2022 WNBA season
The 2022 WNBA season is the upcoming 26th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Chicago Sky are the defending champions. Planned changes to the league's schedule included an increase to 36 regular season games for each team, which is the most games ever scheduled in a single WNBA season.[2] A 36-game season was originally scheduled for the 2020 WNBA season, but the plan was scrapped in response to the COVID-19 pandemic; the 2020 season instead held a 22-game season in a quarantined "wubble" based in Bradenton, Florida.[3]
| 2022 WNBA season | |
|---|---|
| League | Women's National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | May 6 – August 14 |
| Number of games | 36 |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| TV partner(s) | ABC, ESPN, ESPN2,[1] CBS, CBSSN, NBA TV |
| Top draft pick | Rhyne Howard |
| Picked by | Atlanta Dream |
The WNBA's second Commissioner's Cup will transpire during the regular season.[4]
This WNBA season also marks the return of an all-series playoffs, which was last used in 2015. The two rounds of single-elimination games, with byes into the second round for the third and fourth seeds and into the semifinals for the top two seeds, were eliminated in favor of a first round consisting of best-of-three series and involving all eight playoff teams. The first-round format also differs from that used in 2015. In the pre-2016 format, best-of-three series were played in a 1–1–1 format, with the higher seed hosting the first game as well as a potential third game. In the new format, first-round series use a 2–1 format, with the higher seed hosting the first two games. Also, the playoffs are not reseeded after the first round. The semifinals and finals remain best-of-five.[5]
2022 WNBA draft
The Washington Mystics won the first pick in the 2022 WNBA draft in the draft lottery. They were followed by the Indiana Fever for second, Atlanta Dream for third, and Los Angeles Sparks for fourth. The Sparks had traded their pick to the Dallas Wings before the lottery,[6] who subsequently sent the pick to the Fever in a trade that helped Dallas secure Teaira McCowan.[7] As part of a three-team trade, Washington and Atlanta swapped lottery picks, resulting in each team receiving 2022's third and first picks respectively.[8] The Fever ended up with four top-10 picks, and seven overall.
Lottery picks
| Pick | Player | Nationality | Team | School / club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rhyne Howard |  United States |
Atlanta Dream (from Washington)[lower-alpha 1] | Kentucky |
| 2 | NaLyssa Smith | United States |
Indiana Fever | Baylor |
| 3 | Shakira Austin | United States |
Washington Mystics (from Atlanta)[lower-alpha 1] | Ole Miss |
| 4 | Emily Engstler | United States |
Indiana Fever (from Los Angeles via Dallas)[lower-alpha 2][lower-alpha 3] | Louisville |
Media coverage
In March 2022, plans were announced to feature broadcasts of nine regular season games on ABC, five on ESPN, and 10 on ESPN2, totaling 25 games; as well as the entire postseason, which could consist of as many as 27 games.[1]
Transactions
The free agency negotiation period started on January 15, while player could sign to a team as soon as February 1.[2]
Coaching changes
| Off-season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Team | 2021 season | 2022 season | Reference |
| Atlanta Dream | Darius Taylor (interim) | Tanisha Wright | [9] |
| Las Vegas Aces | Bill Laimbeer | Becky Hammon | [10] |
| New York Liberty | Walt Hopkins | Sandy Brondello | [11] |
| Phoenix Mercury | Sandy Brondello | Vanessa Nygaard | [12] |
| Mid-season | |||
Regular season
All-Star Game
Standings
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Conf. | Home | Road | Cup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atlanta Dream | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 2 | Chicago Sky | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 3 | Connecticut Sun | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 4 | Dallas Wings | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 5 | Indiana Fever | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 6 | Las Vegas Aces | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 7 | Los Angeles Sparks | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 8 | Minnesota Lynx | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 9 | New York Liberty | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 10 | Phoenix Mercury | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 11 | Seattle Storm | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
| 12 | Washington Mystics | 0 | 0 | .000 | – | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 |
Notes
- (#) – League Standing
- x – Clinched playoff berth
- e – Eliminated from playoff contention
- Source: Overall standings and Commissioner's Cup Standings
Schedule
Note: Games highlighted in ██ represent Commissioner’s Cup games.
All times Eastern
Statistical leaders
The following shows the leaders in each statistical category during the 2022 regular season.
