2026 WNBA playoffs preview: 2024 Finals rematch, star-studded Fever-Aces headline first-round schedule

With a regular season that was once in doubt in the rearview, the WNBA  playoffs are finally here, with all four first-round series tipping off Sunday.

Below, we take a closer look at four key storylines, one for each series.

2024 Finals rematch

Two years after meeting in an epic best-of-five championship series, the Minnesota Lynx (33-11) and New York Liberty (26-18) are headed in opposite directions entering their first playoff series since.

The Lynx earned the WNBA's No. 1 seed for the third year in a row, while the Liberty, hobbled by injuries, limped to an eighth-place finish, giving Minnesota a chance to get a semblance of revenge for the 2024 Finals loss. 

Liberty stars Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones must come up big for New York, which won the season series over the Lynx, 2-1, to pull off the upset. After a slow start in the return from the FIBA Women's World Cup, Minnesota made 26 threes over its final two games of the regular season to open the playoffs with plenty of positive momentum.

Guard Olivia Miles, who set the single-season rookie scoring record (790 points) this season, missed those final two games while out with a calf injury. While her absence was described as purely "precautionary," it will still be worth evaluating. If Minnesota is anything less than 100 percent, New York could once again spoil the Lynx's season.

Caitlin Clark, A'ja Wilson meet in star-studded Fever-Aces series

The stars will be out in full force in arguably the most exciting first-round matchup between the Indiana Fever (28-16) and defending champion Las Vegas Aces (31-13). 

Aces center A'ja Wilson, a likely soon-to-be five-time league MVP, and Fever guard Caitlin Clark, who set career highs in 2026 with 22.3 points on 44.5 percent shooting (36.1 percent from beyond the arc), are the headliners, but their strong supporting casts will also play vital roles in a rematch of last year's best-of-five semifinal matchup Las Vegas won in five games.

Eight-year veteran Aces guard Jackie Young averaged a career-high 18.9 points per game this season on strong 48.8/38.3/92.8 shooting splits, while Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell, playing in her ninth season, set a WNBA record with 27 consecutive 20-point games. She also ended the regular season with a career-high in scoring (24.7 points per game) while shooting a blistering 50.9 percent, including 45 percent from beyond the arc.

Add Aces guard Chelsea Gray and Fever forward Aliyah Boston to the mix, and this could be cinema. Hope you have enough popcorn.

Angel Reese's postseason debut

After mercifully being traded from the Chicago Sky during the offseason, Reese is gearing up for her first postseason series with the Atlanta Dream (30-14), who are the No. 4 seed and have home-court advantage in the first round against the upstart Washington Mystics (28-16), who went 16-28 in 2025 and have three starters in either their first or second season.

For the third year in a row, Reese led the league in rebounds per game, averaging 12.1 this season. With Brionna Jones (leg) out, she'll be even more important to Atlanta's frontcourt against the Mystics, who have a pair of excellent rebounders, center Shakira Austin and forward Kiki Iriafen. Per Her Hoop Stats data, Washington led the league in rebounding rate (55.6 percent) during the regular season, making Reese's battle on the boards one of the most fascinating of the first round.

The future meets in Dallas-Golden State

Both the Dallas Wings (27-17) and Golden State Valkyries (32-12) are ahead of schedule. After the first round, one will be a series win shy of playing for a WNBA title.

Considering where both teams ended last season, that's a remarkable win. Golden State, the league's best defensive team, is in only its second season and was swept out of the playoffs in its inaugural campaign. Dallas had the past two No. 1 overall picks while going 19-65 from 2024-25. 

This first-round series could be a preview of the league's future. Only the next time these teams meet in the playoffs, there might be even more at stake.