Even with the superstar potential of the 2027 and 2028 WNBA Drafts — with JuJu Watkins, Madison Booker and Sarah Strong, among others, set to enter the league — there weren’t many WNBA franchises that embraced teardowns this offseason to put themselves in better draft position.Connecticut, Washington and Seattle are in clear youth movements, but Toronto signed several veterans who can help now, as well as a proven coach in Sandy Brondello. Chicago cycled out some draft assets in hopes of returning to the playoffs, and Los Angeles got significantly older to chase the postseason for the first time since 2020.The problem in a 15-team league is that making the playoffs is harder than it has been in more than a decade, and some teams will naturally fall into the lottery whether they planned to or not. It’s too early for any team to change its preseason goals set, but the promise of the 2027 lottery could at least make that prospect a little more palatable. If Minnesota’s depth wears thin or Golden State can’t find offensive answers or the Sparks’ veteran push goes awry, a light is at the end of the tunnel, whether their front offices or ownership groups see it that way.It’ll be interesting to see if any teams proactively make a move down the standings. Connecticut should have a healthy lead in the lottery odds after finishing with 11 wins in 2025 and sitting at the bottom of the league yet again. But second place is well within reach. The top of the WNBA is good enough that hosting one postseason game hardly seems like a good enough prize to miss out on the incoming college stars.As teams fall down the power rankings, it’s worth considering what success looks like this season.RankTeamPrevious rank1Las Vegas52Atlanta33Chicago104New York15Phoenix46Washington97Indiana78Minnesota89Golden State610Dallas211Toronto1312Seattle1113Portland1514Los Angeles1215Connecticut14Two teams trending upChicago SkyThe offseason makeover for Chicago is taking hold, at least early. This is a scrappy team that plays hard and makes quick decisions offensively, and it has yielded the best defense in the league (per Her Hoop Stats) with a 3-1 record to start the season — all of those on the road. The Sky are benefitting from a little opponent shooting luck, as teams are making below 30 percent from 3-point range against them, but mostly, Chicago is creating its own fortune.Gabriela Jaquez is arguably outperforming her draft position as a lottery pick. She’s averaging 12.5 points per game on better than 50 percent shooting from the field, capped off by 20 points in the Sky’s win over Minnesota when they were without leading scorer Rickea Jackson in the second half. Jaquez is also adding nearly six rebounds per game, as Chicago entered Sunday third in the league in team rebounds.Jacy Sheldon has been an excellent addition with her defensive pressure and downhill attacks. She had a critical takeaway against the Valkyries to close out a win, and as the Lynx were mounting a comeback in the fourth quarter Sunday, Sheldon had two steals on inbounds plays.