| Category | Player | Team | Statistic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points per game | |||
| Rebounds per game | |||
| Assists per game | |||
| Steals per game | |||
| Blocks per game | |||
| Field goal percentage | |||
| Three point FG percentage | |||
| Free throw percentage | |||
| Points per game (team) | |||
| Field goal percentage (team) | |||
Playoffs and Finals
| Conference Semi-Finals: Best-of-3 | Conference Finals: Best-of-5 | WNBA Finals: Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | ||||||||||||||
| 8 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 7 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | ||||||||||||||
| 6 | ||||||||||||||
Bold Series winner
italics Team with home-court advantage
Season award winners
Player of the Week Award
| Date Awarded | Eastern Conference | Western Conference | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Player | Team | ||
Player of the Month Award
| Month | Eastern Conference | Western Conference | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Player | Team | ||
| May | |||||
| June | |||||
| August | |||||
Rookie of the Month Award
| Month | Player | Team | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| May | |||
| June | |||
| August |
Coach of the Month Award
| Month | Coach | Team | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| May | |||
| June | |||
| August |
Postseason awards
| Award | Winner | Position | Team | Votes/Statistic | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player Award | |||||
| Finals MVP Award | |||||
| Rookie of the Year Award | |||||
| Most Improved Player Award | |||||
| Defensive Player of the Year Award | |||||
| Sixth Woman of the Year Award | |||||
| Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award | |||||
| Peak Performer: Points | |||||
| Peak Performer: Rebounds | |||||
| Peak Performer: Assists | |||||
| Coach of the Year Award | |||||
| Basketball Executive of the Year Award | |||||
| Team | Guard | Guard | Forward | Forward | Center |
| All-WNBA First Team | |||||
| All-WNBA Second Team | |||||
| All-Defensive First Team | |||||
| All-Defensive Second Team | |||||
| All-Rookie Team | |||||
Coaches
Eastern Conference
| Team | Head coach | Previous job | Years with team | Record with team | Playoff Appearances | Finals Appearances | WNBA Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Dream | Tanisha Wright | Las Vegas Aces (assistant) | 0 | 0–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chicago Sky | James Wade | UMMC Ekaterinburg (assistant) | 3 | 48–40 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Connecticut Sun | Curt Miller | Los Angeles Sparks (assistant) | 6 | 111–75 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Indiana Fever | Marianne Stanley | Washington Mystics (assistant) | 2 | 12–42 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| New York Liberty | Sandy Brondello | Phoenix Mercury | 0 | 0–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Washington Mystics | Mike Thibault | Connecticut Sun | 9 | 151–147 | 7 | 2 | 1 |
Western Conference
| Team | Head coach | Previous job | Years with team | Record with team | Playoff Appearances | Finals Appearances | WNBA Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Wings | Vickie Johnson | Las Vegas Aces (assistant) | 1 | 14–18 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Las Vegas Aces | Becky Hammon | San Antonio Spurs (assistant) | 0 | 0–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Los Angeles Sparks | Derek Fisher | New York Knicks | 3 | 49–39 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Minnesota Lynx | Cheryl Reeve | Detroit Shock (assistant) | 12 | 267–127 | 11 | 6 | 4 |
| Phoenix Mercury | Vanessa Nygaard | Las Vegas Aces (assistant) | 0 | 0–0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Seattle Storm | Noelle Quinn | Seattle Storm (associate head coach) | 1 | 16–10 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Notes:
- Year with team does not include 2022 season.
- Records are from time at current team and are through the end of the 2021 regular season.
- Playoff appearances are from time at current team only.
- WNBA Finals and Championships do not include time with other teams.
- Coaches shown are the coaches who began the 2022 season as head coach of each team.
Notes
- April 6, 2022: Washington to Atlanta[8]
- Atlanta acquired the #1 Overall Pick in 2022
- Washington acquired the #3 Overall Pick in 2022, the #14 Pick in 2022, and the right to swap picks with Los Angeles in 2023
- March 8, 2022: Dallas to Indiana[7]
- Dallas acquired Teaira McCowan, a 2022 first-round pick, and Chicago's 2023 first-round pick
- Indiana acquired 2022 first-round picks and a 2023 first-round pick
- June 2, 2021: Los Angeles to Dallas[6]
- Los Angeles acquired 2021 first-round and 2022 second-round picks
- Dallas acquired a 2022 first-round pick
References
- Voepel, Mechelle (3 March 2022). "ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 to televise 25 regular-season WNBA games, entire postseason". ESPN. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
- Voepel, Mechelle (9 December 2021). "WNBA announces 36-game regular-season schedule for 2022, its longest in 26 seasons". ESPN. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- "2020 WNBA Season to Feature Inaugural Commissioner's Cup, Expanded 36-Game Schedule for Teams and More ABC Games". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. 2020-01-16. Retrieved 2020-01-21.
- Costabile, Annie (3 March 2022). "WNBA schedule includes 25 regular-season games broadcast nationally across ABC, ESPN". Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
- Negley, Cassandra (18 November 2021). "WNBA introduces new playoff format abolishing single-elimination games, top-seeded byes". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- "Dallas Wings and Los Angeles Sparks Exchange Draft Picks". WNBA. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
- "Dallas Wings Acquire Teaira McCowan". WNBA. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
- "Dream Lands 2022 Number One Overall Draft Pick". WNBA. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
- Newberry, Paul (12 October 2021). "WNBA veteran Tanisha Wright picked as new Atlanta Dream coach". The Globe and Mail. ESPN. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
- Jackson, Wilton (31 December 2021). "Spurs Assistant Becky Hammon Named Aces Coach, General Manager". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
- "Sandy Brondello Hired as New York Liberty Coach". Fox Sports. Fox. 7 January 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
- Phoenix Mercury (24 January 2022). "Mercury Name Vanessa Nygaard Head Coach". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved 7 March 2022.