The 2026 WNBA season is here!
It’s opening week across the league, with the landmark 30th WNBA season tipping off May 8 and the entire weekend jam-packed with games.
Before the season officially gets underway, our Winsidr team is previewing the teams of the Western Conference, taking a look back at what took place this offseason, what each roster will look like in 2026, and both the ceiling and floor for every squad out West.
Dallas Wings — Mitchell Hansen
A season ago, the Dallas Wings had a disappointing season during the rookie campaign of Paige Bueckers, finishing at the bottom of the league standings and winning just 10 games. As a result, Dallas got the No. 1 pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, resulting in the Wings taking Azzi Fudd out of UConn to add to the young core.
However, Dallas didn’t stop there with its additions—and, in fact, might have had the best offseason in the league with a new-look starting lineup. The Wings added the Minnesota Lynx forward duo of Alanna Smith and Jessica Shepard in free agency, adding the physicality and presence in the paint. Dallas also added depth, signing veterans Alysha Clark and Odyssey Sims to go along with the existing bench.
Dallas could be the most improved team in 2026, and we certainly won’t see a similar season to last year.
Projected Starting Lineup:
G: Paige Bueckers
G: Arika Ogunbowale
F: Azzi Fudd
F: Alanna Smith
C: Jessica Shepard
Ceiling vs. Floor
Dallas could make some noise right out of the gate, and it could make some serious noise when the season is all said and done. It’s safe to assume Dallas, as it currently sits entering the new year, will be in the playoff conversation after missing out on the postseason the last two years. But the Wings could make some noise along the way, and could be a dark horse to make a run in the playoffs. It might be too far to say Dallas is a title contender, but it could absolutely be a team we see in the semifinals, depending on how all of these pieces mesh together.
As mentioned, the Wings should be much improved this season in comparison to last year. The floor for this team would be missing the playoffs and having even more questions about what the Wings need to do to get back to contention. The worst-case scenario would be the Wings are sitting there at the end of the regular season with their campaign over, and wondering what they do now after putting their money where their mouth is this offseason.
Golden State Valkyries — Jamauri Bowles
After an electric opening act that was the 2025 season, the Golden State Valkyries are getting ready for their encore season. In their inaugural season, they finished with a 23-21 record and made the playoffs. The season ended with an opening round loss to the Minnesota Lynx, but the Valkyries provided plenty of excitement for their fans and the Bay Area.
This offseason, the team lost Monique Billings and Temi Fágbénlé in free agency and Carla Leite to the expansion draft. However, they did pick up Gabby Williams and Kiah Stokes in free agency—players who add defensive tenacity and rebounding for the team.
Kayla Thornton and Veronica Burton, the Valkyries’ two most important players from last year, who took massive leaps, re-signed with them to build upon the success from the inaugural season. Other key contributors, such as Cecilia Zandalasini, Janelle Salaün, Tiffany Hayes, Kate Martin, and Iliana Rupert, are back as well. The Valkyries will have Justė Jocytė, their 2025 first-round pick, on the roster to make her WNBA debut in 2026. They also came away with three players from the 2026 draft.
Potential Starting Lineup:
G: Veronica Burton
G: Gabby Williams
F: Kayla Thornton
F: Janelle Salaün
C: Iliana Rupert
Ceiling vs. Floor
The Valkyries’ floor is similar to what they produced last year: they can be a team to reach the playoffs as a lower seed but struggle against the top teams, particularly if they do not have more success in the three-point shooting department, and miss key players due to injury. But if everything clicks and the team takes the next step, they can be a bigger threat to win a playoff series and give the top teams trouble.
Las Vegas Aces — Jannelle Moore
At .500 and struggling to tread water after 28 games in 2025, the Las Vegas Aces weren’t supposed to make the playoffs, let alone win the championship. Defying the odds, Aja Wilson led a charge for the ages, leading Vegas to a 16-game winning streak that culminated in winning a third WNBA title in four years.
