Wendell Cruz

WNBA Experts Predict Championship Winner for 2025 Season

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Spencer Ostrow | Last updated May 16, 2025 12:17 PM ET

The 2025 WNBA season tips off Friday night, and excitement is through the roof. The three matchups feature the Atlanta Dream vs. the Washington Mystics, the Minnesota Lynx vs. the Dallas Wings, and the Los Angeles Sparks vs. the Golden State Valkyries.

Before the action gets underway, four teams stand out with significantly better odds to win the 2025 title than the rest. According to ESPN Bet, the New York Liberty are the betting favorites at +230. The Indiana Fever and Las Vegas Aces follow at +350, with the Minnesota Lynx close behind at +400.

On Friday morning, ESPN dropped a story featuring five experts predicting how the 2025 season will play out—including their picks for who they think will take home the title. None of the five chose Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever.

In fact, four of them chose the Minnesota Lynx, while the fifth picked the New York Liberty to repeat. Here are the picks:

Kendra Andrews: Minnesota Lynx
Katie Barnes: Minnesota Lynx
Kevin Pelton: New York Liberty
Alexa Philippou: Minnesota Lynx
Michael Voepel: Minnesota Lynx

The Lynx and Liberty faced off in last season's WNBA Finals, with the Liberty taking it in a winner-take-all Game 5.

This time around, the Lynx added some new talent to their bench, giving them even more depth than they had last season. Newcomers Alissa Pili and Diamond Miller are expected to make an impact, while Napheesa Collier, who many believe will win the MVP, continues to lead the charge.

As for the Liberty, they’ll be without Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, who suffered an injury during the offseason while playing in the new Unrivaled league. She’s expected to be out for five to six months, and the team had no choice but to suspend her contract. They also lost Kayla Thornton to the expansion draft.

Still, with the addition of Natasha Cloud and the return of stars like Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu, New York looks more than capable of making another title run.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: