Six Aussies vying for WNBA championship glory

• Aussies in the WNBA 2025 Playoffs Tracker
• Aussies Alanna Smith, Ezi Magbegor, Sami Whitcomb, Steph Talbot and Sandy Brondello will all feature in the playoffs
• This is the first season the WNBA Finals will be a best-of-seven series
• Latest News: Read about Aussies in the WNBA here.

It’s been a hectic WNBA regular season and after four months of play, the playoffs are here and it is shaping up as being a postseason for the ages.

Many of the contending teams made key trades or acquisitions throughout the season, which has helped them stand towards the top of the standings, while others have handled injury adversity and look to be getting healthy at the right time of the year.

There’s changes to the postseason format for the WNBA this season, with the first round being a best-of-three series, the semifinals will be best of five and for the first time, the Finals are the best-of-seven. An already gruelling season is about to get even tougher!

Speaking of tough, the first-round features some absolutely tantalising match-ups. So, let’s take a look at what’s in store.

#1 Minnesota Lynx (34-10 record) v #8 Golden State Valkyries (23-21)

The Minnesota Lynx fell heartbreakingly short in the WNBA Finals last season against New York, losing in five hard-fought games. They returned much of their roster this season and have been on a mission since the season began.

When I caught up with Alanna Smith in April, she talked about the Lynx’s mentality heading into the season.

“The goal is the same; to get back to that point and go that one step further. It's also just about taking it step by step, getting to a championship series is one of the hardest things to do, so I think we just want to continue to build off what we did last year,” she told basketball.com.au.

They’ve done just that, having sat at the top of the standings for much of the season and Smith’s excellence on the defensive end – she is one of the top candidates for Defensive Player of the Year – has been vital.

For Golden State, what an inaugural season it has been. Many didn’t give them a chance of making the playoffs in preseason predictions, but they continued to play hard, battle through major injuries and here they are.

The play of Veronica Burton, who helped lead the Bendigo Spirit to the WNBL Championship earlier this year has been a revelation. The unquestioned leader for Most Improved Player of the Year Award, Burton has taken her game to the next and her Valkyrie teammates have followed.

The Valkyries lost 2025 All-Star and former WNBL star Kayla Thornton to a season-ending injury in late July, and while it’s impossible to fill that void, it has been a total team effort getting to the playoffs. Highlighted by the fact no active player averages more than 12 points per game.

When you look at the Lynx, they have superstars at every turn, led of course by perennial MVP candidate, Napheesa Collier, who this season became just the second-ever player in WNBA history to join the 50/40/90 club; averaging over 50% shooting from the field, 40% from three and 90% from the free throw line.

While she’s near unstoppable, the greatness just keeps coming with fellow All-Stars Courtney Williams and Kayla McBride, while Natisha Heideman and mid-season acquisition Dijonai Carrington add so much value.

Minnesota won all four match-ups throughout the season, including the final game of the regular season, 72-53.

#2 Las Vegas Aces (30-14) v #7 Seattle Storm (23-21)

This isn’t your typical 2 v 7 match-up, because despite the Storm stumbling through large parts of the season, they’ve shown their best is elite and both Las Vegas and Seattle have unbelievable star power across the board.

Three-time MVP A’ja Wilson is playing some of the best basketball in her life – which is insane considering what she’s already accomplished - alongside her usual superstar running mates in Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray, while Seattle boasts perennial All-Stars in Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins, and of course one of the best defenders in the world; Aussie Ezi Magbegor.

Magbegor has had a quiet season on the offensive side of the ball, first dealing with nagging injuries early in the season, but she is the same defensive game-changer we all know. She will have a huge say in this match-up.

This series is going to be a lot of fun, with the major storyline being Jewell Loyd – one of Seattle’s best ever guards – now on the other side after requesting a trade in the offseason and landing in Las Vegas.

It wasn’t the smoothest of transitions for Loyd, who struggled mightily early in the season, but a move to the bench has seen her return to great form and most importantly, since that move the Aces have been the best team in the league. Their turnaround this season has been unbelievable; from sitting at 14-14, to reeling off an incredible 16 wins in a row to end the season and drag themselves up to the No.2 seed, Wilson has lifted this team to once again being a championship contender.

