Ranking the W 2024: The countdown begins, from 50 to 26

The first set of results for this year's #RankingTheW, detailing our expert panel's anticipated best 50 players in the WNBA for 2024

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. You can also buy Her Hoop Stats gear, such as laptop stickers, mugs, and shirts!

Haven’t subscribed to the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter yet?

---

After announcing it last week, now begins the real countdown of the first-ever Ranking the W.

We’re introducing Ranking the W to create a snapshot of the consensus expectations of WNBA player performance in 2024. We invited an international panel of over 100 writers, reporters, analysts and broadcasters from around the world of women's basketball to lend their expertise to this exercise. Thanks to all of them for their time and input.

Participants were asked to vote on player vs. player matchups with the question "Who will be the better WNBA player in 2024?", taking into account both performance and availability. Voting was anonymous among the invitees, so no one had to be worried about their hot takes being stolen or being embarrassed later in the year if a choice turns out to be wildly inaccurate.

After over 10,000 votes, the results are in. We’ll be releasing them from No. 50 to No.1 this week along with commentary on each player and their rank. Let us know your thoughts on what surprised you, who’s been overvalued and who’s been snubbed, or anything else about the project. We’ll be using the hashtag #RankingTheW on social media or you can leave comments on the articles themselves.

Last week's introductory article included some honorable mentions and players who just missed the list. Now it's time for the top 50.

#50 Lexie Brown

As we saw with some of the near-miss names last week, there's going to be an element of "prove it" to some of the players who crept onto this list near the bottom. Brown looked great at the start of last season, averaging over 12 points per game and shooting nearly 42% from 3-point range, then lost 28 games to what eventually turned out to be undiagnosed Crohn's disease. We've seen the heights Brown can reach but as mentioned before, we asked voters to take into account projected availability as well as performance. Understandably, some may not have been sure if she'll be able to jump straight back to those levels from early 2023, or if she'll manage to stay on the court for 40 games. Also, spoiler alert, but you're about to read a list with very few Los Angeles Sparks players appearing on it. Fears about team performance may have lowered expectations for any of the individual players involved.

Los Angeles Sparks guard Lexie Brown. Photo credit: Chris Poss

#49 Dorka Juhász

It might be a little bit of a surprise to see a second-year player who only averaged six points per game last season sneak onto the list. Especially as Alanna Smith, the player Minnesota gave a bunch of money to in the offseason to potentially take her starting spot, didn't quite make it. Juhász’s presence shows how impressed people were by her flashes of production last year, especially after being drafted at No. 16 in the kind of spot where players are often swiftly cast aside. Her 3-point accuracy of 27% last year may need to improve in order to earn her enough minutes to stick around on next year's top 50.

#48 Elizabeth Williams

Here we have another player who had a strong season last year - albeit on a fairly poor team - but whose playing time could change in 2024. Williams was one of the bright spots for Chicago last year, with her performances in the paint earning her second-team All-Defensive honors. However, with Kamilla Cardoso and Angel Reese both drafted by the Sky and expected to be building blocks, Williams might be expected to play more of a teaching role this year and see less time on the floor. That said, our voters have her in the top 50, but not Cardoso or Reese. It’s yet another indication that our voters largely want to see you prove yourself at the WNBA level before they believe.

#47 Natisha Hiedeman

Another member of the Minnesota Lynx - you'll be seeing a lot of them in the early stages of this list - Hiedeman makes it on despite potentially going from regular starter to backup after being traded from Connecticut. She started 71 of 76 games over the last two years with the Sun, averaging at least 25 minutes per game both years, but with Courtney Williams reportedly signed as a point guard by Minnesota she looks the likely starter. However, Hiedeman has been a productive player off the bench in the past, and her accuracy from deep will likely earn her plenty of minutes. Cheryl Reeve has cycled through a lot of options at point guard since Lindsay Whalen retired, but whoever she settles on each year does tend to be fairly productive. Hiedeman might enjoy her new surroundings whether she's starting or not.

#46 Isabelle Harrison

This came as something of a surprise, to this author at least. Harrison is certainly talented - despite an inconsistent role on often shaky teams in Dallas, she earned a significant two-year guaranteed deal in Chicago in 2023. On her night she can put up points in a hurry and is a solid complementary post. However, she missed the whole of the 2023 season due to a knee injury. Out of sight, out of mind certainly hurt other players on this list (Tina Charles, for example). Plus Harrison will have those same issues as Elizabeth Williams in Chicago, trying to earn minutes when Cardoso and Reese are seen as the future of the franchise. Regardless, our voters clearly retain strong memories of Harrison's qualities, and placed her above all three of those Sky teammates in the rankings.

