After delays due to COVID-19, the 24th WNBA season officially started on July 25. The season will consist of 22 games all played at IMG Academy in Florida and will end on Sept. 12.
All games will be played without fans. However, even with these changes, Engelbert said players will receive full pay and benefits this season.
Fans of the WNBA can also watch gameplay live on Twitter as of Aug. 12 thanks to a partnership between both parties. “WNBA fans on Twitter are passionate about their hoops… the W has been a top sports partner of ours for many years and we’re pumped to offer live WNBA games, with a Twitter twist, to basketball fans across the globe,” said TJ Adeshola, Head of Sports Partnerships for Twitter.
From the start of the season, one team took charge. The Seattle Storm, 2018 WNBA Champions have managed to score over 70 points in every game this season and slaughter almost all opponents.
Led by 2018 finals and overall WNBA MVP Breanna Stewart, who missed the 2019 season due to an achilles injury, the team has taken an early 9-1 edge in games. As of Aug. 15, the Storm is 4-0 in conference play and has only lost to the Washington Mystics.
After an 83-65 win against the Dallas Wings on Aug. 14, the Storm is on a seven-game winning streak.
For the Storm, Alysha Clark added 15 points and seven rebounds to aid in the victory. Stewart led the team with 21 points and started off the game with winning the tip. She also added an early block, a layup that drew the and one foul and a three-pointer to start off strong. She continued the entire game with an onslaught of offense and defense.
Stewart was the No. 1 draft pick in 2016 for the Seattle Storm, and since then she has lived up to the hype. In her rookie season, she was named WNBA Rookies of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year runner-up and even won a gold medal at the Olympics as part of the USA Women’s Basketball Team.
Since then, she has accomplished even more, such as being the fastest WNBA player to reach 1,000 points and 500 rebounds for her career and making the 2018 All-WNBA First Team. She also made the 2018 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup Most Valuable Player and All-Star Five.
This season she has started in ten games, averaged 18.9 points and recorded her highest free throw percentage since joining the WNBA.
They do have competition in and out of their conference, but let’s see if Stewart and the Storm can stay on top this season and win their fourth WNBA title.
The next best team following the Storm in the Western Conference is the Las Vegas Aces with a 7-2 record. Former 2016 and 2017 WNBA Champions the Los Angeles Sparks and Minnesota Lynx are doing well respectively, both with 6-3 records. In the Eastern Conference, the Chicago Sky leads with a 6-4 record.