WNBAnything Rankings 2024: Far Too Early Sixth Player of the Year Candidates
Introducing a new column where we rank anything and everything from around the world of the WNBA, starting off with Sixth Player of the Year possibilities
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I kind of hate power rankings. I certainly understand the reasoning behind them and their existence, but I typically feel like we have the standings and the results of the games to say the same things that are shoved into a separate made-up list. However, arbitrarily making up lists of stuff and putting them in mildly controversial orders? Fun as hell. So I'm introducing a new concept where we have regular power rankings, but of different WNBA-related elements in any given week. It could occasionally be something normal like Best Team Defense or MVP Candidates, but some weeks it's going to be Nicest Uniforms or Scariest Mascot. It'll usually be a list of 12, because that's how many teams we have (for now) so it seems to make sense, but I may not stick to that. I do promise that only if I get truly, utterly stuck for ideas will it be a list of teams from best to worst.
When the feeling strikes me, or something particularly noteworthy happens, I will still be adding bonus notes after the rankings that may well be entirely unrelated to that week's topic. So anyone who thinks they've seen the end of me explaining some tiny WNBA rule that only four people on Earth care about, or complaining about error-strewn graphics from WNBA TV broadcasts, can rest assured that they'll probably still crop up along the way.
Kicking things off, we're going with a wildly too early ranking of Sixth Player of the Year candidates. Obviously it's absurd to do this nine days into a 101-day regular season, but a relative level of absurdity is going to have to be accepted for this column. Feel free to argue with me in the comments section below, or on X (formerly Twitter) at RichardCohen1. Or just shout out the window and take a chance that I hear you. Stranger things have happened.
Young Pretenders - but will they stay eligible?
12. Jordan Horston
11. Aaliyah Edwards
10. Rickea Jackson
So all three of these youngsters have had promising moments in their opening games. Horston looks much more confident and mobile than last year now that she's healthy and has a year of pro experience under her belt. Edwards has been strong off the bench for Washington, quickly acclimating to the pro level as UConn prospects tend to do. Jackson has made shots for Los Angeles, and especially unusual for a rookie has looked fairly at ease playing both the 3 and the 4.
However, they're this low on the list because for Sixth Player of the Year you need to play more games off the bench than as a starter - and I'm not entirely convinced that any of these three will stay eligible. Horston is currently behind veteran pickup Victoria Vivians, who Indiana decided they'd rather pay $90,000 to not play for them this year, instead of $137,000 to stick around. Vivians has been bad in Seattle's opening games, with Horston already playing more minutes, and it may just be a matter of time until there's a lineup change. Edwards has already started one game when Shakira Austin sat out for scheduled rest, and Stef Dolson rarely survives a season without injury. We've already seen a shift in LA where Lexie Brown has slid over to play some point guard, which opens up minutes on the wing for Jackson even when Cameron Brink and Dearica Hamby are filling the post spots. She may be the least likely of these three to end up starting (Curt Miller may well stick with the veteran leadership of Layshia Clarendon to open games, and Azurá Stevens returning from injury would add another potential starter as well), but she's already finishing games. Especially with a franchise that's essentially rebuilding, they may well begin throwing the youngster in from the start.
Currently ineligible but give it time
9. Monique Billings
8. Elizabeth Williams/Kamilla Cardoso
Okay, these require a little bit of a leap of faith, but stick with me here. Billings was out of the league on opening day after the Sparks somewhat surprisingly cut her, but quickly back in after more injuries in Dallas left them searching for help. It took her all of half a game to push into their starting group, before actually starting her second game with the Wings despite being on a hardship contract that they'll have to end when Natasha Howard returns. But Billings is exactly the kind of effort and energy-injection player that everyone loves off a bench, and either Dallas will find a way to re-sign her properly (at which point she'd come off the bench behind Howard, making her eligible for this award) or someone else will be immediately interested.
Chicago have started the season with Angel Reese and veteran stalwart Williams in their post spots, while rookie Cardoso recovers from a shoulder injury. She announced a couple of days ago that she's expecting to return on June 1, just in time for their first Commissioner's Cup game (and first ESPN game) of the season. Unless they're going to shift Reese to the 3 (in which case Diamond DeShields would come into this conversation), one of the bigs is going to have to come off the bench. Either an All-Defensive team post from last season who's currently averaging nearly a double-double, or the No. 3 overall pick from South Carolina with the potential to be a dominant finisher inside. One of them should at least make themselves known for this trophy.
