WNBA Power Rankings: Lynx the new No. 1, Valkyries...

It was a busy weekend for Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve: She was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee, on Saturday night and then got her 379th career victory as a WNBA head coach Sunday afternoon in Dallas. As much as Reeve would have wanted her Lynx to be in Tuesday's Commissioner's Cup championship game, it might not be such a bad thing that she can get a little rest. While New York and Las Vegas meet for the Cup on Tuesday in New York, the Lynx are atop the league standings and the ESPN Power Rankings and don't play again until Friday. The Lynx are No. 1 in the rankings for the second time this season, having been at the top for the first two weeks of June. Another team making a big move is Golden State, now up to No. 3. It's the first time the Valkyries have been in the top three since May 12, the first Power Rankings of the season, when they were No. 2. The past week had its share of huge headlines, including a record-tying 53-point game from Toronto's Marina Mabrey, the second four-overtime game in WNBA history as Washington outlasted Portland and a second game that got heated between Indiana and Phoenix. But the Lynx quietly continue to be the steadiest team in the WNBA this season, even while awaiting the return of star forward Napheesa Collier. Reeve, meanwhile, is now tied with former WNBA coach Mike Thibault for most regular-season victories in league history, and she could take over that record Friday at New York. 1. Minnesota Lynx (15-4) Previous ranking: 3 Next seven days: @ NY (July 3), vs. CON (July 6) Natasha Howard has been one of the most important pickups any team made in the offseason. The veteran forward, who will be 35 in September, is having perhaps her best season, averaging 17.7 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists while shooting 61.1%. Understandably, her stats might drop when Napheesa Collier returns, but Howard has been instrumental in getting the Lynx to where they are now. She had a combined 42 points and 29 rebounds in their wins last week: 78-76 at Washington on Wednesday and 85-77 at Dallas on Sunday. 2. Las Vegas Aces (14-5) Previous ranking: 2 Next seven days: @ NY (June 30), vs. CHI (July 3), vs. IND (July 5) The Aces lost to New York 87-76 last Tuesday, with A'ja Wilson held to a season-low 16 points. In vintage Wilson style, though, she came back with a combined 62 points in victories against Dallas (99-84) on Thursday and at Chicago (107-99) on Sunday. If she can play Tuesday -- she is listed as questionable after rolling her ankle Sunday -- she will get another shot at the Liberty in the Commissioner's Cup final. Wilson leads the WNBA in scoring (25.7 points per game) and blocks (2.0). 3. Golden State Valkyries (13-7) Previous ranking: 5 Next seven days: @ ATL (July 4), @ WAS (July 6) Five of the Valkyries' losses this season have come to the top two teams in the standings: Minnesota and Las Vegas. That tells you how well they are playing against the rest of the league. Golden State went 3-0 this past week, beating Atlanta twice -- 77-66 on Wednesday, 78-75 on Friday -- and New York 76-67 on Sunday. Few WNBA teams can win three consecutive games while scoring in the 70s, but the Valkyries can because their defense is so good. Forward Gabby Williams led the way against the Dream with a combined 39 points in the two wins, while the Valkyries' bench provided 39 points against the Liberty. 4. Dallas Wings (11-8) Previous ranking: 4 Next seven days: @ CON (July 2), @ TOR (July 5) It was a down week for the Wings, who went 0-2. But they stay at fourth in the Power Rankings because those losses were to Las Vegas (99-84 on Thursday) and Minnesota (85-77 on Sunday). The defeats weren't a big surprise considering how good the Aces and Lynx are but also because Dallas looked a bit shaky the week before in close wins against Chicago and Seattle. Guard Paige Bueckers had 25 points against both Las Vegas and Minnesota, while forward Jessica Shepard had a combined 30 rebounds. Now the Wings look to get back on track with a four-game road trip. 5. Atlanta Dream (12-7) Previous ranking: 1 Next seven days: @ WAS (July 2), vs. GS (July 4) No team has displayed the ups and downs of WNBA play more than the Dream have over the past two weeks. They elevated to No. 1 in the Power Rankings on June 23 after a 3-0 week. Now after a 0-3 week, they drop to No. 5. Two of the losses were at Golden State, which can really be tough on opposing offenses -- Atlanta lost 77-66 on Wednesday, then 78-75 on Friday, with star guard Rhyne Howard limited to a combined 21 points on 7-of-27 shooting. Howard had a much better game Saturday at Seattle, with 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting, but the Dream still lost 105-90. They will try to get back on track with a four-game homestand that follows Thursday's game at Washington. 6. New York Liberty (12-8) Previous ranking: 6 Next seven days: vs. LV (June 30), vs. MIN (July 3) Like Atlanta, New York is another good team that has struggled with consistency. The Liberty retain the No. 6 spot week over week because no lower-ranked team made a challenge to move up, but they went 1-2 over this past week and have lost four of their past five. Their lone victory came at Las Vegas (87-76) last Tuesday, with five players scoring in double figures and Sabrina Ionescu recording her first double-double of the season. But they followed that up with losses at Seattle (99-88) on Thursday and Golden State (76-67) on Sunday. Center Jonquel Jones had a combined 47 points and 15 rebounds in those two games. The Liberty will need a better overall team effort if they hope to win the Commissioner's Cup on Tuesday. 