WNBA training camps are underway and everything seems rosy. Players are all smiles, every new acquisition seems to be a perfect fit and everyone is ready for the best year ever.
Some teams will overperform, others will underwhelm and only one will be crowned champion.
Before preseason action even takes place, let’s take a look around the league at the current state of each team to determine who are the contenders, the wannabe contenders and the pretenders who are just playing so they don’t get fined. In the comments, be sure to share your agreements and disagreements, as well as your ranking of all 15 teams.
These are the teams that can win it all. They enter the season a step above the rest of the league. Not only is a championship a possibility, but competing for one is the expectation. If they don’t end up having a long postseason, this year will be looked at as a disappointment.
The Aces are the cream of the crop in the WNBA, so obviously, they are at the top of this tier and any rankings one can concoct. Las Vegas won it all last year and is in the middle of a dynasty, having won three of the last four championships.
They’ve run it back, securing A’ja Wilson, signing Jackie Young to a new contract and bringing in new talent to their roster with guard Chennedy Carter. With head coach Becky Hammon in charge, the Aces will be primed to go back-to-back yet again and add some more hardware to their trophy room.
Locked in at the lab 🫡🧪 pic.twitter.com/UTQZHg1zfp
Last year, the Fever were a tough team to beat in the playoffs. This season, they will be an absolute nightmare. They’ve automatically gotten better just by getting a healthy Caitlin Clark back into the fold.
Indiana also added new talent like Monique Billings, so expect them to be a title favorite for many WNBA fans.
already building chemistry 🧪Monique Billings put in work alongside Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Mitchell this offseason.🎥: USA Basketball & Unrivaled pic.twitter.com/w4CQraGYM0
A franchise doesn’t add Angel Reese unless they are serious about winning games. Reese is a double-double machine and one of the best rebounders in the WNBA. Her in the frontcourt and Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray in the backcourt give the Dream an incredibly balanced roster. Don’t expect them to lose again in the first round.
Something special is cooking in the 🅰️ pic.twitter.com/TbhEDuF8WM
The Liberty have all the star power one could ask for with Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, Jonquel Jones and Satou Sabally. They won it all back in 2024 and have remained a title-contending team over the past two seasons. The only question is the new head coach. Can Chris DeMarco lead them back to glory?
While not yet title contenders, these teams will be playing in the postseason. If things break right, they might even be a top-four team. However, they have some things to prove before they reach that level of expectation.
Paige Bueckers put up a generational rookie season. Another season as a WNBA player means she will only get better. That should frighten the league, as they already had so much trouble guarding her last year. The Wings also added Azzi Fudd to the backcourt, reuniting the UConn Huskies at the professional level.
They still have some defensive challenges, and it’s tough to be led by younger players, but Dallas will be a fun team to watch and a tough team to beat.
The Valkyries raised the standard of what expansion teams can accomplish. They reached the playoffs in their first year of operation and will aim to do so again in 2026. Gabby Williams has joined Golden State to help them accomplish that goal, and under head coach Natalie Nakase’s system, don’t be surprised if the forward has a career year.
— Golden State Valkyries (@valkyries) April 21, 2026
LA made a ton of win-now moves this offseason. They brought back Kelsey Plum for less than the supermax, which allowed the organization to re-sign Dearica Hamby and welcome the return of Nneka Ogwumike.
The Sparks also traded away Rickea Jackson and brought in veteran player Ariel Atkins. They wouldn’t have made these moves if they didn’t think they had a playoff-bound team. While it might’ve been better in the long term to lean into a youth movement, for this season, these decisions will pay off, and Los Angeles will be playing playoff basketball for the first time since 2020.