WNBA playoffs
Upcoming season or competition: 2024 WNBA Playoffs | |
| Sport | Basketball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1997 |
| No. of teams | 8 |
| Most recent champion(s) | Las Vegas Aces (2023) |
| Most titles | Houston Comets Minnesota Lynx Seattle Storm (4 titles each) |
The WNBA playoffs is an elimination tournament among 8 teams in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), ultimately deciding the final two teams who will play in the WNBA Finals.
Format
In the current format of the WNBA playoffs, the top eight teams in the regular season – regardless of conference – participate in a single-elimination tournament system. The eight teams are seeded by their regular season records, with the higher seeded team (or the team with the better record) in each series given homecourt advantage.
Round One is a best-of-three series, played with a homecourt pattern of 2–1 (the higher seed hosts games 1 and 2, while the lower seed hosts game 3, if necessary). The Semifinals and Finals are both best-of-five, played with a homecourt pattern of 2–2–1 (the higher seed hosts games 1, 2, and 5, while the lower seed hosts games 3 and 4).[1]
Tiebreaker procedures
In case of ties, the following procedures are followed:
- Better winning percentage among all head-to-head games involving tied teams.
- Better winning percentage against all teams with a .500 or better record at the end of the season.
- Better point differential in games involving tied teams.
- Better point differential in all games.
- Coin toss (or draw of lots, if at least 3 teams are still tied after the first 4 tiebreakers fail).
History
The playoff format has changed throughout the years ever since the league's establishment.
In the league's first two seasons, 1997 and 1998, only the top four teams overall advanced to the playoffs, which comprised only two rounds. In 1997, only a single game was played in all matches. In 1998, each match became a best-of-three series. The homecourt pattern for best-of-three was 1–1–1.
As expansion began, the playoff format accommodated more teams. 1999 featured six teams, with the top three teams from each conference advancing to the playoffs, and the top seed of each conference getting a bye into the Conference Finals. The following season, it was expanded to eight teams with the top four teams from each conference advancing to the playoffs. In 2005, the WNBA Finals became a best-of-five series. Despite the departure of some teams later on, this format continued until 2015.
From 2016-2021, a new format was introduced, featuring a stepladder-like system. In this format, the first- and second-seeded teams entered the tournament at the Semifinals, third and fourth places started at the Second Round, and the remaining four began at the First Round. The format also eliminated conference seeding, instead having the top eight teams overall advance. The First and Second Rounds were only a single game, with the winning team immediately advancing to the next round. The Semifinals and Finals were both best-of-five series. After each round, the lower surviving seed faced the higher seed in the next round, while the higher surviving seed faced the lower seed.[1]
The current format was adopted in 2022 and features the top 8 teams in the league (regardless of conference) playing a three-round series for the championship. The first round is a best-of-three series with the higher seed hosting both of the first two games, while the Semifinals and Finals remain a best-of-five series. The higher seed hosts the first, second, and (if necessary) fifth games.