Traditional Contenders
7. Bridget Carleton
6. Chennedy Carter
5. Temi Fagbenle
4. Kayla Thornton
3. Sophie Cunningham
Even if I am writing this column after a ludicrous nine days of games, we still had to include some candidates who've already shown they might fit into the usual criteria for the award. Barring injuries, Carleton isn't likely to start in Minnesota (unless they feel a different role could ignite Diamond Miller's performances). But she is already playing her usual important role as a hustle wing for the Lynx and getting heavy minutes despite not hitting many shots. The shooting will likely even out to her usual standards, and everything else will still be there.
Unless Marina Mabrey gets hurt, Carter is unlikely to become a starter in Chicago this year, but we all know she can score. As long as she avoids the sort of incidents that briefly pushed her out of the league entirely, her point production and exciting style could make her appeal to voters for this award. Fagbenle has been a bright spark for Indiana, and there's similarly no way she's going to become a starter unless Aliyah Boston or NaLyssa Smith gets hurt. Her smooth finishing and athletic style of play make her jump out, and she'll force her way into minutes even with those two potential superstars in front of her.
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Thornton is exactly the kind of do-everything role player you expect to see as a candidate for this award, although in most of her seasons in Dallas she started too many games to be eligible. Now in New York, she's a deluxe reserve who'll fill in wherever they need her. The problem is that with more bench players in New York this year that Sandy Brondello appears willing to play, the likes of Nyara Sabally, Kennedy Burke and Leonie Fiebich may take some of her minutes and counting stats away (or even become candidates here themselves).
Meanwhile, Cunningham is maybe the most glaring candidate for this award, based on performance and utilisation so far. The Mercury are playing at a fast pace and firing a bucket-load of threes from four-out lineups, which helps her potential scoring numbers. She's still coming off the bench despite an injury to Brittney Griner forcing unusual lineups, including some where she's practically playing center. And she's on a team where Diana Taurasi will probably miss a bunch of games here and there to open up lots of extra shots on several nights. If I was restricting myself to people who are actually currently eligible, she might well be top of the pile. However...
Flying in Late
2. Dorka Juhász
Yes, slightly left-field I accept, but once again I ask you to follow my train of thought. The Lynx have started well without Juhász, who was finishing her season in Italy. That improves her chances for this award, because barring injury or a significant swing in performance, they'll likely stick with the Napheesa Collier/Alanna Smith post tandem. But Juhász was very solid for Minnesota in her rookie year, and there should be plenty of minutes available behind those two when they rest or Collier slides to the 3. We've already seen how much fun Smith is having at the 5 for the Lynx this year with all the spacing surrounding her, and Juhász can do a lot of similar things when given the opportunity.
Plus none of the voters remember what happened in the opening couple of weeks of the season once it comes time to fill in their ballots. Missing a few games now is the best time to be out if you still want to win awards.
Waiting for Gawd-ot
1. Alysha Clark
Yes, I'm putting someone who's started four out of four games for her team at No. 1 in these rankings. Yes, I'm aware of how absurd that may seem. I told you there'd be some absurdity you'd have to live with in these columns. The only reason Clark is starting for Las Vegas is that Chelsea Gray is still out with her 'lower leg injury'. In theory, Clark could continue to start even with Gray back, but history suggests that A'ja Wilson would rather have another true big next to her at center to begin games rather than open with Clark in small lineups.
The timetable for Gray returning to the court remains murky, and it doesn't appear imminent. However, my expectation is that Gray will want to make the Team USA squad for the Paris Olympics, and that USA Basketball would probably like her to prove her fitness before naming her on the roster. Las Vegas only play 24 games before the Olympic break, so it seems reasonable to expect Gray to do everything she can to be back for at least four. Then Clark gets to go back to the bench with all those extra minutes and counting stats from the games Gray missed, but remains eligible for this award.
Also, people frequently win this trophy multiple times (DeWanna Bonner, Allie Quigley and Dearica Hamby all have, and several others have come close). Gain a reputation as a 'supersub' and you become an easy choice. Plus Clark is still just a damn good basketball player, even at 36 years old, on a team that's going to win a lot of games. It also creates a nice little bookend for the first edition of this column, considering I often finished WNBA Dissected with Clark's Corner, named in her honour.
I'm not going to repeat many of these ranking topics, but maybe we'll come back to this one later in the year to see how wildly inaccurate some of the positions and arguments turned out to be. You can't hold it against me too much if rankings based on nine days of games turn out to be slightly off-base.
Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter. If you like our work, be sure to check out our stats site, our podcast, and our social media accounts on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.