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The WNBA is a star-driven league. A’ja Wilson and Liz Cambage for Las Vegas, Breanna Stewart for Seattle, Elena Delle Donne and Tina Charles for Washington, and Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner for Phoenix all top the odds to win MVP, and their teams are some of the early favorites to win it all. But it takes a complete squad to grind through the season and into playoffs. This group of players is less heralded, but could be the key to taking their teams to the next level. Here’s a look at the players who are indispensable for each team heading into the 2021 WNBA season.
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The Washington Mystics won the WNBA championship in 2019, the last time it had franchise-altering superstar Elena Delle Donne on the court. Now Delle Donne will be joined by another former league MVP in Tina Charles after both players opted out of the 2020 season, a season in which the Mystics were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. The Mystics have high expectations, but are flying under the radar compared to some of the other top teams.
Here is a roundtable discussion on the team entering 2021:
1. What are the Mystics’ strengths heading into this season?
Ranking the top 25 WNBA players for 2021
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Which teams are the biggest threat to the Seattle Storm? (1:00)
Chiney Ogwumike lists the Aces, the Sky and the Sparks as the biggest threats to the Storm repeating as WNBA champions. (1:00)
A year ago, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it wasn t certain the WNBA would have a season. But the league completed it with a bubble scenario in Bradenton, Florida. Despite some high-profile opt-outs, the basketball was top-notch. The Seattle Storm, led by Breanna Stewart, won their fourth WNBA title, while the Las Vegas Aces reached the WNBA Finals for the first time and star A ja Wilson was named the season s MVP.
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It is the dawning of a new era for the Los Angeles Sparks, one led by Nneka Ogwumike. LA is flying under the radar entering the 2021 WNBA season, but don’t sleep on a team that has a lot of pride and history to live up to.
Potential problems for the Sparks
No more big three
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The elephant in the room in Los Angeles is that there is no more Candace Parker, a transcendent talent who was the face of the franchise. There is also no more Chelsea Gray (the Point Gawd), another huge star who was the third member of LA’s big three along with Parker and Nneka Ogwumike.
For all that was strange and unprecedented about the 2020 WNBA season in a bubble, one thing was standard: The team with the fewest questions won the championship. The Seattle Storm had all the pieces, led by WNBA Finals MVP Breanna Stewart.
Even if coach Dan Hughes couldn t be in Bradenton, Florida, for health reasons, he contributed as much as possible from afar, and assistant Gary Kloppenburg filled in well for him. The Storm tied the Las Vegas Aces for most regular-season wins, then swept the Minnesota Lynx and the Aces for the franchise s fourth title.
After winning the 2018 and 2020 championships with a similar core group, Seattle now faces change starters Natasha Howard and Alysha Clark are gone brought on by trades and free agency. The 2021 Storm have some uncertainties, but so do most of the WNBA s teams.