2018 WNBA season | |
---|---|
League | Women's National Basketball Association |
Sport | Basketball |
Duration | May 18 – September 12 |
Number of games | 34 |
Number of teams | 12 |
Average attendance | 6,721 [1] |
TV partner(s) | ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, NBA TV |
Top draft pick | A'ja Wilson |
Picked by | Las Vegas Aces |
Season MVP | Breanna Stewart (Seattle) |
Eastern champions | Atlanta Dream |
Eastern runners-up | Washington Mystics |
Western champions | Seattle Storm |
Western runners-up | Phoenix Mercury |
Finals champions | Seattle Storm |
Runners-up | Washington Mystics |
Finals MVP | Breanna Stewart (Seattle) |
The 2018 WNBA season was the 22nd season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Minnesota Lynx are the defending champions. The regular season began on May 18, with the Phoenix Mercury hosting the Dallas Wings. The season ended with the Seattle Storm defeating the Washington Mystics 3-0 in the WNBA Finals. This was the third championship for the Storm. Seattle's Breanna Stewart was named regular season and finals MVP.
The Las Vegas Aces selected A'ja Wilson first in the 2018 WNBA Draft. [2] The draft was televised nationally on the ESPN networks (Round 1 on ESPN2, Rounds 2 and 3 on ESPNU).
Free agency negotiations began on February 1.
Off-season | ||
---|---|---|
Team | 2017 season | 2018 season |
Seattle Storm | Gary Kloppenburg | Dan Hughes |
New York Liberty | Bill Laimbeer | Katie Smith |
Las Vegas Aces | Vickie Johnson | Bill Laimbeer |
Atlanta Dream | Michael Cooper | Nicki Collen |
Mid-season | ||
Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach |
Dallas Wings | Fred Williams | Taj McWilliams-Franklin |
In addition to the relocated Las Vegas Aces, two other teams announced permanent moves to new arenas for the 2018 season.
The 2018 WNBA All-Star Game was hosted by the Minnesota Lynx on July 28 at the Target Center. Coverage of the game began at 3:30pm. This is the first time the Lynx have hosted the annual event. This season a new selection format was used. Fans, coaches, media and players would all vote for players to be selected to the All-Star Game. The top 22 players receiving votes based on this weighting were selected to the All-Star Game. There was not a restriction on number of players from one conference. The top 2 vote getters were captains of the two All-Star teams and selected their teams from the pool of the remaining 20 players. The 22 All-Stars were revealed on July 17, 2018. The rosters were revealed on July 19, 2018. [8]
July 28 3:30pm |
Team Delle Donne 112, Team Parker119 | ||
Scoring by quarter: 27–31, 23–23, 34–24, 35–34 | ||
Pts: Moore, Quigley 18 Rebs:Four players 8 Asts: Diggins-Smith 8 | Pts: Toliver 23 Rebs:Three players 6 Asts: Bird 8 |
Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 15,922 Referees: Maj Forsberg Janetta Graham Jeff Wooten |
Source: [9]
# | Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Atlanta Dream (2) | 23 | 11 | .676 | – | 13–4 | 10–7 | 12–4 |
2 | Washington Mystics (3) | 22 | 12 | .647 | 1 | 12–5 | 10–7 | 12–4 |
3 | Connecticut Sun (4) | 21 | 13 | .618 | 2 | 13–4 | 8–9 | 9–7 |
4 | e – Chicago Sky | 13 | 21 | .382 | 10 | 7–10 | 6–11 | 6–10 |
5 | e – New York Liberty | 7 | 27 | .206 | 16 | 4–13 | 3–14 | 6–10 |
6 | e – Indiana Fever | 6 | 28 | .176 | 17 | 2–15 | 4–13 | 3–13 |
# | Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Seattle Storm (1) | 26 | 8 | .765 | – | 13–4 | 13–4 | 11–5 |
2 | Phoenix Mercury (5) | 20 | 14 | .588 | 6 | 9–8 | 11–6 | 8–8 |
3 | Los Angeles Sparks (6) | 19 | 15 | .559 | 7 | 11–6 | 8–9 | 9–7 |
4 | Minnesota Lynx (7) | 18 | 16 | .529 | 8 | 9–8 | 9–8 | 9–7 |
5 | Dallas Wings (8) | 15 | 19 | .441 | 11 | 10–7 | 5–12 | 7–9 |
6 | e –Las Vegas Aces | 14 | 20 | .412 | 12 | 8–9 | 6–11 | 4–12 |
Notes
The following shows the leaders for each statistic during the 2018 regular season. [10]