#45 Kalani Brown

Talking of posts who could have a battle on their hands to earn enough playing time to prove their value, here we have another one. Brown finally established herself as a WNBA player last season after several years of trying to catch on - and did it by basically playing the Teaira McCowan role for Dallas when McCowan was unavailable. She could've moved on in the offseason to a team with a more open spot in the paint but chose to re-sign in Dallas, where McCowan is still in her way (and they'll presumably be hoping to develop Stephanie Soares this year as well). Brown showed last year that her combination of size, strength and efficiency can be effective in this league, which obviously led to our voters placing her this high on the list. She'll be competing as much with her own teammates as with her opponents in order to earn the playing time to impress again in 2024.

#44 Cameron Brink

This, believe it or not, is the highest-ranked Los Angeles Spark on the list - and she's yet to play a single minute of WNBA basketball. It shows how highly respected Brink is for her performances at Stanford that she made the list at all, when most of the rookies in a highly-rated class were left on the outside looking in (as discussed in the intro piece last week). Our voters are expecting Brink's combination of mobility, length, fluidity and range to translate pretty well to the pros, and with Nneka Ogwumike gone and Azurá Stevens hurt to start the year, she'll be given plenty of opportunities. A defensive standout in college, it'll be interesting to see if her size and timing translate quickly to similar success on that end in the pros, or if her thin frame sees her overpowered by some veteran bigs.

#43 Tiffany Mitchell

Apparently our voters expect Connecticut to have the slightly better player from the offseason's Sun/Lynx trade in 2024, with Mitchell finishing a few places higher than Natisha Hiedeman. With Rebecca Allen and Tiffany Hayes both gone from last year's Sun squad there should be plenty of minutes available for Mitchell, and she won't have to play out of position at point guard as the Lynx sometimes asked her to do last year. As with some of the other players in this range on the list, Mitchell may not be an all-star level talent, but she's reliable. She'll be where she's supposed to be, make some plays, have an occasional breakout night, and generally not let anyone down. There's value to having proven you're that kind of player over multiple seasons.

#42 Cheyenne Parker-Tyus

After making her first all-star appearance last year, Parker-Tyus is the first Atlanta Dream player on our list (but certainly not the last). Very raw when drafted back in 2015, Parker-Tyus has developed into a strong and productive post. She increased her offensive output last year without taking any kind of step back in efficiency, hence our voters believing she can produce again in 2024. In fact, considering she was an all-star in 2023, some might consider 42nd a little low. At 31 years old and with Tina Charles next to her this year also demanding post touches, maybe some of our voters are anticipating a slight step back from Parker-Tyus in terms of raw numbers. But on a Dream squad that's only added talent to last year's group, she may well prove that wrong.

#41 Alysha Clark

Back-to-back Middle Tennessee grads probably wasn't on your bingo card for this list, but here we are. Clark's qualities were only made more evident last year by playing a vital role for Las Vegas in their run to a second championship. Candace Parker's injury thrust her into a bigger role than might've been anticipated, and definitely more minutes at the 4 than initially expected. But as usual, Clark offered her regular diet of efficient offense and solid, versatile defense. Turning 37 this season, Clark may not be quite the force she once was, but she won last year's Sixth Player of the Year award by some distance and our voters aren't expecting much drop-off from that level. One of the WNBA's elite role players is understandably expected to be exactly that yet again.

#40 Diamond Miller

After an initial group of 10 largely dominated by veterans, our top 40 gets underway with a promising youngster who'll be hoping to ascend this list in future years. Miller had an exciting and intriguing rookie season that was also distinctly uneven. Flashes of her physical gifts and natural scoring ability would be followed by nights where she made little impact or was benched for veterans. 40% from the field and 31% from three are both numbers that need to improve if she's going to become the player Minnesota hoped they were drafting at No. 2 overall last year. But the talent is definitely there, and lots of players make a leap in their second season after settling into the league. If Miller can become the genuine running mate for Napheesa Collier, she'll find herself much higher than 40th next year.

