Just like that, the 2026 WNBA season is already a month in. We’re beginning to get to know some of these teams, and with that comes a few surprises. Things have changed quite a bit since Volumes Zero and One of our Power Rankings, so let’s get into it.
TEAMS ON THE RISE
Minnesota Lynx
We have a new No.1 in town. Cheryl Reeve has once again done the impossible, turning this depleted Lynx squad into one that looks like an early contender. In Napheesa Collier’s absence, Natasha Howard has been playing some of the best ball of her 13-year career, averaging 17.3 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Despite everyone thinking this would be an off-year for the 2024 Runners Up, Reeve and the rest of the Lynx look poised to make a deep playoff run.
A huge part of their success stems from 2026 No. 2 pick and early Rookie of the Year frontrunner Olivia Miles. In eight games, the point guard is averaging 15.4 points, 5.9 assists, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.5 steals—numbers that are propelling this team to that next level. With Miles’ court vision, Courtney William’s automatic shooting from inside the arc, and a breakout season for 30-year-old Nia Coffey, there’s no telling where this team’s ceiling is. And you have to remember: they’ll be adding Napheesa Collier back into the fold very soon.
Dallas Wings
In our last Volume, we had the Dallas Wings ranked 11th; a massive drop-off from the 5th place spot we’d awarded the team with during the pre-season. In the past two weeks of the season, though, the Wings have ramped it up to an entirely different gear, and now sit at fourth.
For one, Azzi Fudd is starting and playing phenomenally. In her last two games for the Wings—which were against the last two WNBA Champions—she’s averaged 23 points, 2 steals, and 1.5 blocks, and she’s doing so efficiently. After an underwhelming start to the season for the No.1 pick, Fudd is reentering ROTY talks with these resounding performances.
You can’t talk about this recent Wings run without talking about Jessica Shepard. The 6th year forward is playing like an All-WNBA big, averaging 13 points, a league-leading 11.4 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game. She’s already recorded two triple-doubles this season, the latest of which came against A’ja Wilson and the Aces. Her 22 point, 20 rebound, and 10 assist game was the first of its kind in W history, and with Shepard playing at this level, the sky is the limit for the Wings.
TEAMS ON THE DECLINE
Phoenix Mercury
Something’s just not clicking for the Phoenix Mercury. Despite making it to the Finals during the 2025 season, the star-powered roster is sitting at 2-7 on the season, their only wins coming against the Aces on opening night and the Chicago Sky less than a week later. When Kahleah Copper, Alyssa Thomas, and Dewanna Bonner are on a team, there’s a certain standard it’s expected to reach, but all the Mercury have done is fail to reach it.
Many of the Mercury’s games have been close, so the record doesn’t tell the full story, but something needs to change if this team plans on being anywhere close to the level at which they played last year. The positive thing is that this team is playing nowhere close to the best it can: Copper is shooting 16.1% from three—the worst splits of her career by far—which is uncharacteristic of the 2021 Champion. If she manages to ramp it up, and if the team can continue to feed rookie star Jovana Nogic, there’s certainly potential for Phoenix to climb the rankings again.
Chicago Sky
The Sky’s quick nosedive in our rankings can mostly be attributed to bad luck. On May 17th, against the Lynx, forward Rickea Jackson went down after a non-contact injury, which turned out to be an ACL tear. Before then, she looked poised to have a career year on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball: Jackson was averaging 18 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game, and had scored 29 against the Mercury just two days before her injury.
Sadly, everything’s continued to unravel for the Sky in Jackson’s absence. Azura Stevens is back, and she’s been able to contribute a bit on the offensive side, but for much of the time, the Sky are playing with four guards and Kamilla Cardoso—a center who’s playing amazingly but can’t do it all on her own. Gabriela Jaquez, who’d begun to pick up steam in her rookie campaign, has also missed multiple games with a knee injury. For now, it looks like the Sky just need to wait it out until they can put a healthy, competitive roster back on the floor.
TEAMS WITH SURPRISING TAKEAWAYS
Portland Fire
Everyone—us included—were wrong about the Portland Fire. On paper, their roster is nothing special, as is the case with most expansion teams. Instead of getting down about the lower-than-low expectations for this team, the Fire used it as fuel to shock the nation by taking down some of the best teams in the league.
The Fire are currently 6-4, sitting at sixth on both our Volume Two rankings and the league’s official standings. Of these six ones, three have come against contending teams—they beat the New York Liberty twice by a combined nine points, and the Indiana Fever by 16—and the team shows no sign of backing down. Sarah Ashlee Barker is having herself a Sixth Player of the Year worthy season, and Bridget Carleton and Cara Leite have been playing like some of the best players in the W.
Megan Gustafson said it best: “We’re a bunch of overlooked players, and…we all have a chip on our shoulder.” They’re playing like it.
Washington Mystics
The Mystics seem to have lost some of their early season magic. Despite starting 2-1, Washington now sits at a 3-4 record after suffering losses to the Wings, Seattle Storm, and Los Angeles Sparks. This is a young team that no one expected to make a deep playoff run or be a contender, but after a dreamlike start to the season and All-Star level play from Sonia Citron, Kiki Iriafen, and Shakira Austin, you can’t help but to feel a bit disappointed in how this season is playing out for the Mystics.
The Mystics have a tough schedule, too. In their next 10 games, they play the New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx twice each, as well as the Atlanta Dream, Indiana Fever, and a Toronto Tempo team that’s exceeding expectations. With a team so young, there’s no pressure to execute, but it would be nice for the Mystics to get back in the win column against a worthy opponent soon.