January 21, 2024 by Philip Lewenstein
2024 WNBA Promises More and Better
The new year in sports promises to feature incredible athletic performances and team competition, highlighted by the 2024 Paris Olympics. With the turn of the calendar, I am particularly excited about the 2024 WNBA season, which begins May 14.
The 27th WNBA season was a banner year with improved talent, higher quality teams, and record viewership. The Minnesota Lynx celebrated 25 seasons with a return to the playoffs after a one-year absence. The 2024 season promises to be better than ever for the league and the Lynx.
The WNBA showcased its talent by increasing the schedule from 36 to 40 games. I watched all 40 Lynx games, including two in person.
Will individual records continue to fall in 2024? Will the Las Vegas Aces achieve a three-peat? Will the Lynx qualify for and advance in the playoffs? Will college stars like Caitlin Clark and Page Bueckers choose to be drafted and succeed as pros?
The 2023 WNBA season followed and built on the growing popularity of women’s sports, particularly the women’s NCAA tournament in which Louisiana State, led by Angel Reese, defeated Iowa, led by Clark, in the championship game. The game drew an average of nearly 10 million viewers and was the most watched women’s basketball final ever. Overall, viewership for the 2023 tournament was up 40 % over 2022.
Aces Repeat as WNBA Champions
For the first time in over two decades, the WNBA had a repeat champion. With three starters out, the Aces won Game Four of the finals 70-69 over the home New York Liberty on October 18.
The Aces took a 34-6 record into the playoffs; they compensated for a thin bench with front-line firepower; four of the five starters (A’ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, Jackie Young, and Kelsey Plum) are all-stars. They averaged 114.8 points per 100 possessions.
“The Aces threw out the kitchen sink defensively (in the final game), including a scheme they hadn’t run all season that Becky Hammon devised during practice between games,” wrote Mark Schindler (“Dawn of a Dynasty,” WNBA.com, October 20, 2023). “In many ways, that defines the Aces and the direction that they’ve spurred the WNBA toward: adaptability and versatility are paramount.
“While much can be projected about what’s on the horizon for the Aces and their bright future as a core, it’s imperative to step in the moment, recognize what we’ve just watched, and smile and laugh at just how damned impressive this group is and what they’ve accomplished collectively.”
The Aces drubbed the Lynx four times. On July 9, Plum scored a career-high 40 points in a 113-89 rout at Target Center. On July 22, Wilson scored 35 points and had 14 rebounds in a 98-81 victory over the Lynx at Target Center. In Vegas, the Aces beat the Lynx 94-73 on May 28 and 83-62 on June 18.
The Aces lost veteran superstar Candace Parker to a mid-season injury and played without the injured starters Gray and Kiah Stokes in Game Four. Leading the Aces was Wilson, the 2023 finals MVP. At age 27, Wilson is becoming one of the league’s all-time great players.
Wilson Is Baaaaad, May Be GOAT of GOATS
Led by Wilson, Alyssa Thomas of Connecticut, and Breanna Stewart of the Liberty, the league’s players keep getting better.
Wilson is a five-time all-star, four-time all-WNBA selection, two-time MVP, and two-time defensive player of the year in addition to her two championships and the 2023 finals MVP. She scored record-tying 53 points on August 22. Wilson became the first player to reach 3,500 points, 1,500 rebounds, and 300 blocks.
Emma Baccellieri of Sports Illustrated summarized Wilson’s talent.
“If GOAT talk seems premature for a 27-year old, fair enough,” Baccellieri wrote (“A’ja Wilson, She’s Baaaaad,” December 15, 2023). “But it’s hard to watch Wilson and not consider the possibility. Even in a guard-driven league, with its corresponding focus on perimeter play, Wilson shines.”
Wilson is the first WNBA player to score 40 points in a game without attempting a 3, according to Baccellieri. “At 6-4, she is remarkably quick,” Baccellieri says. “Depending on the scenario, she can evoke a classic big or a much more modern positionless player. The league has never seen a talent quite like Wilson. And, yes, it’s time to start questioning whether it has ever seen one as great as her.”
Aces’ coach Becky Hammon says, “I played against all the GOATs. I’m going to put it out there…This is gonna be the GOAT of all GOATs. She put together the greatest individual performance the league has ever seen…efficiency, field goal percentage, rebounding, defense, the whole thing.”
