There are not many games left in the WNBA's Regular Season as teams continue to try to grab a remaining spot in the postseason. The latest WNBA Playoff standings for 2017 indicate that the Minnesota Lynx, Los Angeles Sparks, and Connecticut Sun have already clinched spots. The top two teams will receive byes deep into the playoff bracket. As of right now, there are several teams that look like they are near locks to also qualify, with a few spots up in the air. Here's the latest on who's in, who's nearly in, and who's probably going to be left out.
Qualified & nearly qualified
The top eight teams in terms of winning percentage from the league will qualify as the WNBA abandoned its previous format where it was based on the Eastern and Western Conference standings. That means that Minnesota and Los Angeles could become the top two seeds even though they're from the Western Conference.
As of right now, that would be the case, although Connecticut is right behind Los Angeles for the No. 2 seed. All three of these teams are definitely in the postseason, so they're mainly playing for top spots now.
The Washington Mystics are the fourth-best team as of this report. They failed to qualify on Wednesday night as the Sparks routed them in Washington, D.C.
However, the Mystics have another shot on Friday night when they take on the Phoenix Mercury at home.
The New York Liberty (15-12) are just a game behind Washington for that fourth spot, while Phoenix (14-13) is two games back. As mentioned, Phoenix will visit the Mystics on Friday. New York will play at Connecticut. Barring major meltdowns with their remaining games, the Mystics, Liberty, and Mercury all appear destined to grab spots in the postseason.
The final spots
There are basically two spots that will be tightly contested down the stretch. As of this report, the No. 6 team is the Dallas Wings (13-16). The No. 8 team is the Seattle Storm (12-16). However, the Chicago Sky (11-16) were ahead of the Storm on a tiebreaker until Seattle played an extra game and got a close win over the Lynx just last night.
On Friday, Chicago hosts the Sparks while Seattle hosts the San Antonio Stars.
Both the Atlanta Dream (10-19) and Indiana Fever (9-19) seem just about out of the playoff picture. However, neither has been technically eliminated just yet. The San Antonio Stars (7-22) have played better after the All-Star Game, but they have already been eliminated from any possibility of making the playoffs. Maybe next season?
There are a total of 34 games in this WNBA season, manning teams have anywhere from five to eight games left on their slate. Stay tuned as more playoff spots will likely be clinched in the coming days.