By 
As of May 9th
The 2022 WNBA season has started, and after a weekend of action, it’s time to present the first installment of our Power Rankings for this season. There were a couple of surprising upsets and dominant performances in the first weekend of action. See where we rank each team after the first weekend.
- Aces (2-0): Aces start the season 2-0 with commanding victories against the Phoenix Mercury and the Seattle Storm. Becky Hammon’s fast-paced offense looks to be too much for their opponents so far.
- Sparks (2-0): After an overtime thriller against the Chicago Sky and a win over the Indiana Fever, it’s only right to have them here in this week’s power rankings. The win against the defending champs was big, and this team looks like it could be one of the best in the league this year.
- Mystics(2-0): A dominating win over the young Fever squad and another convincing win over the Lynx, the latter one without Elena Delle Donne. Washington is clearly talented when healthy, but it’s hard to get a clear look at where they stand after the two teams they played.
- Liberty (1-0): With a great win against the Connecticut Sun, the New York Liberty earned the four spot in this week’s rankings. Their young squad looked good in Sandy Brondello’s first game as their head coach. Hopefully, they can build on this when Betnijah Laney and DiDi Richards return.
- Dream(1-0): Rookie Rhyne Howard looked impressive in her debut. Cheyenne Parker had a double-double in her first game back with the Dream. The win over the Dallas Wings puts them here in our rankings as the last of the undefeated teams. Looks like this team has made a step in the right direction, but only time will tell.
- Storm (1-1): After struggling for a half with the Lynx and getting dominated in the 4th quarter by the Aces, it’s hard to have them higher than this. The Storm weren’t impressive in the regular season before the Stewie injury, and it’s not looking all that different through two games. They need Mercedes Russell to get healthy, and soon.
- Sky (0-1): The defending champs lost their opening game to the Sparks. But they would have won had there not been a bad three-point foul call on Dana Evans to send the game to OT. They are also still missing Kahleah Copper, Allie Quigley, and Julie Allemand.
- Sun (0-1): The Connecticut Sun lost a tough one to the New York Liberty.
- Mercury (0-1): A rough loss against Vegas has people questioning how well Phoenix can handle not having Britney Griner. They still have Skylar Diggins-Smith and Tina Charles to carry the load offensively. It’s just one game, so there’s no reason to overreact.
- Fever (0-2): With three rookies in the starting lineup, it was clear there would be growing pains to an extent. The Washington matchup wasn’t great, but they showed improvement in the next game against the Sparks. It looks like the Fever have hit on four of their draft picks in NaLyssa Smith, Destanni Henderson, Queen Egbo, and Emily Engstler.
- Wings (0-1): The same issues they had last season reared their heads again. Their defense wasn’t bad; they actually held the Dream to just 66 points. Arike’s struggles shooting and inconsistent minutes may have caused them the game. Teaira McCowan will return soon, as will All-Star Satou Sabally.
- Lynx (0-2): A contending team when healthy is far from it right now. With Napheesa Collier out due to pregnancy, Kayla McBride still overseas, and Damiris Dantas dealing with an injury, they are short three normal starters. They also cut two point guards right before the season started, so they are sputtering at that spot.
An avid sports fan and journalist who’s main focus is the lovely game of basketball. If I’m not covering the game, I’m either playing ball or watching it.
