About 70+ games were aired on ESPN2, ABC and NBA TV. WNBA LiveAccess will offer complement - approximately 190 live games.
Regular season
The WNBA touted three exciting rookies -- Brittney Griner of the Phoenix Mercury, Elena Delle Donne of the Chicago Sky, and Skylar Diggins of the Tulsa Shock -- as "three to see" going into the 2013 season. Griner - a tall, athletic center who had been dominant in college -- was seen as such a potential game-changer that many picked the Mercury to win the WNBA championship. It was Delle Donne, however, who turned out to have the breakout season, leading the Sky to the best record in the Eastern Conference, and their first trip to the playoffs. Griner was hampered by injuries, but her Phoenix team finished third in the West, and made it to the conference finals. The Minnesota Lynx finished with the best record in the WNBA for the third consecutive season, behind the play of Seimone Augustus, Lindsay Whalen, and Maya Moore. Joining the Sky in the playoffs were the defending WNBA champion Indiana Fever, who finished fourth after surviving a rash of injuries during the season; the Atlanta Dream, led by league scoring champion Angel McCoughtry; and the Washington Mystics, who were hoping to win their first playoff game since 2004. The Los Angeles Sparks finished second in the West, behind the play of league MVP Candace Parker. They lost to Phoenix in the conference semifinals. Finally, the Seattle Storm surprised many by earning the final entry into the playoffs, allowing veteran and future hall-of-famer Tina Thompson to retire from a playoff team.
Standings
Playoffs and Finals
The opening round of the WNBA playoffs saw a rash of road team victories. Only the Minnesota Lynx and Indiana Fever went unbeaten on their home floors. The Chicago Sky, the top overall seed in the East, were swept by the Fever, while the Seattle Storm lost to the top-seeded Lynx in two games. In the Atlanta-Washington series, the road team won the first two games of the series, before Atlanta finally prevailed at home. Finally, in the matchup between the Phoenix Mercury and Los Angeles Sparks, the road teams went 3-0, with Phoenix advancing. The conference finals were over quickly. Both the Atlanta Dream and Minnesota Lynx swept their opponents, setting up a rematch of the 2011 WNBA Finals. In the Finals, the Lynx once again swept the Dream, becoming the second WNBA team to sweep through the playoffs since the best-of-five finals format was adopted.
Awards
Players of the Week
The following players were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week.
Week
Eastern Conference
Western Conference
Ref.
May 24 – Jun. 2
Jun. 3 – Jun. 9
Jun. 10 – Jun. 16
Jun. 17 – Jun. 23
Jun. 24 – Jun. 30
Jul. 1 – Jul. 7
Jul. 8 – Jul. 14
Jul. 15 – Jul. 21
Jul. 22 – Jul. 28
Jul. 29 – Aug. 4
Aug. 5 – Aug. 11
Aug. 12 – Aug. 18
Aug. 19 – Aug. 25
Players of the Month
The following players were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month.
