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After an exciting first and second round single-elimination games, the WNBA playoffs is moving onto the semifinals, each of which is a best-of-5 series. The semifinals will begin Tuesday night at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2 with the Chicago Sky and Connecticut Sun. The Phoenix Mercury and Las Vegas Aces will follow at 10 p.m.
The Sun have the No. 1 seed in the playoffs after finishing the regular season with a league-best 26-6 record. The Sun and Aces received double byes. Meanwhile, the No. 6 seed Sky defeated the No. 3 seed Minnesota Lynx 89-76 on Sunday. The last semifinal game will be between the No. 5 seed Mercury and No. 2 seed Aces. The Mercury defeated the No. 4 seed Seattle Storm 85-80 in overtime on Sunday afternoon.
Below we’ll breakdown each teams odds to win the WNBA Finals, courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook and what they have to do get to the next round.
Connecticut Sun: +140
The Sun have the best odds to win the title and it’s only right as they were the best team by far in the WNBA this past regular season. Head coach Curt Miller has a tremendous squad led by All-Star and MVP candidate Jonquel Jones, DeWanna Bonner (All-Star), and Brionna Jones. The Sun ended the regular season on a historic 14-game winning streak and are the best defensive team in the WNBA. For Connecticut to get to the WNBA Finals for the second time in the last three years, they’ll need to shoot the ball well from three-point range and control the glass. The Sun shot 37.5% from three-point range and averaged 36.6 rebounds per game, which was good for second in the league.
Las Vegas Aces: +190
The Aces will look to get back to the WNBA Finals for the second straight season after getting swept by the Storm in the Finals last season. Vegas has a well-rounded roster that features the likes of A’ja Wilson, Liz Cambage, Chelsea Gray, Jackie Young, Riquna Williams, Dearica Hamby, and Kelsey Plum. However, they won’t have an easy semifinals against an upset-minded Mercury team. Phoenix had all five starters score in double figures in their overtime win against the Storm. The Aces will have to try and force someone other than Skylar Diggins-Smith and Brittney Griner beat them.
Phoenix Mercury: +425
The Mercury were one of the best teams after the Olympic break in August and have made themselves a serious contender for the WNBA Finals. Phoenix did not shoot the ball well from three-point range against the Storm, which helped them in their win over the New York Liberty. But they had all five starters score in double figures, won the rebound battle, and held the Storm to 36.8% shooting from the field. They’ll need to do the same against Vegas to steal Game 1, let alone, potentially the series. Phoenix beat the Aces twice this season, one game at Vegas, and the other win at home. This series could easily go the distance.
Chicago Sky: +700
The veteran-led Sky will try to pull off a monumental upset when they take on the No. 1 seed Sun. The keys for success will be to play with pace and get off to a fast start in the first quarter. On Sunday, Chicago were only down one in the first quarter to the Lynx, but they proceeded to win the next three quarters. The Sky did a good job of forcing turnovers and getting to the free throw line. Chicago also shot 49.2% from the field in their win over the Lynx, which is impressive. They won’t shoot like that against the Sun during this series, but they do have experience on their side. Kahleah Copper will be an X-factor in this series as she is averaging 19.5 points per game through two playoff games and shooting 62.9% from the field.
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