The 2026 WNBA regular season will come to a close Thursday with a five-game slate that includes critical games at both ends of the standings. While all eight playoff spots have long been locked up, only four teams are locked into their seeds and only one first-round series is set. And, in what you could easily argue is an even more consequential standings-related matter, the top odds for the No. 1 pick in the 2027 WNBA Draft are still up for grabs.
The only first-round series we know as of now is Lynx vs. Liberty, which will be a rematch of the 2024 Finals. The Nos. 2, 3, 5 and 6 seeds are to be determined, as are the 2 vs. 7, 3 vs. 6 and 4 vs. 5 first-round matchups.
Here's a look at Thursday night's schedule: Remarkably, every single remaining game matters in some way -- even Tempo vs. Sun, which may be the most important of them all. Before the action begins, here's a closer look at what's at stake: The Valkyries held the Portland Fire scoreless for the first 6:40 of their matchup on Tuesday and led 17-0, but collapsed and eventually lost in overtime.
That result not only allowed the Minnesota Lynx to back into the No. 1 seed, but left the Valkyries with work to do to secure the No. 2 seed. The Valkyries are one game up on the third-place Aces, but the Aces have the tiebreaker between the clubs after winning the season series 3-0. If the Valkyries beat the Sparks (they're 11.5-point favorites), they will get the No. 2 seed and play the Wings in the first round, and the Aces would be the No. 3 seed.
But if the Valkyries lose and the Aces beat the Mercury, the Aces would jump the Valkyries for the No. 2 seed and the Valkyries would fall to No. 3. Over the weekend, the Mystics crushed the Fever in a consequential victory that gave Washington the tiebreaker between the clubs. Now, there's a chance that the Mystics could use that tiebreaker to jump the Fever for the No. 5 seed.
The Fever are one game up on the Mystics, and if they beat the Lynx in Minneapolis, they will secure the No. 5 seed and play the Dream in the first round. But if the Fever lose to the Lynx and the Mystics beat the Sky, the Mystics would take the No. 5 seed via the tiebreaker. On paper, the Fever have a much tougher matchup, but they just beat the Lynx so badly that Cheryl Reeve waved the white flag at halftime.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
