If you weren’t glued to your seat Thursday night watching Prime’s slate of WNBA games, what were you doing?
All three games were decided by seven points or less and were all clutch wins. The first game saw the Las Vegas Aces beat the Indiana Fever on the road by the grace of a Chelsea Gray pull–up three-pointer in transition, 86-84. On an off shooting night for the third-best team in the league in terms of three-point shooting, Gray had three of Las Vegas’ five makes from deep, but the most important one was obviously the one that had me standing up in my living room in disbelief. Then again, the six-time All-Star and future Hall of Famer has made a career out of these shots, but the Fever were not prepared.
CHELSEA GRAY GAME WINNER 🔥🔥🔥
BACK-TO-BACK BUZZER BEATERS TO FORCE OT AND WIN THE GAME!
POINT GAWD. pic.twitter.com/ebOUlyJ8KB
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) August 7, 2026
The stunner of the night was easily the Los Angeles Sparks’ 89-82 win over the Minnesota Lynx, an outcome that was impossible to predict. As the top team in the WNBA since the season, not many teams have been able to catch Minnesota on a bad night, but Los Angeles did. Riding a 10-game win streak, the Lynx allowed the Sparks to shoot 50% from the field and a scorching 38% from three-point land. Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve doesn’t get riled up in pressers often, but her team’s defensive effort called for it to be so.
In a battle of the expansion squads, the Portland Fire defeated the Toronto Tempo, 97-83. Toronto has now dropped eight consecutive games and is spiraling. Their last win came nearly a month ago on July 12 against the New York Liberty. Injuries have impacted this team like no other. As of Friday, the Tempo have suffered the second-most injuries in the league (19) that have accumulated the fourth-most games missed, according to The IX’s WNBA injury database.
After trading second-year guard Monique Akoa Makani, a 2027 first-round pick, and a 2028 second-rounder to the Los Angeles Sparks for Kelsey Plum, the Phoenix Mercury barely beat an upbeat Chicago Sky team, then reality came back into focus. In a game in which they never had a lead, the Mercury were throttled by the Atlanta Dream, 96-82. Atlanta led by as many as 20 points and never trailed for 40 minutes of play. Unfortunately for fans of the Connecticut Sun, the 2026 WNBA season is just a tank mission before the team heads to Houston to become the Comets. Phoenix already had slim odds of making the playoffs if they went 14-0 to close out the regular season, but another loss would make it virtually impossible down 6.5 games with limited runway to clear takeoff into the postseason.
There might not be a better story this season than the Washington Mystics, who happen to be winners of nine out of their last 12 games, including a five-game win streak. That includes three wins over legitimate championship contenders: the Las Vegas Aces, Golden State Valkyries, and the Atlanta Dream. Powered by youth and the belief in head coach Sydney Johnson, Washington is by far the youngest team in the league, but you couldn’t tell by their execution against some of the best teams in the league. No matter if it’s a win or a loss, you can’t count this team out until the last horn has sounded.
When I watch the Golden State Valkyries, I see a team that has the potential to go all the way to the Finals. On the other hand, I can’t say I see the same for the Dallas Wings. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the two-timeline approach rarely works in professional sports. Albeit a concern in some regard, the Las Vegas Aces have caught flak over the years for not prioritizing younger players and their development, but the trophy room tends to shut those conversations down. The Wings have drafted well in the last two cycles, but the roster surrounding Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd has yet to appear as one worthy of championship contention. A win over the Valkyries would do a bit of good to help its case.
The All-Star break has come and gone as teams gear up for games ahead of the FIBA World Cup break and the final stretch before the WNBA playoffs. For those […]
