Ripped for a draft day trade and for cutting a fan favorite, the Valkyries' 2-0 start reversed the narrative.
were a feel-good story in their 2025 inaugural season as they began a new wave of WNBA expansion. But a year later, as is the nature of professional sports, their personnel moves have been criticized.
It's like a rite of passage for a new franchise in any sport to go from hearing, "Isn't this awesome?
" to "What the heck are you doing? " Still, Golden State is off to a 2-0 start and opens at No. 2 as ESPN's WNBA Power Rankings debut for the 2026 season. The Valkyries took heat for their draft-day trade of No. 8 pickSo from a media and social media perspective, it has been a rockier launch to the Valkyries' second season. But none of this impacted how they played on opening weekend.
They wonThe Power Rankings, which are updated every Tuesday throughout the regular season, attempt to reflect how teams are performing week-to-week, not just where they are in the standings. That said, a team might grab onto No. 1 and stay there, the way theFor the next several weeks, don't be surprised to see a lot of movement in the Power Rankings among teams as they try to establish themselves.is, with a combined 54 points, 19 rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots.
Even with some key players out, includingwas the breakout star in the Valkyries' first year until a knee injury sidelined her after the All-Star Game on July 19. Golden State fans are thrilled to see her back: She had a combined 32 points and 11 rebounds in the opening two victories.
The addition of, one of the WNBA's top defensive players, already has made an impact: She had a combined 26 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists and five steals.victory at Indiana on Saturday, shooting a combined 24-of-36 from the field. It should be a fun perimeter group to watch, along with No. 1 pick, a 28-year-old from Serbia with plenty of pro experience who had a combined 35 points in her first two WNBA games.
VeteranThe Dream needed a rally for their season-opening victory at Minnesota, outscoring the Lynx 28-19 in the fourth quarter to winpicked up right where she left off after a career-best season in 2025, sparking Atlanta with 24 points and eight rebounds. The Aces suffered the biggest margin of defeat for a defending champion in a season opener on the heels of their ring ceremony in Las Vegas on Saturday, losing to the Mercury 99-66.
They channeled that frustration into a much better performance Sunday at Los Angeles, where they won, who didn't play in the WNBA last season, had 10 and 22 points in her first two games with the Aces on 14-of-21 shooting from the field. Chicago welcomed Portland to the WNBA by raining on the Fire's parade in the new franchise's home opener. The Sky won.
The rest of their starting lineup featured players new to the team this season, with each scoring in double figures: forwardat Toronto then lost 98-93 in overtime at home to New York. Citron had a combined 43 points, while Iriafen had a combined 32 points and 28 rebounds. , the No. 6 pick from their same class, is back after missing last season with a knee injury.
She totaled 10 assists in her first two games for Washington.had a very strong WNBA debut with 21 points and eight assists in Saturday's 91-90 home loss to Atlanta. Veteran guardscombined for 73 points. The bad news is that wasn't enough to evade a 107-104 loss to visiting Dallas, which shot 59% from the field. Indiana will need to show improvement on defense.is off to a solid start.
She had 12 points in the opening 91-80 loss to Golden State on Friday, then 16 in thewin at Connecticut on Sunday. She is 6-of-22 so far from the field, but 12-of-13 from the foul line. Last year's No. 2 pickTwo concerns materialized from the Sparks' opener on Saturday: They were blown out 105-78 by the Aces at home, and coach Lynne Roberts specifically citedas someone who needs to produce more.
The No. 2 pick of the 2024 draft had three rebounds, three turnovers and three fouls in 8 minutes on court.had 19 points and 10 rebounds in her return to Los Angeles after playing the past two seasons in Seattle, but it wasn't enough to overcome Las Vegas' 62% shooting from the field. did all she could to get a win for Toronto in the franchise's first game Friday, but visiting Washington won 68-65.
The game stayed close throughout, but the Tempo shot just 27% from the field. Despite Portland's 98-83 loss to Chicago in Saturday's home opener, it's interesting to see how the Fire's starting lineup reflects the global nature of the WNBA, with each starter from a different country: Australia (The Sun opened their final season in Connecticut with a 106-75 loss at New York followed by an 89-82 loss at home to Seattle. Last year's No. 7 pick
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