Who Ran The WNBA This Week: Angel Reese Owns The Glass, Clark & Mitchell Make History & Dallas Gets In

The WNBA has officially hit pause, but not before Week 14 gave us one more loaded stretch of basketball. With the league beginning a 16-day break for the FIBA World Cup, every team has now played 40 games and has just four remaining when action resumes September 17. More importantly, all eight playoff spots are officially spoken for.

That means the final week of the regular season will be almost entirely about positioning. Minnesota still owns the league’s best record at 31-9, but Golden State sits only two games back. Atlanta and Indiana are tied at 26-14, while Dallas, New York and Washington are all sitting at 24-16. Home court advantage, avoiding the No. 8 seed and potentially even the No. 1 spot are still in play.

The league’s official Week 14 Power Rankings still have Minnesota at No. 1 and Golden State at No. 2, followed by Las Vegas, Indiana and Atlanta. Dallas made the biggest move among the playoff teams, jumping from No. 8 to No. 6 after putting together its best stretch in weeks.

TEAMS & PLAYERS TO HIGHLIGHT THIS WEEK

Angel Reese

At this point, Angel Reese is collecting rebounding records almost every time she touches the floor. Against the Sparks on August 24, Reese grabbed 26 rebounds, breaking the WNBA single-game record, while also surpassing A’ja Wilson’s previous single-season rebounding mark. She finished that night with 11 points as Atlanta picked up a 78-71 victory. Reese wasn’t finished, though. In Atlanta’s 89-81 win over league-leading Minnesota on August 30, she posted 15 points and 11 rebounds for her 29th double-double of the season, setting another WNBA single-season record. The performance capped an incredible run into the break and further established Reese as one of the most dominant players in the league this season.

Caitlin Clark & Kelsey Mitchell

Indiana’s backcourt continues to make its MVP arguments difficult to ignore. In the Fever’s 111-91 win over Connecticut on August 28, Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell scored 34 points apiece, combining for 68 while putting their names in the record book again. Clark added 12 assists and five rebounds, while Mitchell continued one of the best scoring seasons ever by a guard.

Clark became the first player in WNBA history to record consecutive games with at least 30 points and 10 assists. Her previous outing against Chicago — 37 points and 10 assists — had been her fifth career 30-and-10 performance, and the Connecticut game pushed that total to six. Meanwhile, Mitchell became just the second WNBA player ever to score 1,000 points in a season, joining A’ja Wilson, and the first guard to reach the mark. She enters the break averaging a career-high 25.0 points per game, second only to Wilson.

Golden State Valkyries

Golden State is entering the break looking like much more than just a feel-good expansion story. The Valkyries finished the month 10-2, the best record in the league over that span, while posting a league-best defensive rating of 96.3. They’ve also won four straight heading into the pause, including their first win over Minnesota in franchise history. The Valkyries are 29-11, just two games behind the Lynx for the league’s best record, although Minnesota owns the head-to-head tiebreaker. With four games remaining, Golden State still has a legitimate shot at the No. 1 seed while also trying to hold off Las Vegas for No. 2.

Dallas Wings

Few teams needed the break less than Dallas. The Wings have won four straight games after stumbling out of the All-Star break, climbing into a three-way tie with New York and Washington at 24-16. Awak Kuier’s insertion into the starting lineup has given Dallas a noticeable spark, while Paige Bueckers has continued her strong play. Arike Ogunbowale and Jessica Shepard have also given the Wings consistent production during the streak. Suddenly, a team that recently looked like it might be fighting simply to stay in the playoff picture has a chance to climb several spots once the season resumes.

STORYLINES OF THE WEEK

The Playoff Field Is Officially Set

Dallas grabbed the final available postseason spot by beating Portland 96-78 on August 25, eliminating the Fire and locking in the league’s eight playoff teams: Minnesota, Golden State, Las Vegas, Atlanta, Indiana, New York, Washington and Dallas. It marks the Wings’ first playoff appearance since 2023. Now the fun becomes seeding. Minnesota and Golden State are battling near the top; Atlanta and Indiana are tied at 26-14; and Dallas, New York and Washington are all tied at 24-16. With every team having exactly four games remaining, very little is settled outside of who will actually be participating.

Atlanta Adds DeWanna Bonner

As if Atlanta wasn’t already dangerous enough, the Dream added one of the most experienced postseason players in league history. Atlanta signed DeWanna Bonner to a rest-of-season contract after Phoenix bought out the two-time champion following the Mercury’s elimination from playoff contention. Bonner brings two championships, six All-Star appearances and nearly two decades of WNBA experience to a Dream team already sitting at 26-14. She made her Atlanta debut (seven points, four rebounds, two assists in almost 17 minutes) in the Dream’s win over Minnesota, giving the team another veteran option as it prepares for what it hopes will be a deep postseason run.

BEST GAMES OF THE LAST WEEK

Atlanta Dream 78, Los Angeles Sparks 71 — August 24

The final score almost took a backseat to Angel Reese’s historic evening. Reese grabbed 26 rebounds to break the WNBA single-game record while also setting the new single-season rebounding mark. Atlanta used the performance to finish its West Coast trip unbeaten.

Connecticut Sun 87, Chicago Sky 81 — August 25

Connecticut picked up its 10th win of the season behind one of Aaliyah Edwards’ best performances. Edwards erupted for a career-high 26 points and 10 rebounds, while Diamond Miller added 21 and Kennedy Burke scored 19.

Washington Mystics 80, Phoenix Mercury 73 — August 27

Washington continued its late-season surge by completing a season sweep of Phoenix. The win was part of a three-game Mystics winning streak and helped keep them firmly involved in the crowded race for playoff positioning entering the break.

Los Angeles Sparks 88, Washington Mystics 82 — August 28

Just one night later, the Mystics’ streak came to an end. Los Angeles picked up another important late-season win, part of a run in which the Sparks won three of their final four games entering the FIBA pause.

Atlanta Dream 89, Minnesota Lynx 81 — August 30

Atlanta saved one of its best wins for last. The Dream knocked off the league-leading Lynx behind three double-doubles: Allisha Gray had 23 points and 11 rebounds, Jordin Canada finished with 16 points and 10 assists, and Angel Reese’s 15 points and 11 rebounds gave her a league-record 29th double-double of the season. It was also another reminder that Atlanta could be a problem in the postseason. The Dream head into the FIBA break having won four of their last five, sitting at 26-14 and tied with Indiana as the fight for first-round home-court advantage heats up.

There won’t be a Games To Look Forward To This Upcoming Week section this time around because there aren’t any. The WNBA is officially on hold while players head to Berlin for the FIBA World Cup, with league play scheduled to resume September 17. When everybody comes back, there will be only four games left for each team — and almost every one of them will matter for postseason seeding.

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