After the Chicago Sky lost to the Minnesota Lynx yesterday, Washington is now 8th place in the WNBA standings.
The Washington Mystics control their 2024 WNBA Playoff ( or is it Playoffs?) destiny. Let me repeat it again. The Mystics aren’t just eighth place in the WNBA standings. They control their playoff destiny.
Last night, Marcus Atkinson wrote that the Washington Mystics won their game against the Atlanta Dream, 72-69 to improve their record to 13-24. Just minutes later, the Minnesota Lynx defeated the Chicago Sky, 83-66. The Sky have held onto the eighth place spot in the regular season standings for most of the last week, but they now have an identical 13-24 record as the Mystics. Because Washington has a better head-to-head record against Chicago, they now have the eighth seed in the WNBA playoffs if the regular season ended today.
So why do the Mystics control their destiny? It’s because of their remaining schedule. Here it is:
- Sept 15: vs. Dream (No. 10 seed)
- Sept 17 vs. Liberty (No. 1 seed)
- Sept 19 vs. Fever (No. 6 seed)
The Dream certainly have every incentive to win because they lost their lottery draft pick via a trade, which Washington ultimately holds. The Mystics also are back to near full strength and will be at home for the rest of the season. While the Liberty game on Sept 17 looks like a potential loss, they are four games ahead of the Lynx for the No. 1 seed and there’s a chance that they may selectively rest players before the playoffs. Don’t be surprised to see the Mystics win that game.
And the season finale against the Indiana Fever on Sept 19 could also be a Mystics win because Indy can’t finish higher than 6th when they are 19-19 while the fifth place Seattle Storm is 23-14 AND the seventh place Phoenix Mercury is 17-20. So, the cards are really in Washington’s favor for a potential 3-0 homestand that would improve them to 16-24 if everything went their way.
How about the Sky and Dream’s schedules? First let’s go with Atlanta. After the Dream play the Mystics on Sunday, they play the Sky on Sept 17 and the Liberty on Sept 19. The Sky play the Mercury on Sunday, the aforementioned Dream game on Sept 17 and the Connecticut Sun on the road on Sept 19. The chances of the Sky winning out see to be lower than the Mystics’.
Given Washington’s 0-12 start this season, it is remarkable, commendable and a job very well done to see the team build momentum for this playoff push. I know that most fans would rather see two draft lottery picks. But again, they hold the cards with their playoff destiny. I’s definitely a sign of great character when a team shows the kind of resilience the Mystics have this season.