WNBA Power Rankings: The Indiana Fever are running hot

Indiana Feverguard Kelsey Mitchell was frustrated but succinct in pinpointing the root cause of the team's troubles after losing 106-92 at Los Angeles on Wednesday.

"Anything you want to do on the offensive end, you can't do when you don't defend the ball," Mitchell said. "Getting the ball out of the net every possession, you're discombobulated."

The Fever were preparing for games in Phoenix and Las Vegas over the next four days. It's a long season, but this felt like a pivotable point.

And it's why Indiana moved up to No. 4 in this week's ESPN WNBA Power Rankings. Victories over the Mercury and Aces gave the Fever a 3-1 record on their western road trip and sent them back to Indianapolis with a 14-9 record for the longest homestand they have for the remainder of this season.

The Fever play their next four games before the All-Star break at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, starting Wednesday with a big matchup withGolden State, which is No. 1 in the Power Rankings for a second week in a row.

Indiana guard Caitlin Clark returned Wednesday after missing two games with back issues. She played in short stints against Los Angelesand couldn't get into the flow of the game, finishing with nine points in 16 minutes. She looked more comfortable Sunday in Las Vegas, playing 24 minutes and finishing with 12 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

Center Aliyah Boston, who missed the loss to the Sparks with a leg injury, came back strong with 21 points and nine rebounds against the Mercury and 19 and 11 against the Aces. The Fever also had key performances such as Tyasha Harris' 15 points and Makayla Timpson's highlight-reel block against the backboard at Phoenix, and Sophie Cunningham's 20 points at Las Vegas. The Fever defended better against the Mercury and the Aces, which gave them more transition opportunities and sparked their offense.

Then there's Mitchell, the longest-tenured Fever player (all nine of her WNBA seasons have been with Indiana) who at age 30 is having her best season in an outstanding career. She is averaging 22.7 points and shooting 48.8% from the field and 40.9% from 3-point range. If those numbers hold to the end of the season, they would be career highs. Mitchell, who also works tirelessly on defense, has scored 25 or more points in six consecutive games, two short of the record held by Las Vegas' A'ja Wilson in 2024.

"She's the fastest player in the league with the ball in her hands," Fever coach Stephanie White said of Mitchell. "The game is fast, but it's also slowed down for her in a way that she's become even more deadly of a playmaker. Her endurance is incredible. We rely heavily on her."

Here's a look at all 15 teams.

1. Golden State Valkyries (17-7)

Previous ranking: 1

Next seven days: @ IND (July 15), vs. WAS (July 18), vs. WAS (July 20)

The Valkyries are on a seven-game winning streak, with the last four victories coming on the road. They've had five different players lead them in scoring during the streak, an indication of how difficult they are to guard. This past week, Golden State won 83-75 at Toronto and 79-64 at Connecticut. Forward Janelle Salaun totaled 46 points and 13 rebounds while shooting 57.1% from the field. The Valkyries are holding opponents to 76.2 points per game and have a 101.2 defensive rating, leading the league in both categories.

2. Minnesota Lynx (18-6)

Previous ranking: 4

Next seven days: vs. LA (July 15), vs. POR (July 18), @ SEA (July 20)

After losing two in a row, the Lynx went 3-0 this past week and have the best record in the WNBA. Guard Kayla McBride led the way with a combined 85 points in the three wins. The Lynx beat Connecticut 86-80 on Wednesday, then topped New York 90-85 on Saturday. Then they held off a desperate Phoenix team for a 104-100 win Monday behind McBride's 37 points and Olivia Miles' 33, a Lynx rookie record.

3. Dallas Wings (16-8)

Previous ranking: 5

Next seven days: vs. NY (July 16), vs. LA (July 19)

The Wings have won five in a row. In her second season, guard Paige Bueckers continues to improve on her Rookie of the Year campaign, and forward Jessica Shepard keeps making her case for the Most Improved Player award. The Wings won 88-77 at New York on July 7 behind Shepard's third triple-double of the season (22 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists). Then in Montreal on Friday, the Wings beat Toronto 108-95 led by Bueckers (34 points, six rebounds, six assists) and Shepard (20 points, 17 rebounds). Back at home Sunday after playing six of the previous seven on the road, Dallas beat Chicago 96-91. Bueckers had 22 points and 11 assists, while Shepard had 19 points and 10 rebounds.

