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2022 WNBA season

The 2022 WNBA season was the 26th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Chicago Sky were the defending champions.

The WNBA's second Commissioner's Cup took place during the regular season, with the Las Vegas Aces winning over the Sky.[3] In the playoffs, the Aces were the first seed and won the Finals over the Connecticut Sun.

The regular season was expanded to 36 games per team, is the most games scheduled in a single WNBA season.[4] A 36-game season was originally scheduled for 2020, but the plan was scrapped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[5] This season also marked the return of an all-series playoffs, which was last used in 2015, instead of the prior schedule of two rounds of single-elimination games and byes for the higher-seeded teams. The first-round series used a 2–1 format, with the higher seed hosting the first two games (differing from the 1–1–1 format used up to 2015). The semifinals and finals remained best-of-five series.[6] The playoffs began on August 17 and concluded on September 18.[7]

In May 2022, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced that during this upcoming season, the league would honor the Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner with a "BG42" floor decal in a notable spot on the court of all 12 teams. The Mercury center has been detained in Russia since February 2022 after customs officials said they found hashish oil in her luggage at an airport.[8] The "BG42" floor decal was also prominently found on the Mercury's parent team, the Phoenix Suns, during the rest of the year after she was detained in Russia.

2022 WNBA draft

The Washington Mystics won the first pick in the 2022 WNBA draft in the draft lottery. They were followed by the Indiana Fever for second, Atlanta Dream for third, and Los Angeles Sparks for fourth. The Sparks had traded their pick to the Dallas Wings before the lottery,[9] who subsequently sent the pick to the Fever in a trade that helped Dallas secure Teaira McCowan.[10] As part of a three-team trade, Washington and Atlanta swapped lottery picks, resulting in each team receiving 2022's third and first picks, respectively.[11] The Fever ended up with four top-10 picks, and seven overall.

Lottery picks

Media coverage

In March 2022, the league announced plans to feature the broadcasts of nine regular season games on ABC, five on ESPN, and ten on ESPN2—totaling 25 games, including the 2022 WNBA All-Star Game. The league also revealed that those same channels will air the entire 2022 postseason, which could consist of as many as 27 games.[1]

The remaining national broadcast schedule was released in April and May 2022—including two regular season games on CBS and 38 on CBS Sports Network, 46 on NBA TV, 16 on Amazon Prime Video, 20 on Facebook Watch, and 12 on Twitter.[2][12] Prime Video also streamed the 2022 WNBA Commissioner's Cup Final.[13]

Transactions

The free agency negotiation period started on January 15, while players could sign to a team as soon as February 1.[4]

Coaching changes

Regular season

All-Star Game

Standings

Notes

(#) – League Standing
x – Clinched playoff berth
e – Eliminated from playoff contention
Source: Overall standings and Commissioner's Cup Standings

Schedule

Note: Games highlighted in ██ represent Commissioner's Cup games.
All times Eastern

Statistical leaders

The following shows the leaders in each statistical category during the 2022 regular season through games played on August 14, 2022.[20][21][22]

Playoffs and Finals

Bold Series winner

Season award winners

Player of the Week Award

Player of the Month Award

Rookie of the Month Award

Coach of the Month Award

Postseason awards

Coaches

Eastern Conference

Western Conference

Notes:

Notes

  1. ^ a b April 6, 2022: Washington to Atlanta[11]
    • Atlanta acquired the #1 Overall Pick in 2022
    • Washington acquired the #3 Overall Pick in 2022, the #14 Pick in 2022, and the right to swap picks with Los Angeles in 2023
  2. ^ March 8, 2022: Dallas to Indiana[10]
    • Dallas acquired Teaira McCowan, a 2022 first-round pick, and Chicago's 2023 first-round pick
    • Indiana acquired 2022 first-round picks and a 2023 first-round pick
  3. ^ June 2, 2021: Los Angeles to Dallas[9]
    • Los Angeles acquired 2021 first-round and 2022 second-round picks
    • Dallas acquired a 2022 first-round pick

