3 hot takes from the first 3 days of the 2025 WNBA season

The WNBA’s twenty ninth season began this weekend, resulting in a packed slate of thrilling video games. Whereas these preliminary wins and losses aren’t something to overreact to, particularly now that the W has expanded to a 44-game season, there are nonetheless a couple of takeaways available.

Let’s dive into three of the most popular takes after opening weekend:

Paige Bueckers has some severe ROTY competitors

Paige Bueckers entered her rookie WNBA season as a newly minted NCAA champion and the No. 1 general choose within the draft. As she headed to Dallas to begin her season with the Wings, the Rookie of the Yr hypothesis was already at a fever pitch.

On paper, it looks like Bueckers has (and can proceed to have) a strong case: She is an unbelievable shooter, passer, and basketball thoughts on a workforce the place she is going to make a right away affect. She was the most effective expertise within the draft, given her unanimous projection because the No. 1 prospect earlier than in the end being chosen. However is she a Rookie of the Yr lock? Possibly, however a number of the different newbies proved this weekend that it might not be a cut-and-dry vote on the finish of the season.

All eyes have been on Washington this weekend because the Mystics went 2-0 of their first two video games. Broadly projected as one of many league’s lottery groups this season, it was shocking to some that they have been in a position to win not one, however each of their video games to open the season. The primary was towards Atlanta, after they bought the most effective of the new-look Dream in a decent recreation. Then, they have been in a position to beat the Connecticut Solar of their extra seemingly victory of the weekend. What stood out in each video games, although, was the play from the Mystics’ rookies.

Washington drafted Sonia Citron No. 3, Kiki Iriafen No. 4, and Georgia Amoore No. 6 within the first spherical of the draft final month. Sadly, Amoore suffered an ACL harm simply days into coaching camp and received’t play this season, however Citron and Iriafen are already making an affect. Of their recreation towards the Dream, Citron scored 19 factors and grabbed 2 rebounds to go together with 2 assists whereas solely coughing up 1 turnover. She shot 2-2 from distance and 6-7 (85.7%) from the sphere. She adopted that up in Sunday’s recreation with a 15-point efficiency, including 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 rebound and 1 block.

Whereas Iriafen solely scored 4 factors in her WNBA debut towards Atlanta, fouling out of the sport (as is frequent amongst front-court gamers adjusting to the officiating of the WNBA), she adopted it up with an ideal recreation towards the Solar. On Sunday, Iriafen had 17 factors 14, rebounds, and 1 block whereas taking pictures 70% from the sphere. And with the quantity of minutes these Mystics rookies will be capable to play this season, given the state of Washington’s roster, both participant may earn a severe place within the ROTY dialog.

Now, it’s not like Bueckers didn’t have an excellent debut. She scored 10 factors together with including 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block towards Minnesota on Friday. She solely shot 3-10 from the sphere, however it’s laborious to guage harshly within the first recreation. She has but to play a second recreation just like the Mystics, however the Wings’ workforce make-up can be a bit totally different. Hopefully, their new coach Chris Koclanes is merely testing issues out for now, however in the end, the offense must be working extra via Bueckers, Arike Ogunbowale and Maddy Siegrist as an alternative of how issues went towards Minnesota.

It’s early, however guessing that Citron, Iriafen and Bueckers will all be within the ROTY dialog this season doesn’t seem to be a lot of a stretch.

Napheesa Collier may win MVP

One other race that could possibly be tight this season is the one for the MVP award. Final season, A’ja Wilson ran away with it by June or July, however in a yr the place she wasn’t enjoying legendary, league-historic hoops, Collier would have been proper up there along with her. Now, Wilson may definitely proceed to play to the identical stage she performed final yr when she averaged a league-record 26.9 factors per recreation. But, Napheesa Collier may simply rise to that stage as properly, and provides Wilson some competitors for the highest participant within the WNBA.

In Minnesota’s first recreation towards Dallas, Collier scored 34 factors on 10-18 taking pictures from the sphere, and added 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Minnesota received that recreation 99-84 in fairly dominant trend. Of their second recreation towards LA, Collier scored 23 factors on 12-21 taking pictures with 6 rebounds, 1 help, 2 steals and 1 block, serving to the Lynx win 89-75 over the Sparks. Las Vegas has solely had one recreation thus far this season, however Wilson scored 31 factors on 11-22 taking pictures, together with 16 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. But, the Aces misplaced that recreation towards New York, 92-78.

If Collier and Wilson are this shut when it comes time to vote for MVP, their groups’ data might come into play. Voters have a tendency to show to wins and losses as tiebreakers when deciding who to solid a vote for, which may give Collier an edge if she and the Lynx proceed their revenge-season run.

The New York Liberty are someway even higher than final season

Talking of the New York Liberty beating the Aces… the Liberty look GOOD. Like, perhaps even higher than final season, good. In 2024, the Liberty spent many of the season atop the league standings, made it to the Commissioner’s Cup Last, and naturally received the WNBA Championship. Within the offseason, they traded for Natasha Cloud and introduced Marine Johannes again after she missed the 2024 season (amongst another strikes).

Sadly, the Liberty are lacking a chunk of their core this season as Betnijah Laney-Hamilton is out with an harm, however they’ve nonetheless constructed an extremely sturdy workforce able to defend their trophy.

Cloud appears to be a giant a part of this push for back-to-back rings, and brings a TON of power to the Liberty on and off the courtroom. We all know that gamers are likely to play a bit extra freely when they’re in an surroundings they’re having fun with, and boy, is Cloud having fun with being in Brooklyn. The followers love her as properly, and have been extraordinarily loud for her in her debut with the Liberty. She scored 22 factors to go together with 6 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals and a couple of blocks within the Liberty’s win over the Aces.

Breanna Stewart appears to be in good kind after she underwent a scope of her knee in March, and it’s good to see her with the ability to play with out ache. Stewart scored 25 factors on 10-14 taking pictures from the sphere, and grabbed 8 rebounds to go along with her 3 assists in Saturday’s win.

The overwhelming takeaway from Saturday’s assertion win towards the Aces is that the Liberty look rejuvenated. The power was excessive on the workforce, and it confirmed. Their defence was nice as properly, and their strategy appeared to be one thing alongside the strains of “properly, we might not be capable to cease a Wilson 30-piece, so let’s cease everybody else.” It labored fairly properly, given the following highest scorer after Wilson was Jackie Younger with 16, and the one different Aces in double figures have been Chelsea Grey with 12 and Dana Evans off the bench with 10.

If that is how the Liberty are enjoying towards a workforce just like the Aces, they might be on monitor to rule the WNBA once more this season.