WNBA power rankings after Labor Day:
1. New York Liberty: We’re giving them a pass on the Sparks loss, since the Sun and Lynx also had surprising losses.
2. Connecticut Sun: Falling to the surging Fever isn’t as bad as the losses suffered by the teams above and below them, but it’s enough to cloud their rise.
3. Minnesota Lynx: That Wings blowout probably kept them from the top spot this week.
4. Seattle Storm: Keep proving they belong right here when they play the teams above them.
5. Las Vegas Aces: They are as cold coming out of the break as they were hot going in. Having four Olympians has taken a toll.
6. Indiana Fever: The opposite seems true for the Fever, as the rest has paid off immensely – just not enough to pass the Aces… yet.
7. Phoenix Mercury: They weren’t great before the break, and haven’t been since. Yet here they sit at seventh, vulnerable but still squarely in the hunt.
8. Atlanta Dream: This is where they will end up in the playoffs, too.
9. Washington Mystics: That improbable run to a playoff spot is looking impossible again.
10. Dallas Wings: There’s still time to pull it together, but not much.
11. Los Angeles Sparks: None of us are paying enough attention to Rickea Jackson.
12. Chicago Sky: Wins have no doubt been sacrificed for individual accolades. Since these are team rankings, the Sky sit here for now.