Both the Aces and Storm traded for key players during the season, with Las Vegas adding NaLyssa Smith, who fit seamlessly into the Aces line-up, while Seattle traded for All-Star Brittney Sykes, who is also a two-time WNBA All-Defensive First Team member.

The season series was split 2-2, with the last three games all being decided by five points or less. The Aces are in ominous form and slowing down Wilson is the toughest task in basketball today, so they are deserved favourites, but the Storm won’t be taking a backwards step.

#3 Atlanta Dream (30-14) v #6 Indiana Fever (24-20)

The Atlanta Dream recruited big names over the offseason in Brittney Griner and Brionna Jones, and while those two have been great additions to the team, it’s the improvement of those who have been with the team for several seasons which has pushed them to the next level.

All-Stars Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray have taken the next step in their respective careers and are now bonafide superstars, while former WNBL stars Naz Hillmon and Jordin Canada are vital pieces of the puzzle and have had great seasons for Atlanta.

For Indiana, they are the walking wounded, with a handful of season-ending injuries to key rotation players, but the play of All-Star duo Kelsey Mitchell and Aliyah Boston has kept them alive.

Mitchell has been on an absolute tear all season long and her consistency has been exactly what this Fever team needed as injuries mounted. Indiana will be without Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham, Aari McDonald, Sydney Colson and Aussie Chloe Bibby, all of whom have suffered season-ending injuries. It’s a credit to Indiana’s fight and tenacity that they’ve made the postseason whilst missing so much talent.

The Dream are highly favoured to win their first playoff series since 2016, which back then was a single-elimination first-round game, in which they defeated the Storm. The season series was split 2-2, and Indiana won the last match-up, 99-82, but take that with a grain of salt considering they last met more than two months ago and the Fever still had Clark, Cunningham and McDonald in the line-up.

#4 Phoenix Mercury (27-17) v #5 New York Liberty (27-17)

There will be Australians going head-to-head in this match-up, with Sami Whitcomb and the Phoenix Mercury gaining home-court advantage against Steph Talbot and Sandy Brondello’s New York Liberty squad which is looking to go back-to-back.

Whitcomb joined the Mercury in free agency, while Talbot was waived by Golden State mid-season and then picked up by New York. The Liberty also added 2019 Finals MVP Emma Meesseman during the season and despite key players in Breanna Stewart and last year’s Finals MVP Jonquel Jones missing over a quarter of the season due to injury, they both enter the postseason in strong form.

For Phoenix, they have their own superstar big three in triple-double machine Alyssa Thomas, All-Star Satou Sabally and 2021 Finals MVP Kahleah Copper.

The match-up between Copper and Sabrina Ionescu is going to be exciting to say the least. Ionescu rose to the occasion throughout the season when injuries took their toll on the Liberty and enters the playoffs in some of the best form of her career. Copper missed plenty of time due to injury this season, but her best is an absolute nightmare for opposition players.

The Liberty have almost an embarrassment of riches and it will be one of the most interesting storylines to follow this postseason to see if they can put it all together when it matters most. A line-up boasting Stewart, Jones and Ionescu won them the championship last season, and since then they’ve added Natasha Cloud and Meesseman.

Opal superstar Sami Whitcomb will absolutely have a say in this series. All season long she has been knocking down triples for the Mercury, and don’t be surprised if she changes a game with her shooting, because once she is hot, she is one of the best shooters in the world.

Phoenix won the season series 3-1, including an 80-63 win in their last match-up when both teams were basically at full strength. Copper led the way in that game with 22 points.

WNBA PLAYOFFS GAME 1 SCHEDULES

• Minnesota Lynx vs Golden State Valkyries, September 15 at 3am
• Atlanta Dream vs Indiana Fever, September 15 at 5am
• Phoenix Mercury vs New York Liberty, September 15 at 7am
• Las Vegas Aces vs Seattle Storm, September 15 at 12pm

(All times are in Australian Eastern Standard Time)

About the Author

Hayley Wildes is passionate about all things Australian women’s basketball and loves to highlight the stories of players from all levels and competitions across the globe. From our own backyard in the WNBL, to the WNBA and the Opals, and everything in between, Hayley has you covered.