As expected, Las Vegas signed Wilson to the richest contract in league history and also retained Jackie Young and Jewell Loyd. With their core returning, the Aces are primed to go back-to-back.
Projected Starting Lineup
G: Chelsea Gray
G: Jewell Loyd
F: Jackie Young
F: NaLyssa Smith
C: A’ja Wilson
One of the sources of the Aces’ early-season struggles was that they struggled to implement Jewell Loyd into the lineup. Loyd and Young provide auxiliary scoring to complement Wilson, and they play tough defense. Smith rounds out the unit, providing added size and a physical presence to pair with Wilson.
Ceiling vs. Floor
The Aces are on a different tier among WNBA teams. The Aces have proven that their toughness and resolve are their greatest strengths. With that being said, the expectation for them is winning a fourth title in five years, adding on to their dynasty.
On the other hand, the Aces have the same “problem” as the New York Liberty. Their floor also isn’t a true floor. The Aces are essentially running it back with their core, and that core includes the best player in the league in Wilson and high-level players that complement her. An early round exit for this team is unacceptable.
Los Angeles Sparks — Brenden Potts
The Los Angeles Sparks started their entertaining offseason by trading Rickea Jackson to the Chicago Sky for Ariel Atkins, which began a domino effect of moves. Although the Sparks lost some key pieces, they brought back All-Star forward Nneka Ogwumike, added guard Erica Wheeler, and re-signed guard Kelsey Plum, forward Dearica Hamby, and guard Rae Burrell.
Los Angeles didn’t stop building through free agency, as they drafted South Carolina’s Ta’Niya Latson, Ohio State’s Chance Gray, and Kentucky’s Amelia Hassett.
Projected Starting Lineup:
G: Kelsey Plum
G: Ariel Atkins
F: Dearica Hamby
F: Nneka Ogwumike
C: Cameron Brink
The Sparks could deliver a playoff-caliber season in 2025 if healthy. A lot of injuries stunted the team’s performance last season, causing them to miss the postseason. Los Angeles can finally enter a year where they have an All-Star caliber player at each position, which catapults them into the playoff conversation. Cameron Brink will be entering her third year and herfirst fully healthy since tearing her ACL during her rookie season. Now she will get to learn from Ogwumike, who has made a name for herself around the league and is a franchise icon. If health is on their side, this team can be surprisingly solid this year.
Ceiling vs. Floor
Los Angeles has become a historic franchise in the WNBA, winning three championships in its history. Although they aren’t initially favorites to win a fourth this season, their roster begs the question of how far they could go in the postseason. After making the playoffs in 2020, the Sparks could re-enter that conversation this year. If injury luck is on their side, Los Angeles could make it to the semifinals, and maybe even the Finals, if they strike the right path. Last season taught all WNBA fans that it doesn’t necessarily matter how good your regular season is. As long as you make the postseason, you control your own destiny.
The floor for the Sparks is a familiar position in the draft lottery. Many factors besides injuries could dictate this outcome, like team chemistry or positional fit. However, Los Angeles has a lot of veterans on their team, which makes it unlikely for anyone not to step up in different roles if needed. The Sparks present a good defensive team on paper as well, and if they don’t live up to those expectations, that could be another factor in a disappointing season. With two more teams entering the mix and a plethora of players changing teams in free agency, Los Angeles has more competition to clinch a postseason berth for the first time in six years.
Minnesota Lynx — Mitchell Hansen
When it comes to the offseason leading up to the 2026 campaign, the Minnesota Lynx took arguably the biggest hit of any team in the WNBA. Minnesota lost Bridget Carleton and Maria Kliundikova in the expansion draft, days later losing Natisha Hiedeman, Alanna Smith, Jessica Shepard, and DiJonai Carrington in free agency.
