The Dallas Wings and Los Angeles Sparks have been eliminated from the WNBA playoffs. Who will join them in the postseason and who will secure the 8th seed?

The seven teams that have already secured a playoff spot continue to fight for position and home-court advantage – including the top-ranked New York Liberty, who are again No. 1 in this week’s ESPN WNBA Power Rankings. But our focus is on the other end, where the Chicago Sky, Atlanta Dream and Washington Mystics are trying to make the playoffs.

With two weeks left in the regular season, the Mystics will face the Sky and Dream (twice) this week, and Atlanta and Chicago will face each other the following week. All three have struggled with injuries this season.

Let’s start with the Sky, who are eighth in the standings but received surprising news on Saturday: forward Angel Reese is out for the rest of the season with a wrist injury. As a rookie, she established herself as a consistent double-double threat and one of the league’s best rebounders. It’s a shame we won’t see her finish this season.

Fellow rookie Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever said of Reese on Sunday: “She had a historic year and she did incredible things. She came into the league and really did what she has done well her entire career since I have known her.”

Coach Teresa Weatherspoon did not provide details about Reese’s injury and said Reese could disclose it if she wanted.

Even without Reese, the Sky ended Dallas’ playoff hopes with a 92-77 win on Sunday. Chicago guard Chennedy Carter scored 28 points and veteran forward Isabelle Harrison made the most of her first start of 2024 with 21 points and nine rebounds.

“It’s unfortunate that we find ourselves in this situation,” Weatherspoon said, “but we’re excited to see what we can do.”

The ninth-ranked Dream nearly pulled off a big win on Sunday, leading Indiana by as many as 16 points in a 104-100 overtime loss. Atlanta will be without forward Cheyenne Parker-Tyus (ankle) for the remainder of the season and guard Aerial Powers (calf) has no timetable for a return to the team.

Add to that the games missed earlier in the season due to injuries to guards Rhyne Howard (11) and Jordin Canada (21), and that’s what the Dream have struggled with, despite strong play from Allisha Gray and Tina Charles all summer.

“The resilience of the team, the determination – they keep fighting,” said Dream coach Tanisha Wright. “Even in the games we lose, we’re in every single one. But you have to be able to win some of those close games.”

Washington, also plagued by injuries, started the season 0-12. No one would have believed back then that in September we would be talking about the Mystics competing for the playoffs. But they kept going, and the return of guard Brittney Sykes from injury really helped.

Whichever team finishes last will obviously be a huge underdog in the first round of the playoffs. But the Sky, Dream and Mystics wouldn’t mind; they just want their chance.

Previous placements: Preseason | May 20th | May 27th | June 3rd | June 10th | June 17th | June 24th | July 1st | July 8th | July 15th | August 19th | August 26th | September 2nd

Previous placement: 1

This week: @DAL (September 10th), @DAL (September 12th), vs. MIN (September 15th)

The Liberty remain on pace for what could be their best record in franchise history, going 32-8 in the regular season last year. Last week, New York defeated the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces — winning both season series — but the Liberty can’t be happy about being outscored 20-11 by the Aces in the fourth period on Sunday. There are also concerns about Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, who left the game with a knee injury.

Previous placement: 3

This week: @ATL (September 10th), vs. CHI (September 13th), @NY (September 15th)

The Lynx have the league’s best record (9-1) since returning to play after the Olympic break. Their togetherness was evident in Friday’s 99-88 win at Indiana. The Lynx trailed by eight points after the first quarter and by five at halftime, but took the lead in the third quarter. Napheesa Collier had 26 points and 10 rebounds against Indiana, then 19 and 12 in Sunday’s 78-71 win over Washington. The upcoming clash between the Lynx and Liberty this week could be a preview of the WNBA Finals.

Previous: 5

This week: @IND (September 11th), @IND (September 13th), vs. CON (September 15th)

The Aces went 2-1, with wins over Chicago and the Connecticut Sun before losing to New York. Coach Becky Hammon said A’ja Wilson (ankle) missed Sunday’s game against the Liberty mainly out of caution, so we’ll see how often the MVP favorite plays this week. The Aces are 6-5 since resuming play after the Olympic break. However, they have won four of their last five games. They clearly need Wilson back as soon as possible, but Hammon is most interested in making sure her star is ready for the playoffs.