4. Indiana Fever (14-9)

Previous ranking: 6

Next seven days: vs. GS (July 15), vs. SEA (July 17), vs. NY (July 18)

After their loss at Los Angeles, the Fever rallied to win 92-89 at Phoenix behind Mitchell's 29 points. Then the Fever's 109-75 win at Las Vegas on Sunday marked the eighth time this season they have reached 100, the most in the WNBA. But they have lost four of those 100-point games, which speaks to Mitchell's point about also needing to play defense. With their next four games at home, the Fever will look to tighten up on D. They also hope that Clark's back issues allow her to play enough in every game to get into the kind of flow she did against the Aces.

5. Las Vegas Aces (17-7)

Previous ranking: 3

Next seven days: @ TOR (July 20)

After a three-game absence, A'ja Wilson returned from a leg injury in Las Vegas' 88-80 win at Portland on Thursday, finishing with 32 points and 10 rebounds. Then the Aces trampled Phoenix 106-58, led by Wilson's 21 points and 15 rebounds. But the Aces have had some games this season in which they started badly and never got back in it. That happened again Sunday in a 109-75 loss to Indiana, the third time Las Vegas has lost by 30 or more points in 2026. The 82-point turnaround (after winning by 48) is the largest point differential from one game to the next in WNBA history. Wilson and coach Becky Hammon both acknowledged the Aces need some rest after three games in four days. They'll get that now.

6. Washington Mystics (11-10)

Previous ranking: 7

Next seven days: @ TOR (July 14), vs. POR (July 16), @ GS (July 18), @ GS (July 20)

After missing two games with right knee soreness, guard Sonia Citron returned in Sunday's 84-79 win over Seattle with 19 points in 33 minutes. Center Shakira Austin led the way with a season-high 27 points. After just one game last week, the Mystics have four in the next seven days.

7. Atlanta Dream (14-10)

Previous ranking: 8

Next seven days: @ TOR (July 17), vs. CHI (July 19)

The Dream were 2-1 this past week, a step forward after they had lost five in a row. But considering all three games were at home and vs. teams with losing records, this feels like a lost opportunity. Atlanta beat Seattle 89-78 on Thursday but fell 102-92 on Saturday to Portland as Dream forward Angel Reese sat out with a foot injury. Monday, Reese was back and the Dream held off Los Angeles 101-92. Guard Allisha Gray totaled 62 points for the week, while Reese had 41 points and 24 rebounds in her two games.

8. New York Liberty (13-11)

Previous ranking: 2

Next seven days: @ DAL (July 16), @ IND (July 18)

The Liberty have been dealing with various injuries all season, currently to forwards Satou Sabally and Leonie Fiebich. But that alone doesn't explain the Liberty's inconsistency. Since winning eight in a row from late May to mid-June, the Liberty are 2-7. That doesn't include their Commissioner's Cup final victory over Las Vegas on June 30, which doesn't count in the standings. That win perhaps overshadowed the Liberty's offensive and defensive lapses, which led to an 0-3 week. They fell 88-77 at home to Dallas on Tuesday, 90-85 at Minnesota on Saturday and 93-91 to Toronto in Montreal on Sunday.

9. Toronto Tempo (10-13)

Previous ranking: 10

Next seven days: vs. WAS (July 14), vs. ATL (July 17), vs. LV (July 20)

The Tempo fell at home to Golden State on Wednesday. Then, leaning into being "Canada's team," they played two games at Montreal's Bell Centre. They lost to Dallas 108-95 on Friday before the largest regular-season crowd in WNBA history (20,996). Sunday, they treated the Montreal audience to a 93-91 win over New York. Marina Mabrey had 34 points against the Wings and 30 against the Liberty, plus took a shoe to the back that New York's Betnijah Laney-Hamilton said she didn't mean to throw at her (she said she was attempting to toss it back to the teammate who lost it). Nonetheless, Laney-Hamilton was ejected for her second technical, Mabrey made the technical free throw and the Tempo ended their four-game losing streak. Might Mabrey, aNew Jersey native, be on her way to becoming a Canadian legend?