7. Indiana Fever (11-8) Previous ranking: 8 Next seven days: @ LV (July 5) After the Fever's tense win over Phoenix last Monday -- six technical fouls, one ejection -- the pot was still boiling when the teams met again in Indianapolis two days later. This time, Caitlin Clark exited in the third quarter because of back issues and the Fever lost 111-109. Phoenix's Alyssa Thomas was later accessed a flagrant foul 2 on Clark, which would have sent Thomas out of the game in the second quarter had it been called live. Instead, she was given a one-game suspension. Clark sat out Saturday's 111-87 win over Los Angeles; she has time to rest and recover before Indiana's next game Sunday. Kelsey Mitchell led the way in scoring this past week with a combined 56 points in the two games. 8. Washington Mystics (9-9) Previous ranking: 7 Next seven days: vs. ATL (July 2), vs. GS (July 6) The Mystics almost followed a 3-0 week with an 0-3 week. They had the upper hand against Minnesota on Wednesday before being outscored 28-18 in the fourth quarter and losing 78-76. Then came a 68-57 loss at Connecticut on Friday. And back home on Sunday, they dug deep to prevail in a 124-123 four-overtime thriller against Portland. Sonia Citron had 32 points, while forwards Michaela Onyenwere and Kiki Iriafen had 30 and 27, respectively. It's worth noting that the first four-OT game in WNBA history also included the Mystics, who beat Seattle 72-69 in 2001. Quite a difference in the offensive output in those two marathons, 25 years apart. 9. Phoenix Mercury (7-13) Previous ranking: 12 Next seven days: vs. SEA (July 2) The Mercury went 2-0 in the past week, winning 111-109 at Indiana on Wednesday then 89-80 at Toronto on Saturday, when Thomas served her suspension for the flagrant 2 she was assessed by the league after Wednesday's game vs. Indiana. Kahleah Copper had a combined 55 points in the two contests. The Mercury have some personnel issues, though, as rookie guard Jovana Nogic will miss the rest of the season for personal reasons and center Natasha Mack is out at least 2-4 weeks because of a bone bruise in her left foot. 10. Toronto Tempo (9-10) Previous ranking: 10 Next seven days: vs. DAL (July 5) Marina Mabrey tied Aces star A'ja Wilson and former WNBA player Liz Cambage with a 53-point output in Thursday's 125-97 win over Los Angeles -- including nine 3-pointers, tied for the league record -- but then missed Saturday's 89-80 loss to Phoenix (rest). Tima Pouye, a rookie from France, had her first double-digit scoring game with 13 points against the Mercury. 11. Los Angeles Sparks (8-10) Previous ranking: 9 Next seven days: vs. SEA (July 6) The Sparks got bad news Wednesday: Kelsey Plum will be out at least four weeks because of a lower leg injury. She has averaged 23.9 points and 6.4 assists in 12 games as one of the WNBA's best players this season. With Plum out, the Sparks lost to Mabrey and the Tempo 125-97 on Thursday, then fell 111-87 at the Fever on Saturday. With forward Cameron Brink (ankle) also out for likely the next two weeks, the Sparks have gaps to fill. 12. Chicago Sky (6-13) Previous ranking: 13 Next seven days: @ LV (July 3) After six consecutive losses, the Sky got a lift last week with consecutive wins over visiting Portland -- 101-78 on Wednesday and 124-94 on Friday -- in a big turnaround from their lifeless 92-63 loss at Connecticut on June 22. They ended this past week with a 107-99 loss to Las Vegas on Sunday but saw some real positives over the past few days. Center Kamilla Cardoso had a great week with 67 points on 29-of-35 (82.9%) shooting and 24 rebounds. 13. Seattle Storm (5-15) Previous ranking: 15 Next seven days: @ PHO (July 2), vs. POR (July 4), @ LA (July 6) There was no reason to think the Storm's 11-loss streak would end against New York and Atlanta, but it has been that type of unpredictable season: They beat the Liberty 99-88 on Thursday, then the Dream 105-90 on Saturday. Flau'jae Johnson had the best two games of her rookie season with 28 points, nine rebounds, two assists and three steals against New York followed by 24 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals against Atlanta. Center Dominique Malonga added a combined 36 points and 21 rebounds in the two wins. 14. Connecticut Sun (4-15) Previous ranking: 13 Next seven days: vs. DAL (July 2), @ MIN (July 6) The Storm weren't the only team that snapped a losing streak with consecutive wins this past week. The Sun had lost seven straight games before a 92-63 blowout of Chicago on June 22; they followed that up with a 68-57 win over Washington on Friday. Olivia Nelson-Ododa led the way against the Mystics with 12 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three blocks. 15. Portland Fire (8-12) Previous ranking: 11 Next seven days: @ SEA (July 4) The Fire are not last in the WNBA standings -- Phoenix, Chicago, Seattle and Connecticut are behind them -- but they drop to the last spot in these Power Rankings after going 0-3 in the past week and giving up 124 points twice. One of those was in the four-overtime 124-123 loss to the Mystics on Sunday. The other losses were to Chicago: 101-78 on Wednesday and 124-94 on Friday. The Fire are next to last in defensive rating (115.6), ahead of only Los Angeles (115.9). To boot: They play nine of their next 11 games on the road.