Okay so I figured the best place to start with this topic is to give a general overview of all 12 teams in the WNBA and their best players. This will be in alphabetical order. So we start with the Atlanta Dream first.
The Atlanta Dream is a mix of young upcomers and vet leadership. The main vet for the Dream is Renee Montgomery as she has been in the league for 10 seasons. She has been a steading force for the Dream and the young roster who has lots of good young players, Elizabeth Williams and Britney Sykes being two of them. Willams is the center for the Dream and is a defense player and great rebounder. In one game she had 20 points, 8 rebounds and 8 blocks in a game this past season. Sykes just finished her 2nd year in the league and this past season she has reached 1,000 career points, she tied for most points in a quarter with 22, (Diana Taurasi set the record in 2006) and she led the Dream in assists on eight different occasions this past season.
https://www.youtube.com/c/AtlantaDreamNext up is the Chicago Sky, Their main star is their point guard in Courtney Vandersloot who has been in the league for 8 years. She has had 11.2 points, 9.1 assists, 4.3 rebounds per game this past season. When she is going the whole team functions better and she tends to pass to Diamond Deshields who just finished her 1st season in the league and is already winning awards. She won the WNBA Skills Challenge and was named an All-Star. This past season she has scored 20+ points nine times of the 34 games she played.
https://www.youtube.com/user/ChicagoSkyBasketballThe Connecticut Sun are a very young team and have only 3 players who have at least 6 years in the league. One of those 3 players is Shekinna Stricklen. She is more of a 3 and D type of player and she has 287 career three pointers and her overall career stats are 1,520 points, 520 rebounds, 165 assists and 142 steals thus far.
https://www.youtube.com/ConnecticutSunDeep in the heart of Texas is the Dallas Wings and their main playmaker is Skylar Diggins-Smith. This past season she has averaged 17.9 points a game, 6.2 assists and 1.4 steals. She has won multiple awards in her time in the league a few of those include, All WNBA First Team(2017), All-Star reserve in 2017, starter for an All-Star in 2014, Most Improved Player(2014) and All Rookie Team(2013).
https://twitter.com/DallasWingsThe Indiana Fever is possibly the youngest team in the league and there is only one player on their roster who has more than six years in the league and that is 13 year vet Candice Dupree who has always averaged double digit points throughout her whole career. Her lowest point total average is 11.3 in 2016 and her highest point average is 16.5 in 2007. She was the first player ever drafted by the Chicago Sky in their history with the 6th pick in the 2006 draft. She is a WNBA champ with the Phoenix Mercury in 2014. She ranks 8th in WNBA history in points and rebounds. She has 66 career double doubles, 13 consecutive years scoring in double figures. Finally she has played in 32 or more of a possible 34 games each season in 12 of 13 WNBA seasons.
https://www.youtube.com/c/IndianaFeverLas Vegas Aces is one of the oldest teams in the league as far as a franchise goes. They started off as the Utah Starzz in 1997. One of the inaugural 8 teams in the WNBA. They later became the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2003. They became the Las Vegas Aces in the 2018 season.
Here is a history of the Utah Starzz/ San Antonio Silver Stars/Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA draft.
https://aces.wnba.com/aces-history-feeling-a-draft/ As to the future of the Aces it is bright with the draft of the Kelsey Plum with the number 1 overall pick in the 2018 draft. In the last season she was second on the team in assists(Jackie Young).
She finished the post season second on the team in points(15.2), first in assists(7.8 ), fourth in rebounds(4.8 ), first in 3 point percentage(.529) and fourth in field goal percentage(.492). The other young star on the Aces is Ji-Su Park who has played two seasons. Her numbers are slightly deceptive as she has played internationally for the KB Stars from South Korea in 3 seasons in the WKBL(South Korean League). In her time overseas she has averaged 12.9 points, .509 field goal average, 68.3 percent from the free throw line and 1066 rebounds in 3 years of play while in South Korea.
https://twitter.com/lvacesNext up is The LA Sparks. Like most LA professional basketball teams they have a history of championships. The LA Sparks have three championships in league history. (2001,2002 and 2016). Magic Johnson is the main name under the ownership label of Sparks LA LLC. Derrick Fisher is the Head Coach of the team. Now the Sparks main star is Candace Parker and she has picked up where Lisa Leslie left off for the Spark. She mainly does her damage in 3 ways, scoring, rebounds and from beyond the 3 point line. 17.0 points overall her career, 8.5 rebounds and 33.3 from three, respectfully. She also has two sisters on the same team. Chiney and Nneka Ogwumike. Nneka has been with the Spark her whole career but Chiney just joined the team last season. As a duo they have these stats this past season. 25.7 points, 14.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 2.8 steals and 1.1 blocks.
