phenom’s Olympic prospects by keeping a close eye on her first few weeks of WNBA play with Indiana.

The move is somewhat unconventional. While Clark was invited to participate in the 14-player national team training camp held earlier this month — the last camp before Team USA’s roster drops — she was unable to attend due to it coinciding with Iowa’s trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four.

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Judging by the immense talent spread throughout the league in what might be their most hyped season to date, competition for a piece of the Olympic pie could be fiercer than ever before.

"You always want to introduce new players into the pool whether it's for now or the future," said Rizzotti. "We stick to our principles of talent, obviously, positional fit, loyalty and experience. It's got to be a combination of an entire body of work. It's still not going to be fair to some people."

Of course, Clark isn’t the first rookie the committee has made exceptions for. Coming off an exceptional college season that saw her averaging 19.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 4 assists per game for UConn, Breanna Stewart was tapped to represent the U.S. at the 2016 Olympics in Brazil less than two weeks after being drafted No. 1 overall by the Seattle Storm. Eight years prior, fellow No. 1 pick Candace Parker punched her ticket to the 2008 Games in Beijing just two weeks after making her first appearance for the L.A. Sparks.

In the lead-up to Paris’ Opening Ceremony on July 26th, USA Basketball Women’s National Team is scheduled to play a pair of exhibition games. They'll first go up against the WNBA's finest at the July 20th WNBA All-Star Game in Phoenix before facing Germany in London on July 23rd.

While an official roster announcement date hasn’t yet been issued, players won’t find out if they’ve made this year’s Olympic cut until at least June 1st.