From almost every measure, last year's WNBA season was a huge success.

Attendance rate increases. Ratings have improved. This is not because of the rookie phenomenon Caitlin Clark is the average WNBA final of New York Liberty and Minnesota Lynx, Minnesota, with an average of more than one million viewers, and the exciting Game 5 finale drew 3.3 million at its peak. That's not just an NBA game.

Now, staying successful is the league.

The regular season has been accompanied by a lot of big showdown tips this weekend, including the first regular season for hype rookie Paige Bueckers, a potential playoff preview between Freedom and Las Vegas ACES and a Saturday afternoon showdown between Clarke’s Indiana fever and Chicago Sky on network TV’s Chicago Sky.

Here is a preview:

Is the fever done enough to cash in on Caitlin Clark?

Caitlin Clark's first season with a fever was a feeling. Rookies ended the season with fifth-ranked points and the most assists in the league - and She ranks in the top 20 in almost every other major statistics category: rebounds, steals, and even blocks. It's easy to award her Rookie of the Year.

Relatedly, Clark ranked second in the WNBA total number, behind Dallas’s Arike Ogunbowale (which also has to be relieved this summer to get some help in the form of Paige Bueckers). This also led Clark to lead the league like he made 5.6 turnovers per game. Plus, fever is one of the worst defenses in the league.

The team takes the offseason seriously. The fever fired their head coach and brought veteran Stephanie White, who made the fever to the WNBA finals in 2015. They signed Clark with six-time All-Star Dewanna Bonner, who averaged 15 points per game with Connecticut Sun last season and worked with previous defensive weaknesses with previous year’s defensive players to natathasha’s former defensive players.

Very hopeful! Fever currently has the third best odds to win the championship. This may be optimistic, but they should be stronger than last year. (By the way, an exciting time to be an Indiana basketball fan, the Pacers are back in the Eastern Conference Finals.)

How much can Paige Bueckers help Dallas?

During her college career at UConn, the Bueckers have lost just 13 games in four seasons. Meanwhile, her new WNBA team, Dallas Wings, has lost a lot of games every season since moving to Texas in 2016.

The most popular rookie of 2025 is asking the Bueckers that are coming to Dallas this season - after all, it's a team that has won only one playoff series in the last 15 years. She admits that learning to endure losses will be a adjustment.

"I've realized that I'm very lucky and lucky in high school and college, in great circumstances," she told reporters. "It's different in W. You can't see the team unbeaten."

Last season, the Wings were terrible 9-31. But with the pain, the prize received one: of course, she was selected as the highest overall draft pick after being selected as the NCAA title just a week after last month’s WNBA draft.

Bueckers are expected to be the first day starter, and she is already the leader in rookie of the year. She scored 10 points in her season preseason against Las Vegas Ace (although ACES smoked 37 points).

This is a good start, although it takes some time to adapt to the WNBA's physical growth. Give her a month of adjustments to see how she performed before the end of June – Wings can only start last year, and the Bueckers’ Roty Level sports are a great start for her career in Dallas.

Can A'ja Wilson be the first player to win a MVP four times?

Speaking of ACE: A'ja Wilson is still the best player in the league. She has won the MVP in three of the past five seasons and this year she will be the leader again until someone else can prove it. (Pagination Napheesa Collier: Is this your year?)

Last year, Wilson became the fourth player to appoint an MVP for the third time in league history, joining Sheryl Swoopes, Lisa Leslie and Lauren Jackson. Of course, these players are legends, but their achievements are in another era of women's basketball. Wilson's dominance in modern games, especially last season, her unanimous MVP vote was excellent (she was only 28).

In this week's surveyThe WNBA general manager said Collier, who won second place in the voting last season, is most likely to be the MVP of this year. Wilson ranked second and Clark ranked third. The gambling market prefers Clark.

For the Trumps, leveraging Wilson's performance is a bigger prospect. The last season was a bit disappointing after Aces won all the games in 22 and 23 years. Three games are always tough as the league around them keeps improving. Now, show in Las Vegas that they also make themselves better.

The Golden State Warrior debut

It was a big moment for the WNBA, with Valkyrie's debut being the league's first new expansion team since 2008. Will join the league again next season (one in Toronto and one in Portland), and the WNBA is expected to add fourth place in 2028, bringing the league's first league win since 2002.

"This growth is another testament to the strength of our league and the demand we see from fans - from the city and the owners who want to be part of the WNBA's future," league commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in the draft last month.

Regardless of the sport, expansion teams usually struggle in season one. This is especially true in the WNBA, where only one of the top 10 expansion teams ended its inaugural season with a winning record.

Therefore, expecting Valkyrie to enter the playoffs and even exceeds .500 may be too ambitious. But if the team can get people in the door, if the gaming experience is enough to get fans back, then this year will be a success if people go out and wear Valkyrie gear and talk about the team.