Then there is Thomas, the ten-year forward for the Sun. She set WNBA single-season records for triple-doubles (six) and double-doubles (28). She also broke the season record for total assists and led the league in rebounding.
And don’t forget Stewart, voted the league MVP. She had a record six games of at least 40 points. In her seventh WNBA season and first with the Liberty, Stewart averaged 23 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.57 blocks, and 1.45 steals. She ranked second in scoring, third in both rebounding and double-doubles.
Two of my daughters and I sat behind the Liberty’s bench on August 26 as Stewart sizzled with 38 points and 11 rebounds in three quarters as New York embarrassed the Lynx 111-76. It was the most points scored by a player in less than 27 minutes.
Record Statistics Becoming Routine
These types of statistics in 2023 have become almost routine, according to Robert O’Connell of The Wall Street Journal. He notes that players across the league totaled 13 triple-doubles, four more than the high mark set during last year’s regular season and playoffs (“The Year the WNBA Rewrote Its Whole Record Book,” The Wall Street Journal, September 13, 2023).
“Individual players keep getting better,” says Sandy Brondello, coach of the Liberty.
Four of the players who either registered a triple-double in 2023 or broke the 40-point barrier—and one, Dallas Wings forward Satou Sabally, who did both—have been in the league for five seasons or fewer, O’Connell says.
“A different quality of player has made possible a different brand of basketball, running along more complex tracks and reaching more dazzling destinations,” O’Connell wrote.
“The game is evolving,” Dallas Coach Latricia Trammell told O’Connell, pointing to a rise in rangy athletes able to work as guards on one possession, forwards and centers the next. “We’re seeing more of a positionless basketball, a lot of ‘five-out,’ motion-type offense.”
Lynx’s Collier One of the Rising Stars
One of the rising stars is Napheesa Collier of the Lynx. Collier was selected to the 2023 All-WNBA First Team, joining Wilson, Stewart, Thomas, and Sabally.
In her fourth full season in the WNBA, Collier finished fourth in the voting for the Kia WNBA MVP and was selected to the league’s All-Defensive Second Team. The 6-1 forward ranked fourth in league scoring, averaging a career-high 21.5 points per game and seventh in rebounding at 8.5 per game. She also paced the Lynx in steals, 1.65 per game, and blocks, 1.16 per game.
Collier missed most of the 2022 season after giving birth to daughter Mila. Her focus for several months before the 2023 season was getting healthy. She did and led the Lynx back to the playoffs.
Despite her outstanding statistics, she is most proud of her mental approach, she told Kent Youngblood of the Star Tribune (“Collier: ‘I feel like this is my team now,’” October 21, 2023).
“I knew I’d have a big role this year,” Collier said. “I feel I embraced that, took it on my shoulders, unlocked a new level for myself as a player,”
Approaching the 2024 season, Collier wants to build on her presence in the paint, to shoot better from long range, to work on her shot while moving, and to improve her ball-handling.
Besides the league first team, other players achieved remarkable milestones and performances. Diana Taurasi, 19 years into her career, scored 42 points on August 3 to become the only 10,000-point scorer in league history.
Jewell Lloyd of Seattle set a WNBA single-season record with 939 points. Sabrina Ionescu of the Liberty set records for three-pointers in the regular season (128) and points scored in a single round of the WNBA three-point contest (37).
Lynx Jump in Standings, Qualify for Playoffs
In 2022, the Lynx had their worst record in 12 years at 14-22, tying Atlanta for ninth place. The Lynx were 13-21 in 2010. In 2021, the team was 22-10.
The Lynx started the 2023 season 0-6 but rebounded to finish 19-21, tied with Atlanta and Washington in the fifth through seventh spots in the 12-team league. My son took me to see the Lynx fall 71-69 to the Indiana Fever, an enjoyable June 9 evening in which the Lynx hosted many of the team’s legendary players as part of the team’s 25-year celebration.
Facing third-place Connecticut in a two-of-three game playoff, the Lynx fell 90-60 on the road in the first game but upset the Sun 82-75 in the second game. The Sun won the deciding third game 90-75 at Target Center.
Collier’s leadership and Kayla McBride’s stellar play in the second half of the season contributed to the team’s improved play. Two rookies brought energy: Diamond Miller of Maryland, the second overall selection in the draft, and Dorka Juhasz of Connecticut, the 16th overall pick. The two were selected to the all-rookie team.