References

  1. ^ a b Voepel, Mechelle (March 3, 2022). "ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 to televise 25 regular-season WNBA games, entire postseason". ESPN. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "WNBA Announces 2022 Broadcast and Streaming Schedule for CBS, NBA TV, Prime Video and Facebook Watch". WNBA. April 6, 2022. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  3. ^ Costabile, Annie (March 3, 2022). "WNBA schedule includes 25 regular-season games broadcast nationally across ABC, ESPN". Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  4. ^ a b Voepel, Mechelle (December 9, 2021). "WNBA announces 36-game regular-season schedule for 2022, its longest in 26 seasons". ESPN. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  5. ^ "2020 WNBA Season to Feature Inaugural Commissioner's Cup, Expanded 36-Game Schedule for Teams and More ABC Games". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. January 16, 2020. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  6. ^ Negley, Cassandra (November 18, 2021). "WNBA introduces new playoff format abolishing single-elimination games, top-seeded byes". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  7. ^ "2022 WNBA playoffs".
  8. ^ Baer, Jack (May 5, 2022). "Mercury unveil Brittney Griner court decal to be used by all 12 WNBA teams". Yahoo. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
  9. ^ a b "Dallas Wings and Los Angeles Sparks Exchange Draft Picks". WNBA. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
  10. ^ a b "Dallas Wings Acquire Teaira McCowan". WNBA. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  11. ^ a b "Dream Lands 2022 Number One Overall Draft Pick". WNBA. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  12. ^ Kria, Nikki (May 4, 2022). "Twitter announces a diverse slate of premium content partnerships at 2022 Digital Content NewFronts". Twitter. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  13. ^ Kujawa, Taylor (May 11, 2022). "How to Watch the WNBA 2022". CableTV.com. Archived from the original on May 12, 2022. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  14. ^ Newberry, Paul (October 12, 2021). "WNBA veteran Tanisha Wright picked as new Atlanta Dream coach". The Globe and Mail. ESPN. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  15. ^ Jackson, Wilton (December 31, 2021). "Spurs Assistant Becky Hammon Named Aces Coach, General Manager". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  16. ^ "Sandy Brondello Hired as New York Liberty Coach". Fox Sports. Fox. January 7, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  17. ^ Phoenix Mercury (January 24, 2022). "Mercury Name Vanessa Nygaard Head Coach". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
  18. ^ Philippou, Alexa (May 25, 2022). "Marianne Stanley out as head coach of Indiana Fever; Carlos Knox named interim coach". ESPN. Retrieved May 26, 2022.
  19. ^ Jennings, Chantel (June 7, 2022). "Sparks parting ways with coach Derek Fisher: Source". theathletic.com. The Athletic. Retrieved June 7, 2022.
  20. ^ "Official Leaders". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
  21. ^ "Team Stats". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
  22. ^ "Statistical Minimums". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved August 14, 2022.
  23. ^ @WNBA (May 16, 2022). "Players of the Week are in! @_ajawilson22 and @howard_rhyne getting the season started right!👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  24. ^ @WNBA (May 23, 2022). ".@athomas_25 (Eastern) and @JackieYoung3 (Western) are your #WNBA Players of the Week for Week 2! 🏀 #MoreThan" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  25. ^ @WNBA (May 31, 2022). "Week 3 Players of the Week are in! @Kelz_Hoop (Eastern) earns her first and @_ajawilson22 (Western) earns her second!🏀 #MoreThan" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  26. ^ @WNBA (June 6, 2022). "Is anyone surprised?!🤧 KP & reigning MVP @jus242 are your Western & Eastern Conference WNBA Players of the Week. WELL DESERVED👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  27. ^ @WNBA (June 13, 2022). "We had some pretty memorable games from these two this week 🔥 The WNBA Players of the Week are @breannastewart and @sabrina_i20 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  28. ^ @WNBA (June 21, 2022). "Slight work for the former MVP & Finals MVP! @_ajawilson22 earns her third Player of the Week honors, and @kahleahcopper earns her first 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  29. ^ @WNBA (June 27, 2022). "@nnekaogwumike & @Sloot22 are your WNBA Players of the Week 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  30. ^ @WNBA (July 8, 2022). "Players of the Week are in! 🙌 Give it up for @aerial_powers23 and @sabrina_i20 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  31. ^ @WNBA (July 18, 2022). "These two have been BALLING 👏 @SkyDigg4 & @De11eDonne are your #WNBA Players of the Week 🌟" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  32. ^ @WNBA (July 25, 2022). "Players of the Week are in! ⤵ A'ja Wilson (@_ajawilson22) and Alyssa Thomas (@athomas_25) have just been on another level 🔥" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  33. ^ @WNBA (August 1, 2022). "Players of the Week are in! ⤵ Kelsey Plum (@Kelseyplum10) and Courtney Vandersloot (@Sloot22) were straight-up balling last week! 