Category | Player | Team | Statistic |
---|---|---|---|
Points per game | Liz Cambage | Dallas Wings | 23.0 PPG |
Rebounds per game | Sylvia Fowles | Minnesota Lynx | 11.9 RPG |
Assists per game | Courtney Vandersloot | Chicago Sky | 8.6 APG |
Steals per game | Maya Moore | Minnesota Lynx | 1.7 SPG |
Blocks per game | Brittney Griner | Phoenix Mercury | 2.6 BPG |
Field goal percentage | Sylvia Fowles | Minnesota Lynx | 61.9% (237–383) |
Three point FG percentage | Briann January | Phoenix Mercury | 47.0% (77–182) |
Free throw percentage | Diana Taurasi | Phoenix Mercury | 92.5% (172–186) |
Points per game | Team Stat | Connecticut Sun | 87.6 PPG |
Field goal percentage | Team Stat | Seattle Storm | 46.8% |
First round: Single elimination (Aug. 21) | Second round: Single elimination (Aug. 23) | Semifinals: Best-of-five (Aug. 26 – Sept. 4) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 7 – Sept. 12) | |||||||||||||||||||||
1 | Seattle Storm | 91 | 91 | 66 | 84 | 94 | ||||||||||||||||||
4 | Connecticut Sun | 86 | 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 87 | 87 | 86 | 86 | 84 | |||||||||||||||
5 | Phoenix Mercury | 101 | 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 96 | 1 | Seattle Storm | 89 | 75 | 98 | ||||||||||||||
8 | Dallas Wings | 83 | 3 | Washington Mystics | 76 | 73 | 82 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Atlanta Dream | 84 | 78 | 81 | 76 | 81 | ||||||||||||||||||
3 | Washington Mystics | 96 | 3 | Washington Mystics | 87 | 75 | 76 | 97 | 86 | |||||||||||||||
6 | Los Angeles Sparks | 75 | 6 | Los Angeles Sparks | 64 | |||||||||||||||||||
7 | Minnesota Lynx | 68 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Note: Teams re-seeded after second round and semi-finals.
Date Awarded | Eastern Conference | Western Conference | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Player | Team | Player | Team | |
May 28 [11] | Alyssa Thomas | Connecticut | Chelsea Gray | Los Angeles |
June 4 [12] | Tina Charles | New York | Liz Cambage | Dallas |
June 11 [13] | Tiffany Hayes | Atlanta | Brittney Griner | Phoenix |
June 18 [14] | Elena Delle Donne | Washington | Breanna Stewart | Seattle |
June 25 [15] | Angel McCoughtry | Atlanta | Maya Moore | Minnesota |
July 2 [16] | Elena Delle Donne (2) | Washington | Maya Moore (2) | Minnesota |
July 9 [17] | Elena Delle Donne (3) | Washington | A'ja Wilson | Las Vegas |
July 16 [18] | Jessica Breland | Atlanta | Candice Parker | Los Angeles |
July 23 [19] | Tiffany Hayes (2) | Atlanta | Liz Cambage (2) | Dallas |
August 6 [20] | Tiffany Hayes (3) | Atlanta | Candice Parker (2) | Los Angeles |
August 13 [21] | Elena Delle Donne (4) | Washington | Maya Moore (3) | Minnesota |
August 20 [22] | Jonquel Jones | Connecticut | DeWanna Bonner | Phoenix |
For games played | Eastern Conference | Western Conference | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Player | Team | Player | Team | |
June 2018 [23] | Elena Delle Donne | Washington | Diana Taurasi | Phoenix |
July 2018 [24] | Tiffany Hayes | Atlanta | Breanna Stewart | Seattle |
August 2018 [25] | Elena Delle Donne (2) | Washington | Diana Taurasi (2) | Phoenix |
For games played | Player | Team |
---|---|---|
June 2018 [26] | A'ja Wilson | Las Vegas |
July 2018 [27] | A'ja Wilson (2) | Las Vegas |
August 2018 [28] | A'ja Wilson (3) | Las Vegas |
For games played | Coach | Team |
---|---|---|
June 2018 [29] | Sandy Brondello | Phoenix |
July 2018 [30] | Nicki Collen | Atlanta |
August 2018 [31] | Nicki Collen (2) | Atlanta |
Award | Winner | Position | Team | Votes/Statistic | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Most Valuable Player Award | Breanna Stewart [32] | Forward | Seattle Storm | 33 of 39 | |
Finals MVP Award | Breanna Stewart [33] | Forward | Seattle Storm | – of – | |
