Experts pick Liberty, Aces to advance in WNBA semis — SkimNews
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- The 2026 WNBA semifinals open Sunday with a doubleheader: No. 8 New York Liberty at No. 4 Atlanta Dream (2 p.m. ET, ABC) and No. 3 Las Vegas Aces at No. 2 Golden State Valkyries (4 p.m. ET, ABC).
- The New York Liberty reached the semifinals as the lowest seed remaining after a major first-round upset of the Minnesota Lynx.
- Both experts pick the Liberty over the Dream — Gibbs in 5 games, Maloney in 4 — citing Breanna Stewart's championship experience and Atlanta's 33.7% jumper shooting, the worst mark among playoff teams.
- Both experts also pick the Aces over the Valkyries in 4 games; the Aces swept the regular-season series 3-0, though all three games came in May and June before NaLyssa Smith's season-ending absence.
- A'ja Wilson averaged 32 points, 11.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 2 blocks per game in Las Vegas's first-round win over the Fever, shooting 64.6% from the field and 66.7% from three.
- The best-of-five schedule runs Game 2 on Wednesday, Game 3 on Friday, Game 4 if needed on Oct. 11, and Game 5 if needed on Oct. 14.
Why it matters: With both series unanimously picked to go 4-5 games, a fifth Aces Finals appearance in seven years looms if the chalk holds. Each underdog needs a specific X-factor to flip: New York's Leonie Fiebich had one point across two losses to Atlanta and must hit threes, while Golden State's thin frontcourt has no answer for Wilson.
Ask SkimNews
