With less than three weeks to go until the end of the WNBA regular season, the playoffs are upon us. Some teams have already secured their spots, while others are fighting for a spot in the playoffs.

Here’s what’s happening in the competition as we enter the final stages:

Five teams secure play-off spots

There are three WNBA playoff spots left to be won, as the top eight teams qualify for the postseason. The New York Liberty (27-6) was the first team to qualify, followed by the Connecticut Sun (24-8), Minnesota Lynx (24-9), Las Vegas Aces (20-12) and Seattle Storm (19-13).

Indiana Fever (17-16) is in sixth place, followed by Phoenix Mercury (16-17) and Chicago Sky (11-22). Indiana and Phoenix have a solid lead over the rest of the WNBA teams, so their postseason spots are all but assured. This is Indiana’s first playoff appearance since 2016. Meanwhile, the Mercury will return to the postseason after missing last season and finishing last.

Chicago currently sits in last place, but only via a tiebreaker. The Sky and Atlanta Dream are both 11-21, but with the Sky holding a 2-1 lead in their head-to-head games, they would claim the title if the season ended now. Chicago has eight games left to clinch a playoff spot, but that won’t be easy. The Sky are currently on a six-game losing streak, giving Atlanta, Dallas, and Washington all a chance to reach the postseason. The Wings and Mystics sit two games behind the Sky and Dream with a 9-23 record, while the Sparks sit in last place at 7-25.

For the five teams that have already clinched a postseason spot, the rest of their schedules revolve around seeding. The Liberty hold a 2.5-game lead over the Sun for the No. 1 seed, followed closely by the Lynx for the No. 3 spot. The Aces hold a one-game lead over the Storm for the 4-seed and home-field advantage in the first round of the playoffs. Indiana holds a one-game lead over Phoenix for the 6-seed.

Aces star A’ja Wilson has been putting up eye-popping numbers all season, and she added another monster stat line on Sunday. The two-time MVP finished with 41 points and 17 rebounds as Las Vegas defeated Phoenix 97-79. Wilson leads the WNBA in points per game with 27.5, nearly five points ahead of second-place Arike Ogunbowale. Wilson is second in rebounds per game with 12 and fourth in field goal percentage, having made 52.6 percent of her 623 attempts. That’s more than double the efforts of Brittney Griner, who leads in field-goal percentage.

Wilson’s performance on Sunday was praised by several basketball greats, including Diana Taurasi and LeBron James. Taurasi said Wilson was “indefensible,” and James took to social media to post about Wilson, calling her, “Too damn good.”

Angel Reese has spent the 2024 WNBA season showing off her rebounding chops. She leads the league in offensive boards per game (5.2) and total rebounds per game (13.1), and on Sunday the rookie set the record for most rebounds in a single season.

Reese grabbed 19 rebounds in a 79-74 loss to Minnesota, passing fellow LSU great Sylvia Fowles, who had the previous record of 404 rebounds. Fowles is also the all-time WNBA rebounding leader with 4,006 — a mark she set in 408 games.

Reese previously set records for most rebounds and double-doubles for a rookie, as well as most consecutive double-doubles for a player.

Technical fouls affecting Phoenix

Natasha Cloud picked up her seventh technical foul in a loss to the Aces on Sunday, which will result in a one-game suspension for reaching the WNBA’s technical foul limit. She will serve the suspension on Tuesday when the Mercury take on the Dream.

Diana Taurasi also received her seventh technical against Las Vegas, but the league office reviewed the violation and later rescinded it. Her next technical will result in a suspension. Teammate Kahleah Copper is also one technical away from the limit.

The Mercury are currently battling the Fever for sixth place in the WNBA playoffs, and technical errors could hurt Phoenix. Cloud, Copper, and Taurasi are all starters and key parts of the Mercury’s offense. Playing without them in any game would be a disadvantage for the Mercury.

Tina Charles rises to second place on all-time scoring list

The Dream are vying for a playoff spot, and they have an all-time great leading the way. Tina Charles, who joined Atlanta as a free agent this offseason, passed Tina Thompson on Aug. 22 to move into second place on the WNBA’s all-time scoring list behind Taurasi. It’s just one more accolade for Charles, who was the No. 1 overall pick in 2010. Since then, she’s earned Rookie of the Year honors, a WNBA MVP award in 2010, nine All-WNBA First and Second Team selections and eight All-Star appearances.

Charles is averaging 14.8 points and 9.2 rebounds per game this season, and as the Dream inch closer to a potential playoff spot, her numbers have started to climb. In Atlanta’s last seven games, Charles is averaging 19.1 points and 12.4 rebounds per game.