The 2026 WNBA playoff bracket is locked following a dramatic regular-season finale on Thursday, September 24. With eight teams qualified and a tight seven-game gap between the top and bottom seeds, the first-round best-of-three series begin Sunday, September 27, featuring high-stakes rematches and historic rivalries.
The WNBA regular season concluded on Thursday evening. The No. 2 seed was secured by the Golden State Valkyries after they erased a 10-point gap in the final two-and-a-half minutes to defeat the Los Angeles Sparks 76-75, finalizing the eight postseason spots.
Fans don’t have to wait long for the postseason, either. The volatility of the WNBA regular season’s closing day, which determined three of the four opening-round pairings, serves as a small-scale preview of what is to come. We’re about to see an unusually wide-open first round; the gap between the no. 1 and no. 8 seeds is a tight seven games. Every lower seed boasts a little bit of a nobody wants to see them in the first round
factor, besides the Dallas Wings, who carry the inferior but still scary nothing to lose
label. Because the WNBA’s regular season has been its longest, six of the eight playoff teams will face grueling travel due to the first round’s home-away-home format (which isn’t organized by conference).
First-Round Matchups and Regular-Season Records
Unlike previous years, the playoff field features a remarkably tight spread between top contenders and lower seeds. The first round is a best-of-three series utilizing a 1-1-1 format where the higher seed hosts Games 1 and 3, if a third game is needed. Winning Game 2 on the road is particularly precious: it allows a team to return home with the series tied and a deciding game played on its own court.
| Playoff Matchup | Regular-Season Record | 2026 Season Series |
|---|---|---|
| No. 1 Minnesota Lynx vs. No. 8 New York Liberty | Lynx 33-11; Liberty 26-18 | Liberty won 2-1 |
| No. 2 Golden State Valkyries vs. No. 7 Dallas Wings | Valkyries 32-12; Wings 27-17 | Valkyries won 3-0 |
| No. 3 Las Vegas Aces vs. No. 6 Indiana Fever | Aces 31-13; Fever 28-16 | Fever won 2-1 |
| No. 4 Atlanta Dream vs. No. 5 Washington Mystics | Dream 30-14; Mystics 28-16 | Mystics won 2-1 |
Minnesota Lynx Face Familiar Foe in New York Liberty
Minnesota Lynx and New York Liberty First-Round Matchup
After finishing with the best record in the league, the Minnesota Lynx were paired with the team that defeated them in the 2024 Finals. Yes, the Lynx got the No. 1 seed on Tuesday, Sept. 22. However, Minnesota secured their spot after a 96-77 loss to the Indiana Fever once the Valkyries fell to the Portland Fire later that night. Let’s examine the seeding situation for each team before the games on Wednesday, Sept. 23, given the high stakes and the pursuit of homecourt for the top four seeds. Minnesota finished off its regular-season finale on Thursday night against the Fever with an 86-66 win. But before Thursday, they’d dropped four of five games and looked shaky. The Tuesday 96-77 defeat to the Fever might appear to be a result of Minnesota’s bench playing the final 25 minutes. Actually, the Fever inflicted most of the damage on the Minnesota starters (excluding an injured Olivia Miles), leading head coach Cheryl Reeve to remove them because she felt the game was already out of control.
Golden State Valkyries Clash With Dallas Wings in Second Season
Golden State Valkyries and Dallas Wings Second-Season Series
Golden State earned the No. 2 seed in only its second season, but has to deal with Paige Bueckers and Dallas. The Golden State Valkyries were struggling, and Gabby Williams was on the bench while they tried to get their offense right. After trailing for nearly the entire game on Thursday night in Los Angeles, Williams knocked down a game-winning 3-pointer to secure the No. 2 seed for the Valkyries in a chaotic 76-75 comeback victory over the Sparks, during which Golden State erased a 10-point lead with two-and-a-half minutes remaining to beat Los Angeles 76-75 and take the No. 2 spot. The Valkyries will face the Dallas Wings in the best-of-3 first round of the WNBA playoffs, which begin on Sunday. Golden State will host its first ever playoff game Sunday with the game time TBA.
With 20.4 seconds remaining, Williams hit a corner 3-pointer to give Golden State its first lead since the first quarter at 73-72, much to the delight of the Valkyries bench. The Sparks got the ball back and got it to Nneka Ogwumike, playing in her last game, who missed with Valkyries’ center Kiah Stokes in her face.
Defending Champions and First-Round Schedule
Las Vegas Aces and Indiana Fever Rematch Schedule
The Aces will face Indiana again, the same team that forced them into a five-game series in last year’s semifinals. Meanwhile, Atlanta holds home-court advantage over a Washington squad they managed to beat only once in three meetings. Following the longest regular season in league history—a campaign where any team seemed capable of winning on any night (excluding the Connecticut Sun)—the 2026 WNBA playoffs start Sunday. The postseason field is set with the top eight teams: the Minnesota Lynx, Golden State Valkyries, Las Vegas Aces, Atlanta Dream, Indiana Fever, New York Liberty, Washington Mystics and Dallas Wings. While the eight teams were known as of Aug. 25, when the Dallas Wings secured the last spot, the official seeding was not determined until the final buzzer on Thursday night.
First Round: Best-of-3 (1-1-1 Format)
Game 1: New York Liberty at Minnesota Lynx, 2 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 1: Indiana Fever at Las Vegas Aces, 4 p.m. ET, ABC
Game 1: Washington Mystics at Atlanta Dream, 7 p.m. ET, Prime
Game 1: Dallas Wings at Golden State Valkyries, 9 p.m. ET, USA/CNBC
Game 2: Las Vegas Aces at Indiana Fever, 6:30 p.m. ET
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