Breaking down the WNBA playoff format for the 2022 postseason

The 2022 postseason will be the debut of the new WNBA playoff format. The new structure will be three rounds of series play, a best of 3-5-5 format, where the top eight teams will qualify for the playoffs, regardless of the conference. The regular season ends with a six-game slate on Sunday, August 14 with the first post-season games on Wednesday, August 17. There will be no single-elimination games or double byes for the top seeds this year.

Teams will not be reseeded after the opening round, instead, they will follow a bracket-style tournament. The first round will be a best-of-3 series. The No. 1 seed will face the No. 8 seed and the No. 4 seed will face the No. 5 seed in one bracket. In the other, it will be the No. 3 seed versus the No. 6 seed and the No. 2 seed versus the No. 7 seed. The winner of all four games will move onto the semifinals which is a best of five series. The winners of the semifinals will meet in the WNBA Finals, a best-of-5 series.

The higher seeds will host Games 1 and 2 in the first round of the playoffs. If the series goes to a Game 3, the lower seed will have home court advantage. The semi-finals and finals will follow a 2-2-1 format with the higher seed hosting Games 1, 2 and 5 and the lower seed hosting Games 3 and 4.

The defending WNBA Champions, Chicago Sky are the current favorites to win the 2022 Championship with +180 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook. Followed by the Las Vegas Aces at +190. The next closest is the Connecticut Sun at +450 and the Seattle Storm at +700.

As much as I would love Sue Bird to close out her phenomenal career with a championship, a Sky vs. Aces championship would be a fantastic series. Both teams are playing great basketball right now and look unstoppable. These two teams have only faced off once so far this season with the Sky taking home the victory, 104-95 but will face off once more before the regular season closes on Thursday, August 11.