Rookie of the Year Award | A'ja Wilson [34] | Power Forward | Las Vegas Aces | 39 of 39 | |
Most Improved Player Award | Natasha Howard [35] | Forward | Seattle Storm | 29 of 39 | |
Defensive Player of the Year Award | Alana Beard [36] | Guard | Los Angeles Sparks | 16 of 39 | |
Sixth Woman of the Year Award | Jonquel Jones [37] | Forward/center | Connecticut Sun | 20 of 38 | |
Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award | Sue Bird [38] | Guard | Seattle Storm | 16 of 38 | |
Peak Performer: Points | Liz Cambage | Center | Dallas Wings | 23.0 PPG | |
Peak Performer: Rebounds | Sylvia Fowles | Center | Minnesota Lynx | 11.8 RPG | |
Peak Performer: Assists | Courtney Vandersloot | Guard | Chicago Sky | 8.6 APG | |
Coach of the Year Award | Nicki Collen [39] | Coach | Atlanta Dream | 37 of 39 | |
Basketball Executive of the Year Award | Chris Sienko [40] | General manager | Atlanta Dream | 6 of 11 | |
Team | Guard | Guard | Forward | Forward | Center |
All-WNBA First Team | Diana Taurasi | Tiffany Hayes | Elena Delle Donne | Breanna Stewart | Liz Cambage |
All-WNBA Second Team | Skylar Diggins-Smith | Courtney Vandersloot | Candace Parker | Maya Moore | Brittney Griner |
All-Defensive First Team | Jasmine Thomas | Alana Beard | Jessica Breland | Natasha Howard | Brittney Griner |
All-Defensive Second Team | Tiffany Hayes | Ariel Atkins | Nneka Ogwumike | Rebekkah Brunson | Sylvia Fowles |
All-Rookie Team | Kelsey Mitchell | Ariel Atkins | Diamond DeShields | Azurá Stevens | A'ja Wilson |
Team | Head coach | Previous job | Years with team | Record with team | Playoff appearances | Finals Appearances | WNBA Championships |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlanta Dream | Nicki Collen | Connecticut Sun (assistant) | 1 | 23-11 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Chicago Sky | Amber Stocks | Los Angeles Sparks (assistant) | 2 | 35–43 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Connecticut Sun | Curt Miller | Los Angeles Sparks (assistant) | 3 | 56–46 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Indiana Fever | Pokey Chatman | Chicago Sky | 2 | 15–53 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
New York Liberty | Katie Smith | New York Liberty (assistant) | 1 | 7–27 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Washington Mystics | Mike Thibault | Connecticut Sun | 6 | 104–100 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
Team | Head coach | Previous job | Years with team | Record with team | Playoff appearances | Finals Appearances | WNBA Championships |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dallas Wings | Fred Williams | Atlanta Dream | 4 | 72–97 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Las Vegas Aces | Bill Laimbeer | New York Liberty | 1 | 14–20 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Los Angeles Sparks | Brian Agler | Seattle Storm | 4 | 75–54 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
Minnesota Lynx | Cheryl Reeve | Detroit Shock (assistant) | 8 | 213–93 | 7 | 6 | 4 |
Phoenix Mercury | Sandy Brondello | Los Angeles Sparks (assistant) | 5 | 103–67 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
Seattle Storm | Dan Hughes | San Antonio Stars | 1 | 26–8 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Notes:
The 2013 WNBA season was the 17th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. The regular season began on May 24, and playoffs concluded on October 10. The Minnesota Lynx won their second league championship, defeating the Atlanta Dream three games to none in the 2013 WNBA Finals. The year represented a positive turning point for the long-struggling league. Both attendance and television viewership were up, driven by an influx of talented rookies, multiple teams reported that they were near a break-even point, and at least one franchise announced that it was profitable.