Previous placement: 2

This week: @LA (September 10th), @PHO (September 13th), @LV (September 15th)

After losses to Seattle and Las Vegas last week, the Sun needed to get back on track in Los Angeles on Sunday. They did just that with a 79-67 win that included the third triple-double of the season – and the 11th regular-season of her career – from Alyssa Thomas (12 points, 11 assists, 10 rebounds). The Sun drop a few spots in the power rankings but remain in third place in the WNBA standings.

Previous placement: 4

This week: against LV (11 September), against LV (13 September), against DAL (15 September)

The Fever are 8-2 since the Olympic break, and both losses, including Friday’s, came against Minnesota. Last week was great overall, though, as Indiana went 2-1 and clinched its first playoff spot since 2016. Clark recorded her second triple-double of the season in last Wednesday’s win over Los Angeles, then she and fellow former No. 1 draft pick Aliyah Boston combined for 56 points in Sunday’s overtime win over Atlanta. The only team Indiana hasn’t beaten this season is Las Vegas — they face each other twice this week.

Previous placement: 6

This week: @LA (September 11th), @DAL (September 13th), vs. LA (September 15th)

The Storm rebounded to take a 2-1 lead with wins over Connecticut and the Phoenix Mercury and a loss to New York, a much-needed boost after falling 3-1 the previous week. Skylar Diggins-Smith recorded her second double-double of the season (12 points, 11 assists) in the blowout win over the Mercury. Either Jewell Loyd or Diggins-Smith has led the Storm in points in nine of Seattle’s 10 games since resuming play after the Olympic break.

Previous placement: 7

This week: This week: vs. CON (September 13), @ CHI (September 15)

Phoenix beat Atlanta but lost to Washington and Seattle. The Mercury are in the playoffs, but there aren’t many positives to take from their last two weeks: They have a 1-5 record since August 26, and all of their losses have been by double digits, four of them at home. They have four games left in which they can try to build some momentum for the postseason.

Previous placement: 11

This week: against WAS (September 11), @ MIN (September 13), against PHO (September 15)

With Reese out, it might be time for the Sky’s No. 3 center Kamilla Cardoso to step up even more. She averaged 12.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.7 blocks as Chicago went 2-1, losing to Las Vegas and then beating Los Angeles and Dallas. Carter, who returned to the Sky’s lineup on Friday after missing four games because of health and safety protocols, will also play a key role if the Sky want to make the playoffs.

Previous placement: 10

This week: @ CHI (September 11), @ ATL (September 13), vs ATL (September 15)

The Mystics beat Dallas and Phoenix last week before losing to Minnesota, but have now won five of their last seven games. During that time, Washington has had five different players score the most points. That the team now has at least a shot at the playoffs after a nearly winless first month of the season says a lot about the resilience of this team.

Previous placement: 9

This week: against MIN (September 10), against WAS (September 13), @ WAS (September 15)

Atlanta went 1-2 last week, beating Dallas but losing to Phoenix and Indiana. Rhyne Howard had a very strong week, scoring 100 points in total. Tina Charles also contributed, averaging 16.3 points and 12.3 rebounds. But the Dream must be disappointed to miss Sunday’s game against the Fever. Atlanta has lost six of its last eight games.

Previous placement: 8

This week: vs NY (September 10), vs NY (September 12), vs SEA (September 13), @ IND (September 15)

It seemed the Wings could make the playoffs when Satou Sabally returned after competing in the Paris Olympics with the German national team. In fact, Dallas beat both Las Vegas and Minnesota on August 27 and 30, respectively. They then lost four games in a row and their playoff hopes evaporated. The Wings – who reached the WNBA semifinals last year – must now figure out what they want to do for 2025, the final season that star guard Arike Ogunbowale is under contract.

Previous placement: 12

This week: vs. CON (September 10th), vs. SEA (September 11th), @ SEA (September 15th)

The Sparks went 3-0 and missed the playoffs for the fourth straight year. We don’t know how Los Angeles would have fared if No. 2 overall draft pick Cameron Brink hadn’t been sidelined with a knee injury in June. The good news is that there’s another draft lottery pick on the way next season to join Brink and No. 4 overall pick Rickea Jackson as a young core for the Sparks. It could be UConn guard Paige Bueckers.