The Lynx did add some solid talent to the roster, despite losing a good chunk of its roster. They re-signed the key staples of Napheesa Collier, Courtney Williams, and Kayla McBride, but added to that group by signing former Lynx Natasha Howard, Minnesota native Nia Coffey, and will get Dorka Juhász back this year after taking the 2025 season off. The Lynx also found what they hope will be their point guard of the future in the draft, taking Olivia Miles at No. 2, and will throw her right into the mix to make an impact right away.
Minnesota has seen a good chunk of turnover from a season in 2025, where it was once again contending for a WNBA title. But this team still has the talent to make some noise.
Projected Starting Lineup:
G: Olivia Miles
G: Courtney Williams
F: Kayla McBride
F: Dorka Juhász
C: Natasha Howard
You may be wondering, where is Collier in the projected lineup? Given she will be out until June while recovering from double ankle surgery this offseason, she won’t be in the lineup to start the year. When Collier does return, it’s likely we see either Olivia Miles—depending on how she looks right out of the gate of her rookie season—or Dorka Juhász move to the bench to make room for the MVP-caliber talent in Collier.
Ceiling vs. Floor
The last few seasons, Minnesota has been in contention for a championship and even came seconds away from winning its fifth ring in 2024, only to come up just short against New York. Given the roster turnover and the absence of Collier, this Lynx team won’t return as the same team we saw the last few years. However, this team could still make some noise and have a strong season. Minnesota will reach the playoffs, but the ceiling for this team is probably reaching the semifinals.
With plenty of uncertainty about this team, how it will fit, and how quickly Collier can return, things could spiral quickly for the Lynx. The floor for this team would be taking a big step back and missing out on the postseason, which would be disappointing for Cheryl Reeve and company. It’s not likely we’ll see a playoffs without the Lynx, but there’s just too much uncertainty with this team at the moment to know for sure.
Phoenix Mercury — Emmy Spersrud
The Phoenix Mercury will likely spend this year just as they spent the 2025 season: proving their doubters wrong. Before 2025, the Mercury had brought in Alyssa Thomas and Satou Sabally—people were doubtful as to whether or not they’d fit in with the rest of their roster. Well, by October, Phoenix found itself in the Finals competing for a championship. This year, with a massive offseason exit, a season-ending injury, and possibly even more skeptics, this team will attempt to do it all again.
Projected Starting Lineup:
G: Monique Akoa-Makani
G: Kahleah Copper
F: DeWanna Bonner
F: Alyssa Thomas
C: Natasha Mack
Expect that starting five, with the addition of Sami Whitcomb, will get the majority of the playing time night in and night out. The rest of this 2026 Phoenix squad is young for the most part and will take some time to develop. The team announced Kathryn Westbeld will miss the entirety of this season after tearing her ACL overseas, which leaves Phoenix spread pretty thin at the forward position, especially with the departure of Satou Sabally.
Ceiling vs. Floor
We can imagine the Phoenix Mercury will rely heavily on All-Stars Alyssa Thomas and Kahleah Copper when it comes to scoring this season. With that being said, it’s hard to bet against Alyssa Thomas. We could see a repeat of last year, where the Mercury willed their way to a successful season. But it can’t happen on only Thomas and Copper’s backs. For this team to reach its ceiling, other players will need to pull their weight and then some. The other starters, for example, Monique Akoa-Manaki, had a great rookie season. Can she reproduce and add to that success? Natasha Mack had her best career year in 2025; they will need more production from her as well.
When it comes to the floor this Phoenix squad is trying to get up from, it has a lot to do with its depth. They brought in a lot of young and/or inexperienced players. Head coach Nate Tibbetts told reporters that the older veterans have “a collective belief and confidence in one another.” He went on to say that “their leadership is extremely important. Obviously, it’s important with our starting group, but what they brought the last couple of days to hopefully give that young group a spark of just believing in one another, and what we’re about has been awesome to see.” Throughout the preseason, some newcomers have already shown out. Rookie Kara Dunn could be a great addition to the Phoenix bench as she develops. Kiana Williams has also performed well. She brings three years of WNBA experience, but has never really been given quality minutes to prove herself—perhaps this Mercury squad is her chance.
