3 hot takes from the first 3 days of the 2025 WNBA season

The 29th WNBA season began this weekend, which led to a list full of exciting games. While the initial victories and losses of the thesis are nothing exaggerated to react exaggeratedly, especially now that the W has expanded to a 44 -game season, there are still some conclusions to be.

We are going to immerse ourselves in three of the hottest after the opening weekend:

Paige Bueckers has a serious rotia competition

Michael Clubb / south bles

Paige Bueckers entered his rookie season of the WNBA as a newly coined NCAA champion and general selection number 1 in the Draft. While heading to Dallas to begin his season with the wings, the speculation of the rookie of the year was already at a peak.

On paper, it seems that Bueckers has (and will continue to have) a solid case: it is an incredible mind of shooters, passers -by and basketball in a team where it has an immediate impact. She was the best talent in the draft, given her unanimous projection as not. 1 Prospect before being selected. But is it a rookie lock of the year? Maybe, but some of the other newbies demonstrated this weekend that it may not be a trimmed vote at the end of the season.

All eyes were in Washington this weekend when the Mystics were 2-0 in their first two games. Widely projected as one of the Liga Lottery teams this season, it was surprising for some who could win not one, but their two games to open the season. The first was against Atlanta, when they obtained the best of the new look in a tight game. Then, they were able to beat the Connecticut sun in their most likely victory of the weekend. What stood out in both games, he thought, was the play of the rookies of the mystics.

Washington wrote Sonia Citron No. 3, Kiki Iriafen No. 4 and Georgia Amore No. 6 in the first round of the Draft last month. Unfortunately, Amoore suffered an ACL injury just a few days after the training camp and the players game this season, but Citron and Iriafen are already having an impact. In his game against the dream, Citron scored 19 points and grabbed 2 rebounds to go with 2 assists while only coughing 1 rotation. She shot 2-2 from distance and 6-7 (85.7%) from the field. She followed that in Sunday’s game with a 15 -point performance, adding 3 assists, 2 robberies, 1 rebound and 1 block.

While Iriafen only scored 4 points in his WNBA debut against Atlanta, he left the game (as is common among the first -flat players who adapt to the WNBA offeniation), he followed him with a great game against the Sun. On Sunday, Iriafen had 17 points 14, rebounds and 1 block while shooting 70% from the field. And with the amount of thorough theses, Mystics’s rookies can play this season, given the state of the Washington list, any of the players could a serious place in the Roty conversation.

Now, it is not that buyers did not have a good debut. She scored 10 points along with adding 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 block against Minnesota on Friday. She alone shot 3-10 from the field, but it is difficult to judge hard in the first game. You still have to play a second game like The Mystics, but the makeup of the Wings team is also a bit different. With luck, his new coach Chris Koclanes is simply testing things for now, but ultimately, the offensive should be running more through Bueckers, Arike Ogunbowale and Maddy Sieghrist instead of how things went against the Mintata.

It is early, but guessing that Citron, Iriafen and Bueckers will be in the Roty conversation this season does not seem an exaggeration.

Naphesa Collier could win MVP

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Another race that could be adjusted this season is that of the MVP award. Last season, A’ja Wilson fled it in June or July, but in a year in which he was not playing legendary historical rings of the league, the necklace would have the leg with her. Now, Wilson could certainly continue playing at the same level he played last year when he averaged a league record 26.9 points per game. However, Naphesa Collier could also rise to that level and give Wilson a competition for the best WNBA player.

In Minnesota’s first game against Dallas, Collier scored 34 points in 10-18 shots from the field, and added 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Minnesota won that 99-84 game in a quite dominant way. In his second game against La, Collier scored 23 points in 12-21 shots with 6 rebounds, 1 assistance, 2 robberies and 1 block, helping Lynx to win 89-75 on the sparks. Las Vegas has only had one game so far this season, but Wilson scored 31 points in 11-22 shots, along with 16 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 robberies and 1 block. However, the Aces lost that game against New York, 92-78.

If Collier and Wilson are so close when it is time to vote for MVP, the records of their teams can come into play. Voters tend to resort to victories and losses as unpaid by deciding who to vote for, which could give Collier an advantage if she and Lynx continue their career of the revenge season.

New York freedom is somehow better than last season

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Speaking of the freedom of New York surpassing the Aces … freedom looks good. As, maybe even better than last season, well. In 2024, La Libertad spent most of the season at the top of the League classification, reached the final of the Copa del Commissioner and, of course, won the WNBA championship. In the low season, they changed for Natasha Cloud and brought Marine Johannes back after the 2024 season was lost (among someone’s movements).

Unfortunately, a part of its central season is being lost to freedom, since Betnijah Laney-Hamilton is out of an injury, but they still build an incredible and strong team ready to defend their trophy.

Cloud seems to be a large part of this impulse for consecutive rings, and provides a ton of energy to freedom on and off the court. We know that players tend to play a little more freely when they are in an environment they are enjoying, and go, he is enjoying the cloud in Brooklyn. Fans also love her and were extremely noisy for her in her debut with freedom. She scored 22 points to go with 6 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 robberies and 2 blockages in Liberty’s victory over the Aces.

Breanna Stewart seems to be in a good way after she underwent at a range of her knee in March, and it is good to see her to play without pain. Stewart scored 25 points in 10-14 shots from the field and grabbed 8 rebounds to go with his 3 assists in Saturday’s victory.

The excessive conclusion of Saturday’s statement against the Aces is that Liberty’s appearance rejuvenated. The energy was high in the team, and was demonstrated. His defense was also excellent, and his approach seemed to be something in the “good line, we may not be able to stop a 30 -piece Wilson, so we stop everyone else.” It worked quite well, given the next higher scorer after Wilson was Jackie Young with 16 years, and the only other double figures were Chelsea Gray with 12 and Dana Evans from the bank with 10.

If this is how freedom is playing against a team like the ACES, they can be on their way to govern the WNBA again this season.