The WNBA’s eight playoff teams have been pretty clear for the last several weeks. That appears to have activated the tank signal for teams on the other end of the standings.
With less than 10 games remaining for each WNBA team as of Friday, the gap between the Dallas Wings (21–16) and the Portland Fire (15–20) for the final playoff spot is five games.
The Toronto Tempo, once a threat to make the playoffs, have lost 12 consecutive games, with their last win coming against the New York Liberty on July 12—which was 40 days ago. The expansion franchise has been hammered by injuries all season; notably, max player Brittney Sykes and rookie Kiki Rice have missed a combined 34 games.
While both players have returned in recent weeks, on Wednesday against the Mystics, Sykes was ruled out for “left foot load management.” Marina Mabrey, the team’s other max player, also missed that game with a right hamstring injury, and she’s already been ruled out of Friday’s game as well.
Toronto currently has the second-best odds to win the 2027 WNBA draft lottery, and has a few more losses from jumping past the Connecticut Sun for the best odds.