Playoff series history
2024 season
{{#section-h:2024 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2023 season
{{#section-h:2023 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2022 season
{{#section-h:2022 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2021 season
{{#section-h:2021 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2020 season
{{#section-h:2020 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2019 season
{{#section-h:2019 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2018 season
{{#section-h:2018 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2017 season
{{#section-h:2017 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2016 season
{{#section-h:2016 WNBA Playoffs|Bracket}}
2015 season
{{#section-h:2015 WNBA Playoffs|Playoffs and Finals}}
2014 season
There were 12 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four. {{#section-h:2014 WNBA Playoffs|Playoffs and Finals}}
2013 season
There were 12 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four. {{#section-h:2013 WNBA Playoffs|Playoffs and Finals}}
2012 season
There were 12 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four. {{#section-h:2012 WNBA Playoffs|Playoffs and Finals}}
2011 season
There were 12 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Indiana | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | New York | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Indiana | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | ||||||||||||||
| E3 | Atlanta | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Connecticut | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Atlanta | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Atlanta | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Minnesota | 3 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Minnesota | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | San Antonio | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Minnesota | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Western Conference | ||||||||||||||
| W3 | Phoenix | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Phoenix | 2 | ||||||||||||
2010 season
There are 12 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference are seeded one to four. Starting in 2010, the first two rounds changed to a 1-1-1 format, with the higher-seeded team hosting games 1 & 3.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Washington | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Atlanta | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Atlanta | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | ||||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Indiana | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Atlanta | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Seattle | 3 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Los Angeles | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Western Conference | ||||||||||||||
| W2 | Phoenix | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Phoenix | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | San Antonio | 0 | ||||||||||||
2009 season
There are 13 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference are seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Indiana | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Washington | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Indiana | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | ||||||||||||||
| E3 | Detroit | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Atlanta | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Indiana | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Phoenix | 3 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Phoenix | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | San Antonio | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Phoenix | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Western Conference | ||||||||||||||
| W3 | Los Angeles | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
2008 season
There were 14 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Indiana | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | New York | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Connecticut | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 3 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | San Antonio | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | San Antonio | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Sacramento | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | San Antonio | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Los Angeles | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
2007 season
There were 13 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | New York | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Indiana | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Indiana | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Connecticut | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Phoenix | 3 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Phoenix | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Seattle | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Phoenix | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | San Antonio | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | San Antonio | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Sacramento | 1 | ||||||||||||
2006 season
There were 14 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Washington | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Indiana | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Detroit | 3 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Seattle | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Houston | 0 | ||||||||||||
2005 season
There were 13 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four, this was also the first season where the WNBA finals was expanded to a best-of-5 game series.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-5 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Detroit | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Indiana | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Indiana | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | New York | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Sacramento | 3 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Los Angeles | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Houston | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
2004 season
There were 13 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Washington | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Detroit | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Sacramento | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Minnesota | 0 | ||||||||||||
2003 season
There were 14 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Cleveland | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Connecticut | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Charlotte | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Detroit | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Minnesota | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Sacramento | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
2002 season
There were 16 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Indiana | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Washington | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Charlotte | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Washington | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Seattle | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Utah | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Utah | 2 | ||||||||||||
2001 season
There were 16 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Cleveland | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Charlotte | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Charlotte | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Miami | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Charlotte | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Houston | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Sacramento | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Utah | 0 | ||||||||||||
2000 season
There were 16 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to four.
| Conference Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Washington | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Cleveland | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Orlando | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Phoenix | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Sacramento | 0 | ||||||||||||
1999 season
There were 12 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the three teams with the best record in each conference were seeded one to three. The top seeded team in each conference got a bye for the first round.
| Conference Semi-Finals Single Game | Conference Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Charlotte | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Detroit | 54 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Charlotte | 60 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Houston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Los Angeles | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Los Angeles | 71 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Sacramento | 58 | ||||||||||||
1998 season
There were 10 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in the league were seeded one to four. Houston was switched to the Western Conference in 1998 so two Western Conference teams matched up in the WNBA Finals.
| Playoff Semi-Finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||
| W1 | Houston | 2 | |||||||
| E2 | Charlotte | 0 | |||||||
| W1 | Houston | 2 | |||||||
| W2 | Phoenix | 1 | |||||||
| W2 | Phoenix | 2 | |||||||
| E1 | Cleveland | 1 | |||||||
1997 season
This was the first year of existence for the WNBA. There were only 8 teams in the league. For the playoffs, the four teams with the best record in the league were seeded one to four. Houston was in the Eastern Conference in 1997 so two Eastern Conference teams matched up in the WNBA Championship.
| Playoff Semi-Finals Single Game | WNBA Championship Single Game | ||||||||
| E1 | Houston | 70 | |||||||
| E4 | Charlotte | 54 | |||||||
| E1 | Houston | 65 | |||||||
| E2 | New York | 51 | |||||||
| W3 | Phoenix | 41 | |||||||
| E2 | New York | 59 | |||||||
See also
References
- ^ 1.0 1.1 "WNBA Approves New Playoff Format" (Press release). WNBA. November 18, 2021. Retrieved November 19, 2021.