Throughout the season, the Lynx had to overcome injuries to several players, including Miller, Collier, Jessica Shepard, Rachel Banham, Lindsay Allen, Tiffany Mitchell, Juhasz, and Aerial Powers.
Reeve, the president of basketball operations and coach, finished her 14th season with the Lynx. Besides coaching the Lynx this summer, Reeve will coach the U.S. National Team in the Paris Olympics when the league will break July 21-August 14.
The Lynx have their top players under contract for 2024 but not many more. Reeve told Youngblood of the Star Tribune that given the successes of the 2023 season, the Lynx main focus going forward would remain building from within, developing players (“A good foundation, and room for options,” September 24, 2023).
“We may consider some things in free agency,” Reeve said. “But it’s not our mindset that there is a magic pill (to be found in free agency).” The six players under contract for 2024 are Collier, McBride, Miller, Juhasz, Mitchell, and Shepard. The Lynx also retain the rights for reserve forward Nina Milic.
The Lynx will select seventh in the 2024 draft on April 15.The Fever will draft first for the second straight year followed by the Sparks, Mercury, Storm, Wings, and Mystics. Clark and Bueckers are projected as the top picks if they enter the draft.
It’s an unlikely proposition that fans will see Clark or Bueckers in a Lynx uniform, writes Pat Borzi (“Caitlin Clark or Paige Bueckers in a Minnesota Lynx uniform? Keep dreaming,” MinnPost, January 10, 2024).
Entering free agency and the draft, the Lynx need a “serviceable” point guard (as opposed to a “generational” point guard like Sue Bird) and another post player, Borzi says, based on his interview with Reeve.
Most-Watched Regular Season in 21 Years
The addition of this year’s elite college players will enhance the league’s popularity. The WNBA had its most-watched regular season in 21 years with viewership across its national television partners— ABC, CBS, ESPN, and ESPN2—up 21 % over the 2022 season, according to the league. New highs were set across WNBA digital platforms, social media engagement, and sports betting (“WNBA 2023 Season Delivers with Record-Breaking Viewership, Attendance, and Digital Engagement,” WNBA.com, September 13, 2023).
The WNBA also introduced appointment viewing with Thursday nights on Amazon Prime Video, WNBA Friday Night Spotlight with new broadcast partner ION, and weekend packages featuring the Disney/ESPN Networks, CBS, and the CBS Sports Network.
Attendance was up 16 % for the 2023 season compared to 2022. The average attendance of 6,615 fans per game was the highest since 2018. Total attendance (1,587,488) was the highest in 13 years.
The champion Aces had the highest increase in average attendance (more than 66 % year over year), averaging a league-high 9,551 fans per game. The Aces hosted the highest-attended game, drawing 17,406 against Phoenix on September 10 on the final day of the regular season.
Brittney Griner’s first home game in her return to the WNBA, against the Sky on May 21 drew 14,040 fans in Phoenix, third highest for a WNBA game during the season.
The first WNBA Canada game saw the Lynx lose to the Sky 82-74 in a preseason event before a sold-out crowd of about 20,000 fans at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on May 13.
Serving the community, as exemplified by the Lynx, continued to be a main league focus. The 2023 season was dedicated to women’s health advocacy, with a focus on Black, Brown, and LGBTQ+ communities. Throughout the season, teams, players, and the league highlighted four key pillars of women’s health: maternal health, mental health, reproductive health, and cancer awareness and education.
A WNBA expansion team has been awarded in the Bay Area to the Golden State Warriors with play to begin in 2025. The new team will be owned and operated by Warriors’ Co-Executive Chairman and CEO Joe Lacob and Co-Executive Peter Gruber.
The new team will play home games at Chase Center in San Francisco. Golden State’s Oakland facility, which served as the Warriors’ practice facility and front office from 1997 to 2019, will be the WNBA team’s headquarters.
The Warriors become the sixth NBA franchise to have a WNBA team, joining the Indiana Pacers (Indiana Fever), Minnesota Timberwolves (Lynx), Brooklyn Nets (New York Liberty), Phoenix Suns (Phoenix Mercury), and the Washington Wizards (Washington Mystics).
The 2024 WNBA season promises more great players, more record performances, a possible three-peat, and continued Lynx improvement.
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