#39 Brittney Sykes

The first Mystic in our top 50, and it's a player who's changed how she's been viewed over the last couple of seasons. Sykes was always an athletic and exciting player but made her name in the league largely as a defensive specialist. Then a couple of years ago when the opportunity opened up in LA, she took on a more significant offensive role and showed what she could do when the ball was in her hands more often. With Natasha Cloud and Elena Delle Donne gone in Washington, Sykes may find herself with more responsibility again this year, albeit with less space on the floor. If nothing else she'll continue to be one of the best and most impactful perimeter defenders in the game, which brings significant value regardless of her offensive role.

#38 Courtney Williams

Courtney Williams is never boring. Many of us have both loved and hated watching her over the years, often at the exact same time. She can jump out of the gym, make plays off the dribble, and is never afraid to take the big shot. She has also always taken a staggering number of long twos (infamously the least efficient shot in basketball), combining a lack of threes (despite a 38% career mark from behind the arc) with a lack of free throws to severely hurt her offensive efficiency. There have also been off-court incidents over the years which haven't helped. But last year in Chicago, when no one else wanted the job of running the offense, she indicated a potential as a lead guard that hadn't really been examined before. Now moving to Minnesota and expected to continue in that role, our voters are expecting her to succeed (relatively speaking). As always with Williams, it'll be fun - and occasionally frustrating - seeing how things work out.

#37 Teaira McCowan

Perhaps it's appropriate that McCowan falls on our list right next to Courtney Williams. Both have had peaks where they absolutely dominate games and feel almost unplayable, but both can be thoroughly frustrating when their foibles and inconsistencies hold them back from reaching those levels consistently. McCowan is huge, immovable, an exceptional rebounder, and just generally a hell of a lot for opposition teams to deal with in the paint. But she's prone to silly fouls, long passages (or even complete games) where she drifts through with minimal impact, and outbursts borne of frustration when things aren't going her way. She's this high on the list because of how good she can be when involved and focused; she's only this low because those levels don't tend to last. But she's still only 27, and focus can improve. With Satou Sabally out for a large chunk of the season Dallas may lean on McCowan more, and we'll see if she can respond to those demands night in and night out.

Teaira McCowan and Rebecca Allen. Photo credit: Chris Poss

#36 Rebecca Allen

Our first Australian on the list (not the last), Allen is another illustration of how valuable a deluxe 'role player' can be considered. After years of useful play but in inconsistent roles in New York, Allen spent 2023 in Connecticut after being traded and showcased the same talents. She hits threes (36% from outside for her WNBA career, but it feels like more) and plays solid defense, including blocking several shots each year where the shooter simply couldn't believe her arms were really that long. Now in Phoenix and surrounded by players who like to have the ball in their hands, she'll be asked to do very similar things and will likely once again quietly do her job very effectively. Our voters respect that.

#35 Marina Mabrey

Mabrey's addition in Chicago was controversial because of what the Sky gave up to get her, rather than a questioning of her talents. James Wade jumping ship and the Sky's struggles last year only made the deal look worse, especially once it became clear that Mabrey wasn't going to be the 'lead guard' that Wade seemed to think he'd signed. But if you look at the numbers, Mabrey still produced last year. 39% from three on high volume balanced out the 41% from the field overall, her assist numbers were close to her peak from Dallas the year before and 15 points per game was a career-high. This is still a player who can put the ball through the hoop, which is reflected in her ranking. On a reshaped roster that's semi-rebuilding it'll be interesting to see where she fits in. But don't expect her to stop shooting.

#34 Kayla McBride

McBuckets earns her place by virtue of combining several of the positive attributes of multiple players already discussed. She is both very good and very reliable, rarely missing games and not taking anything off the table when she's on the floor. She doesn't need the ball in her hands to produce offense, works hard on the defensive end, and has averaged at least 12.5 points per game in every single WNBA season of her career. She's not an alpha-dog superstar but knows it and excels within her role. Coaches love players they can rely on, who they just don't have to worry about. Every team needs players like Kayla McBride.

#33 Shakira Austin

This ranking illustrates just how impressive Austin was as a rookie in 2022. Because she toiled through 2023, missing a large chunk of the middle of the season through injury before being hurt again to knock her out for the remainder of the year. We still saw flashes of Austin's talent in 2023, and even of the developments she'd made in the offseason overseas, but largely speaking her season mirrored that of Washington's in being decimated by injuries. Now close to full fitness and still only 23 years old, our panel clearly believes in what they've seen from Austin. Her offensive skill set was broadening before the injuries, going beyond athletic finishes inside towards more creative basketball plays with the ball in her hands. Her length and athleticism inside offer the potential to become an increasingly destructive force on the defensive end as well. Her ceiling remains very high and our panel expects her to ascend again.