The 2017 WNBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game played on July 22, 2017. The Seattle Storm hosted a WNBA All-Star Game for the first time.
The 2017 Chicago Sky season was the franchise's 12th season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Sky started the season slowly, posting a 1–5 record in May. This slow start continued into June where the team only won 2 of 9 games. The team showed improvement in July and August, posting a combined record of 9–8 in those months. An 0–2 September saw the Sky finish with an overall record of 12–22. The Sky finished in 4th place in the Eastern Conference, ahead of the Atlanta Dream via tiebreaker. The team did not qualify for the playoffs.
The 2018 WNBA season of the Minnesota Lynx was their 20th season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Lynx finished the 2017 season with a record of 27–7, finishing first in the Western Conference and qualifying for the playoffs, before ultimately beating Los Angeles in the WNBA Finals to win their league-tying best fourth championship.
The 2018 WNBA season is the 21st for the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association which began on May 20, 2018. The Mystics qualified for the WNBA Playoffs and reached the WNBA Finals for the first time in franchise history.
The 2018 WNBA season was the 22nd season for the Las Vegas Aces franchise of the WNBA. This was the franchise's inaugural season in Las Vegas, after moving from San Antonio during the off season. The season tips off on May 20.
The 2019 WNBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game played on July 27, 2019. The Las Vegas Aces hosted the WNBA All-Star Game for the first time.
The 2018 WNBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the WNBA's 2018 season. The Seattle Storm won the team's third WNBA title, sweeping the Washington Mystics 3–0 in the best-of-five WNBA Finals.
Ariel Atkins is an American professional basketball player for the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). After a four-year college career with the Texas Longhorns, Atkins was drafted 7th overall by the Washington Mystics in 2018 and helped them reach the WNBA Finals. She then spent the 2018–19 season in Poland with InvestInTheWest ENEA Gorzów Wielkopolski. In 2019, she won a WNBA Championship with the Washington Mystics. For the 2019–20 WNBA off-season, she signed with an Australian team, the Perth Lynx.
The 2019 WNBA season was the 23rd season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Seattle Storm were the defending champions. The regular season began on May 24, with the Atlanta Dream hosting the Dallas Wings and the New York Liberty hosting the Indiana Fever. The season ended with the Washington Mystics securing their first WNBA Title over the Connecticut Sun three games to two, in a closely contested finals. Emma Meesseman was named Finals MVP and teammate Elena Delle Donne was named regular season MVP.
The 2019 WNBA season was the 20th season for the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association. The regular season began on May 25 with a game against the Phoenix Mercury.
The 2019 WNBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the WNBA's 2019 season. The Washington Mystics won the team's first WNBA title in their 22 year franchise history.
The 2020 WNBA season was the 24th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Washington Mystics were the defending champions. Planned changes to the league's schedule included an increase from 34 to 36 regular season games for each team, the introduction of a mid-season Commissioner's Cup tournament, and more games broadcast on ESPN and ABC. This was the first season under a new Collective Bargaining Agreement between the league and the WNBA Players Association. However, on April 3, the season was indefinitely postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Under a plan approved on June 15, the league began a shortened 22-game regular season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, without fans present on July 25. A'ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces was named the league MVP. The Seattle Storm won the 2020 WNBA Finals over the Aces, and Breanna Stewart was named the Finals MVP.
The Wubble was the WNBA's 2020 coronavirus pandemic isolation zone at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. The league, teams, and players used the season as a way to leverage advocacy for social justice.
The 2022 WNBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game that was played on July 10, 2022, at Wintrust Arena. The Chicago Sky hosted the game and related events for the first time.
The 2023 Atlanta Dream season was the 16th season for the Atlanta Dream of the Women's National Basketball Association, and their second season under head coach Tanisha Wright.
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The 2023 Minnesota Lynx season was the 25th season for the Minnesota Lynx of the Women's National Basketball Association, and the fourteenth season under head coach Cheryl Reeve.
The 2023 WNBA season was the 27th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Las Vegas Aces are the defending champions and they repeated as champions after defeating the New York Liberty 3 games to 1 in the Finals.
The 2023 WNBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game played on July 15, 2023, at Michelob Ultra Arena. The Las Vegas Aces hosted the game and related events for the third time - the previous games being in 2019 and 2021.