https://www.youtube.com/user/TheLosAngelesSparks/Up in the Midwest is the Minnesota Lynx and have won 2 WNBA championships since 2015. In 2015 and 2017. They have 4 championships overall. A big part of those championship teams is Sylvia Fowles. She was the WNBA Finals MVP both years and she was the regular season MVP in 2017. She is a 3 time defensive player of the year, She has been chosen to the ALL WNBA first team 3 times and the second team 3 times. (2010, 2013, 2017) (2011,2012, and 2016) respectfully. Also she has 3 Gold Olympic medals and is the career leader in field goal percentage in the history of the WNBA with 59.0%. She is a major part of the success of the Lynx.
http://www.youtube.com/MinnesotaLynxThe New York Liberty was one of the first 8 teams in the league. Players such as Rebecca Lobo, Teresa Weatherspoon, Becky Hammon, and Leilani Mitchell come to mind when one thinks of the Liberty. They have played in the WNBA Finals 4 times, the most in the league without a championship. As one of the only teams from the inaugural 8 teams to still have the same ownership they have lots of history in the league.
https://liberty.wnba.com/6158-2/ While their past is historic they future is so bright. Brittany Boyd was the Liberty's first round pick in 2015 with the 9th pick and she was a member of the WNBA All Rookie Team in 2015. Led all rookies in steals( 1.1) and 6th in scoring amongst first year players (6.6). Amanda Zahui B is the other young player which is lifting up the Liberty. Last season she had 8.6 points,1.3 blocks, 1 steal and 6.3 rebounds per game.
https://twitter.com/nylibertyFinally to the team I watched the first few years when I moved to Phoenix, the Phoenix Mercury. They have the 2 best players in the league currently. Diana Taurasi and Britney Griner. Many consider Diana Taurisi to be the greatest player in WNBA history. She is a 3 time WNBA champion, 4 time Olympic gold medalist(One of 5 athletes with 4 gold medals, no one has 5 gold medals), 6 time EuroLeague champ, 2 time WNBA Finals MVP, 10 time All WNBA First Team- most in WNBA history.
Finally she has the Phoenix Mercury franchise leader in 16 catagories, seasons, games played, games started, minutes played, points scored, scoring average, field goals made, field goal attempts, 3-pointers, 3-point attempts, free throws made, free throw attempts, defensive rebounds, assists, steals and championships. Not to be out shined is Britney Griner who is one of the best players in Mercury history. There is too much to gush about with Brittney Griner so I will let you peruse her player page.
https://www.wnba.com/player/brittney-griner/#/career She is also openly a lesbian and is a great advocate for the LGBTQIA+ community and the Mercury support her.
https://www.youtube.com/user/PhoenixMercuryVideosNext up is the Seattle Storm. They have the player with the most seasons in the WNBA among active players. Sue Bird. She has played 18 seasons. All with the Storm. She was their #1 draft pick in 2002. She is often talked with Diana Taurasi as one of the greatest players in league history. Every year she has played she has had at least 10 points a game in her career. She is also a 38.9% 3 point shooter in her career. The team overall have a non profit called Storm Cares which spotlights all kind of businesses in the Pacific Northwest that are doing good.
http://www.seattlestormbasketball.com/stormcares/stormunity/community-spotlight/ Here is their main YT channel.
https://www.youtube.com/user/SeattleStormOfficial/Finally the current WNBA Champions, the Washington Mystic. The Mystic are on the rise. Elena Delle Donne is considered to be the next GOAT in the league once Diana Tarasi retires. There is also lots of young players around her to grow while she is still playing her best such as Kristi Toliver, LaToya Sanders, Tianna Hawkins and Arial Atkins. The Mystics look to continue to play their best and continue to win championships.
Next post will go over the basics of the WNBA season and the playoff structure and when is the 2020 WNBA draft. Finally the 3rd post will go over any changes to the upcoming WNBA season.
You can post after I put in those extra posts for later editing.
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