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  34. ^ @WNBA (August 8, 2022). "Your #WNBA Week 12 Players of the Week ⬇ @Teaira_15 and @sabrina_i20 showed up and showed OUT last week for their squads 🙌" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  35. ^ @WNBA (August 15, 2022). "These two balled out during the last week of the #WNBA regular season 🙌 @_ajawilson22 and @sabrina_i20 are your Week 13 Players of the Week 🚨" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  36. ^ @WNBA (June 1, 2022). "Safe to say @_ajawilson22 and @athomas_25 have been BALLING. With multiple dominant performances to lead their teams to 🔥 starts, they are taking home @kia WNBA Player of the Month honors. 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  37. ^ @WNBA (July 5, 2022). "These two WENT OFF all June! 👏 @breannastewart & @sabrina_i20 are your Western and Eastern Conference @Kia #WNBA Players of the Month 🤩" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  38. ^ @WNBA (August 2, 2022). "Balling all month long! 🤩 A'ja Wilson (@_ajawilson22) & Alyssa Thomas (@athomas_25) are your WNBA @Kia Players of the Month 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  39. ^ @WNBA (August 16, 2022). "They put the W on notice ALL MONTH LONG ‼ @Teaira_15 and @sabrina_i20 are your @KIA #WNBA Players of the Month #MoreThan" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  40. ^ @WNBA (June 1, 2022). "From No. 1 Draft pick to @KIA WNBA Rookie of the Month 🔥 Congrats, @howard_rhyne 👏 #MoreThan" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  41. ^ @WNBA (July 5, 2022). "BACK TO BACK @Kia Rookie of the Month honors for @howard_rhyne 🤩👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  42. ^ @WNBA (August 2, 2022). "BACK TO BACK TO BACK @KIA Rookie of the Month honors for @howard_rhyne 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  43. ^ @WNBA (August 16, 2022). "ANOTHER ONE 🚨 For the 4th consecutive time this season, @howard_rhyne is your @KIA #WNBA Rookie of the Month 🙌 #MoreThan" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  44. ^ @WNBA (June 1, 2022). "After leading the @LVAces to a historic 9-1 start and putting up the best 10 game start to a head coaching career in WNBA history, @BeckyHammon is the WNBA Coach of the Month 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  45. ^ @WNBA (July 5, 2022). ".@coachjameswade is your #WNBA Coach of the Month after leading the @chicagosky to a 9-2 record 🤩👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  46. ^ @WNBA (August 2, 2022). "Another WNBA Coach of the Month honor for @coachjameswade 🎉" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  47. ^ @WNBA (August 16, 2022). "After leading the @DallasWings to a 5-2 record throughout the month of August, @VickieJohnson_ is your #WNBA Coach of the Month 👏" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  48. ^ "Las Vegas Aces' A'ja Wilson Wins 2022 KIA WNBA Most Valuable Player Award". wnba.com (Press release). New York, NY: WNBA. September 7, 2022. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
  49. ^ "Atlanta Dream's Rhyne Howard Named 2022 Kia Rookie of the Year". wnba.com (Press release). WNBA. August 25, 2022. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  50. ^ "Jackie Young Named 2022 KIA WNBA Most Improved Player". wnba.com (Press release). New York, NY: WNBA. August 29, 2022. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  51. ^ "Las Vegas Aces' A'ja Wilson Named 2022 Kia WNBA Defensive Player Of The Year". wnba.com. WNBA. August 30, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
  52. ^ "Connecticut's Brionna Jones Named 2022 Kia WNBA Sixth Player of the Year" (Press release). WNBA. September 1, 2022. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
  53. ^ "Minnesota Lynx' Sylvia Fowles Wins 2022 Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award" (Press release). WNBA. August 19, 2022. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  54. ^ Philippou, Alexa (August 26, 2022). "Las Vegas Aces' Becky Hammon named 2022 WNBA Coach of the Year". ESPN. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  55. ^ Poe, Julia (August 22, 2022). "Chicago Sky coach/GM James Wade named WNBA's Basketball Executive of the Year after team's best regular-season record ever". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  56. ^ "Kia WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson Leads 2022 All-WNBA First Team" (Press release). WNBA. September 15, 2022. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
  57. ^ @WNBA (August 30, 2022). "Your 2022 #WNBA All-Defensive First Team ⬇️ @_ajawilson22 @T_Cloud4 @SylviaFowles @breannastewart @arielatkinssvn #MoreThan" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  58. ^ @WNBA (August 30, 2022). "Your 2022 #WNBA All-Defensive Second Team ⬇️ @athomas_25 @ezimagbegor @jus242 @BrittBundlez @gabbywilliams15 #MoreThan" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  59. ^ Maloney, Jack (August 25, 2022). "2022 WNBA Rookie of the Year: Dream's Rhyne Howard wins honor, highlights All-Rookie team". cbssports.com. CBS. Retrieved August 25, 2022.