10. Portland Fire (10-13)

Previous ranking: 11

Next seven days: @ CON (July 14), @ WAS (July 16), @ MIN (July 18)

After falling 88-80 at home to Las Vegas on Thursday, the Fire had one of their best road victories of the season Saturday. They won 102-92 at Atlanta, shooting 60% from the field and getting seven players into double-figure scoring. The Dream were without Reese, but it was still a good win for the Fire. This week, they finish a stretch in which they play eight of nine games on the road.

11. Los Angeles Sparks (10-12)

Previous ranking: 14

Next seven days: @ MIN (July 15), @ CHI (July 17), @ DAL (July 19)

TheSparksparted with general manager Raegan Pebley on Sunday. Somewhat surprisingly, it came after two wins in a row: 106-92 over Indiana on Wednesday and 102-87 over Chicago on Friday. But the decision reflects more the fact that the Sparks, after Monday's 101-92 loss at Atlanta, are 3-6 in the past month and sit outside playoff position. The franchise hopes to end its five-year playoff drought, but with star guard Kelsey Plum still out with a leg injury, it's hard to say whether that will happen this season. Does the GM change indicate the Sparks will be looking to make some big moves before the Aug. 2 trade deadline?

12. Chicago Sky (7-16)

Previous ranking: 15

Next seven days: vs. SEA (July 15), vs. LA (July 17), @ ATL (July 19)

The Sky had one of their better defensive games on July 7 at Phoenix, winning 77-66. That was followed by losses at Los Angeles on Friday (102-87) and at Dallas on Sunday (96-91). Guard Skylar Diggins missed all three games with a knee injury and has not seemed happy of late in her first season in Chicago. But rookie guard Sydney Taylor continues to play well, totaling 51 points over the past week.

13. Phoenix Mercury (8-17)

Previous ranking: 9

Next seven days: vs. CON (July 17), vs. CON (July 19)

It was a painful 0-4 week for the Mercury, starting with a lifeless 77-66 loss at home to Chicago on July 7. Phoenix played much better Thursday but lost 92-89 to visiting Indiana. Saturday's trip to Las Vegas produced the biggest loss in Phoenix history (106-58). Before that 48-point drubbing, the Mercury's worst loss had been by 42 points in 2012. There was nothing to suggest the Mercury would pull it together in Minnesota on Monday, but they did, pushing the Lynx to the buzzer. But they still lost 104-100. One bright spot is Kahleah Copper, who had a combined 82 points in the four games. The other is that Connecticut, which has the WNBA's worst record, visits Phoenix this week for two games.

14. Connecticut Sun (5-18)

Previous ranking: 12

Next seven days: vs. POR (July 14), @ PHO (July 17), @ PHO (July 19)

The Sun went 0-2 last week after their big win over Minnesota on July 6. They lost their rematch with the Lynx 86-80 on Wednesday and then fell to Golden State 79-64 on Friday. Center Brittney Griner(left quad injury) didn't play in either game, and guard Saniya Rivers had to leave the court in a wheelchair during Wednesday's game because of an ankle injury. Plus, forward Aneesah Morrow has missed the past three games for personal reasons. On the positive side, forward Diamond Miller had 13 and 14 points in the losses, her first back-to-back double-figure scoring games since June 8-10.

15. Seattle Storm (6-19)

Previous ranking: 13

Next seven days: @ CHI (July 15), @ IND (July 17), vs. MIN (July 20)

It was a good week individually for guard Natisha Hiedeman. She had 20 points in an 89-78 loss at Atlanta on Thursday, and a career-high 31 in an 84-79 loss at Washington on Sunday. It also was a solid week for center Dominique Malonga, who had a combined 25 points and 24 rebounds. But the Storm have lost four of their past five.

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