Take a deep breath. After a fast and furious August featuring last-second game-winners, record-breaking performances and a little too much spiciness on and off the court, the WNBA will press pause for the next 16 days for the FIBA World Cup.With four games remaining for each team during the regular season, let’s take a look at where we stand.Playoff field is setThere hasn’t been much intrigue for weeks as to which teams will advance to the postseason, and the Dallas Wings ended any drama by clinching the final playoff spot last week. Although the Phoenix Mercury, Chicago Sky, Los Angeles Sparks and — to some extent — the expansion Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo harbored postseason hopes entering the 2026 season, the eight playoff teams this year will be the Atlanta Dream, Wings, Golden State Valkyries, Indiana Fever, Las Vegas Aces, Minnesota Lynx, New York Liberty and Washington Mystics. First round 1 Lynx 93% Valkyries 7% vs. 8 Mystics 39% Liberty 35% Wings 21%4 Dream 36% Fever 35% Aces 19% vs. 5 Dream 40% Fever 25% Wings 12%3 Aces 70% Fever 20% Dream 5% vs. 6 Wings 39% Mystics 20% Liberty 17%2 Valkyries 88% Lynx 7% Aces 4% vs. 7 Liberty 33% Mystics 28% Wings 26% Semifinals Winner of 1 vs. 8 vs. Winner of 4 vs. 5 Winner of 3 vs. 6 vs. Winner of 2 vs. 7 Final Winner of Semifinal 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal 2 First round 1 Lynx 93% Valkyries 7% vs. 8 Mystics 39% Liberty 35% Wings 21%4 Dream 36% Fever 35% Aces 19% vs. 5 Dream 40% Fever 25% Wings 12% Semifinal Winner of 1 vs. 8 vs. Winner of 4 vs. 5 Semifinal Winner of 2 vs. 7 vs. Winner of 3 vs. 6 Final Winner of Semifinal 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal 2 First round 2 Valkyries 88% Lynx 7% Aces 4% vs. 7 Liberty 33% Mystics 28% Wings 26%3 Aces 70% Fever 20% Dream 5% vs. 6 Wings 39% Mystics 20% Liberty 17% Those team names were listed in alphabetical order with the seeding order still dramatically in flux. As indicated in The Athletic’s playoff projection bracket, the top three seeds are relatively certain: The Lynx are the odds-on favorite (94 percent likelihood) to secure the No. 1 seed, the Valkyries are in position to be the No. 2 seed, and the Aces are right behind them. Beyond that, no team has more than a 40 percent chance of landing at any particular slot. In fact, one of the most curious findings in the projection bracket is that the Dream are the most likely team to finish fourth and fifth, but they obviously can’t play each other in the first round of the postseason.With so much at stake in the final four games of the season, every game between playoff teams takes on greater importance. Golden State, Las Vegas and Dallas are free and clear of any more postseason previews, but here are the six remaining:Friday, Sept. 18: New York at MinnesotaSunday, Sept. 20: Washington at IndianaMonday, Sept. 21: Atlanta at New YorkTuesday, Sept. 22: Minnesota at IndianaWednesday, Sept. 23: Atlanta at New YorkThursday, Sept. 24: Indiana at MinnesotaThe Lynx need to win at least one of those games (assuming they also beat the Connecticut Sun) to secure the No. 1 seed and homecourt advantage through the playoffs. Three wins could get New York into the top four and a first-round Game 1 at Barclays Center, and Atlanta probably needs to split with the Liberty to stay in the 4-5 matchup.Several tiebreakers remain in flux. Indiana’s tiebreakers against New York, Washington and the Dream all have yet to be decided, so there will be no rest before the playoffs tip off.Who is the championship favorite?The Lynx have been the top seed for most of the season but head into the break losers of two in a row with Olivia Miles nicked up yet again. She also just had only the second zero assist game of her career, the first coming in a 32-point blowout over Toronto that was a little less consequential.