Portland Fire — Brenden Potts
The Portland Fire may be a new team to the league this season, but that doesn’t mean they will back away from any challenge. Made up of different players from existing teams through the expansion draft, the Fire are in the beginning phase of their road towards a championship. As expected, Portland focused on signing its own players and wasn’t particularly aggressive during free agency. Made up of mostly players from outside of the U.S., the Fire hope to show they are ahead of the rapid growth of the game beyond the borders.
Projected Starting Lineup:
G: Carla Leite
G: Maya Caldwell
F: Bridget Carleton
F: Emily Engstler
C: Luisa Geiselsöder
The starters for the Fire may be completely different on day one, given head coach Alex Sarama runs a complex system and could opt to go with fit rather than experience. However, through the start of training camp, Emily Engstler has impressed with her leadership during drills and film, and Luisa Geiselsöder has turned heads with her three-point range. The biggest test for Portland before the preseason will be for the late arrivals to the training camp, like Carla Leite and Bridget Carleton, who have been delayed by overseas play. If they are able to pick up the system like they’ve been with the team since day one, their skills will speak for themselves in earning starting spots.
Ceiling vs. Floor
Like last year’s expansion team—the Golden State Valkyries—the Fire have a chance to surprise the WNBA world with a run to the playoffs. With little expectations to succeed given no prior history, the ball is in their court to reach the top mark in their inaugural season. While they could still be overmatched against the top teams like the Las Vegas Aces or New York Liberty, the fight they bring every game will be a testament to how they progress. Success is measured in many ways besides the wins and losses, but it will certainly be a victory if Portland reaches the postseason in year one.
The floor for the Fire is the most likely outcome given the heightened competition in the league, and just overall talent on the roster. While it has some solid role players, Portland needs more to compete with the top dogs. The Fire’s floor is landing the number one pick in the next draft, which gives them many options to continue building. Like last season’s Valkyries team, Portland has few expectations this season. However, even if the Fire find themselves at the bottom of the league, they shouldn’t blow it all up, but rather continue building a young and exciting roster through the draft. Year one is hard to judge for an expansion team, but the Fire will enjoy it because of all the “firsts” they will accomplish, whether they win or lose.
Seattle Storm — Madisyn Cunningham
The Storm are starting fresh this season with a new coach and a gaggle of fresh faces. During the offseason, the team lost almost its entire starting unit, with the departures of star forwards Gabby Williams and Nneka Ogwumike, as well as guards Skylar Diggins and Brittney Sykes. The team also hired coach Sonia Raman, who will serve as head coach for the first time in her career.
These changes mark the beginning of a new, younger era for the Storm: the team is headlined by No. 3 and No. 8 picks Awa Fam Thiam and Flau’jae Johnson, as well as last year’s No. 2 pick Dominique Malonga and veteran signees Natisha Hiedeman and Stefanie Dolson.
Seattle has a chance to run with some of the league’s big dogs.
Projected Starting Lineup:
G: Natisha Hiedeman
G: Zia Cooke
F: Flau’jae Johnson
F: Dominique Malonga
C: Stefanie Dolson
Ezi Magbegor will miss some time at the beginning of 2026 with a right foot injury, but she will most likely rejoin the starting unit once she recovers, pushing Dolson to lead the second unit with Jade Melbourne and Fam Thiam.
Ceiling vs. Floor
Realistically, this Storm team isn’t making a run for a championship anytime soon. They lost the majority of their star power during the offseason and, with a new coach in their ranks, a big postseason push is basically a pipe dream.
Seattle has the potential to perform similarly to last year’s Mystics—a dynamic, young team that can compete on any given night against the top teams, but that will struggle to string together winning streaks. The Storm’s bench unit is strong and imbued with energy, and while it would be unfair to hold the Storm to the same standard they were expected to uphold last year, but don’t count them out, either.
