As the calendar turned to August, it seemed as though the Los Angeles Sparks were stumbling toward a lost season. Decimated by injuries and illnesses, they had lost 11 out of 13 games to fall out of the playoff picture, and were multiple games behind the Chicago Sky in the race for the No. 8 seed. Fast forward a few weeks and everything has changed.
After a stunning victory over the Las Vegas Aces, in which they handed the league leaders their first home loss of the season and pulled off the biggest upset by point spread since 2020, the Sparks have won four games in a row – their longest streak of the season. All of a sudden they are the hottest team in the league and have opened up a 1.5-game advantage on the Sky in the race for eighth.
Even better, they have a comfortable schedule the rest of the way, with four of their remaining nine games coming against current lottery teams. As it stands, they are on pace to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2020, which would avoid the longest postseason drought in franchise history. One of the league's original clubs, the Sparks have never missed the playoffs more than two seasons in a row.
There are a number of reasons for this turnaround, with health being perhaps the most important. That has helped them turn around a number of aspects of their game, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. During this winning streak, they have a 93.6 defensive rating, which would be by far the best mark in the league over the course of the season, and are forcing opponents into 16.8 turnovers per game. If the Sparks can keep defending like this, they'll be playoff bound.
Now, on to this week's Power Rankings:
1. Las Vegas Aces (28-4) – Last week No. 1
The Aces' perfect home record and 21-game winning streak in Vegas dating back to last season is no more after a stunning defeat to the Sparks. That was actually their second loss at home this week, but the Commissioner's Cup championship didn't count in the record books. The Aces are still marching toward the No. 1 seed, but they've hit a real lull for the first time all season.
2. New York Liberty (25-7) – Last week No. 2
The Liberty's dominant performance in the Commissioner's Cup championship gave the franchise its first trophy in 27 years of existence, but it was dampened somewhat by losing to the Aces a few days later -– a result which likely ended their hopes of catching their rivals for first place. This upcoming week will be a real test as they take on the Sun and Lynx to conclude a six-game road trip.
3. Connecticut Sun (22-10) – Last week No. 3
A matchup with the struggling Sky was just what the Sun needed to get back to winning ways after a season-worst three-game losing streak. They have now joined the Aces and Liberty as the third team to clinch a playoff spot, and will be making their seventh consecutive postseason appearance, which is the longest such streak in franchise history. Only the Storm (seven seasons) and Mercury (10) have longer active streaks, but both clubs are likely heading to the lottery this year.
4. Dallas Wings (18-14) – Last week No. 4
After stumbling through a few weeks of action, the Wings are officially back on track. They've won three games in a row, all by double digits, with two of those victories coming over the Sun. As a result, they've opened up a bit of a gap on the Dream in the race for the No. 4 seed and home-court advantage in the first round. They're also now four games over .500, and on track for their first winning season since 2015, when they still played in Tulsa.
5. Atlanta Dream (16-16) – Last week No. 5
The Dream caught a nice break with the schedule, and only had to play once this week. They put the extra practice time to use and beat the Sky to snap their three-game losing streak and get back to .500. Cheyenne Parker led the way with 29 points and seven rebounds in that victory to continue a career-season. The veteran center is averaging 14.3 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.
6. Los Angeles Sparks (13-18) – Last week No. 7
If you have to play the Aces in Las Vegas, the best time to do so is after a week off. The Sparks put their rest advantage to use and stunned the Aces in their only game this week. In the process they handed the Aces their first home loss of the season, pulled off the biggest upset (17 points) by point spread since 2020 and extended their winning streak to four games. As a result, they've moved back into the playoff picture in eighth place.
7. Minnesota Lynx (15-17) – Last week No. 6
After taking care of the Storm on the road earlier in the week, the Lynx were surely disappointed to come back home and get blown out by the same team on Sunday. They have been quite inconsistent since their mid-season surge, and are now 2-4 in their last six games, with all four defeats coming by double digits. The main issue is their offense which is scoring just 97 points per 100 possessions in that stretch due to a lack of production from the supporting cast.
8. Washington Mystics (15-17) – Last week No. 8
While Elena Delle Donne, Shakira Austin and Ariel Atkins have all now returned to the court from their long-term absences, this week was a good reminder that it's going to take some time before they're fully back up to speed. None of them have played more than 15 minutes yet, and Delle Donne and Austin both sat out again on Sunday in the loss to the Wings. The big question is whether they can get back to their best by playoff time.
9. Seattle Storm (10-22) – Last week No. 10
Though the Storm are going to fall short of the playoffs, you have to give this team a lot of credit for the way they continue to fight. It would be easy to start mailing it in at this point, but they have no interest in doing so. After crushing the Lynx on the road, they've won three of their last four and are 6-3 since their 10-game losing streak. Only the Aces and Liberty have better records during that stretch.
10. Chicago Sky (12-20) – Last week No. 9
The Sky ripped off a super impressive three-game winning streak at the start of the month, but since then it's been a disaster. They've now lost five games in a row for the longest active losing streak in the league, and have fallen 1.5 games behind the Sparks in the race for the No. 8 seed. Their offense has once again disappeared, and after gearing their whole offseason towards staying competitive and making the playoffs, they're in danger of missing out.
11. Indiana Fever (9-24) – Last week No. 12
After a four-point defeat to the Mystics early in the week, the Fever have now lost eight games by five points or less. Moral victories of that sort are of no use to them this season, but looking forward it's a reminder that there is some talent on this team and they aren't as bad as their record may indicate. And after beating the Mercury, they need just one more win to double their total from last season.
12. Phoenix Mercury (9-23) – Last week No. 11
The Mercury's mini resurgence around Diana Taurasi's chase for 10,000 points is officially over. They've now lost three games in a row, all by double digits, and will soon be officially eliminated from playoff contention. Their streak of 10 consecutive postseason appearances – both the longest active streak in the league and the longest in franchise history – will be coming to an end this summer.