#32 Natasha Cloud

If we're just looking at where players have been in previous seasons, this is the Mystics-focused section of the list. Cloud, of course, has moved on to Phoenix for 2024, and that may have been a positive element in our panel's assessment of her likely performance this year. She looks a great fit for the Mercury as a leader and distributor who can provide strong perimeter defense, and won't be afraid to take the big shot when opposing teams concentrate on the major threats elsewhere on the floor. That said, the shooting numbers have always been the primary question mark surrounding Cloud. Career percentages of 38% from the field and 31% from three aren't great, and at 32 years old, it's unlikely they're going to leap upwards for all her declarations of being a "shooter!" It shows how positive her other contributions are that our voters have her this high regardless, perhaps also influenced by her ability to step up in big games - such as the 33-point explosion in her final Mystics appearance in the playoffs last year.

#31 Ariel Atkins

Told you this was the Mystics section. Another Washington player who struggled with injuries last year, Atkins has otherwise been durable and consistent in her WNBA career. We have enough evidence now that she's probably not going to take the next step to true team-leading star level - there have been enough opportunities when Elena Delle Donne has been injured for her to take that leap in Washington and it's never really happened - but in a similar type of role to the McBride description above she can still be incredibly useful and effective. A 36% career shooter from beyond the arc, Atkins is a scoring threat on multiple levels and has been an elite perimeter defender virtually from the moment she entered the league. Five All-Defensive nods in six years and a couple of all-star appearances are testament to that, along with being part of Team USA at their last two major tournaments. For a player with all those achievements and accolades who's still only 27, you could easily argue this ranking might be a little low.

#30 Betnijah Laney-Hamilton

The first Liberty player to appear in our top 50 (you won't be shocked to hear there are a few still to come), Laney-Hamilton's WNBA journey is one of those tales you tell to encourage people to never give up. Drafted in the middle of the second round back in 2015, she hung around on the fringes of teams for several years before a semi-breakthrough with Indiana in 2019, only to be waived by the Fever before the 2020 season began. She was picked up by Atlanta and took off from there. A massive leap as an offensive player with the Dream that year led to a big contract with New York in the following offseason, and she's been a key piece for the Liberty ever since. Her role has changed over time in New York due to all the talent that's been added around her, but 50% from the field and 39% from three last year while having to do a lot of work as a perimeter defender showed she was still a very important part of their equation. In some ways she's back to being a 'role player' due to the superstar talents alongside her, but one who can step up and hurt opponents just as much when given the chance.

#29 NaLyssa Smith

Now it's the turn of the first Fever player to make the list (again, definitely not the last). To a certain extent, this is a projection of improvement from our panel. Despite averaging over 15 points per game at 48% from the field, Smith probably wasn't the 29th-best player in the league in 2023. There were some growing pains working out how she and Aliyah Boston were going to fit together in the paint, a big drop-off in her accuracy from outside (38% as a rookie dropped to 28% in her second season), and she lost a month of play to a stress fracture in her foot. But the ceiling remains very high for Smith with her length, athleticism and versatile offensive game. Plus, of course, there might be a bit more space on the floor for her this season in Indiana. Other names may draw a lot more of the attention for the Fever, but Smith can still be a very big piece of their bright-looking future.

#28 Courtney Vandersloot

As with all good point guards, a big part of what you get from Courtney Vandersloot is metronomic reliability. In fact, after finishing tied for 11th in MVP voting in her final season in Chicago in 2022, she also finished tied for 11th in MVP voting in New York in 2023 (albeit that only required one fifth-place vote last year). She's the consummate point guard, getting her teammates and the ball to where they're supposed to be, when they're supposed to be there, and hitting enough shots to keep the defense honest. She's a leader, an organiser, and a distributor who's broken all sorts of assist records. Hence the respect she still draws at 35 years old to put her this high on the list. However, questions around New York's perimeter defense last year led to doubts about whether they could hold up against Las Vegas in the most high-pressure moments, and ultimately it cost them in the Finals. This season we might see Sandy Brondello testing lineups just to check whether Vandersloot is still part of her preferred five to close out vital games.

#27 Caitlin Clark

We warned you there might be one or two controversial placements on this list. The player currently sitting fourth in the betting odds for 2024 WNBA MVP, whose exceptional performances in the college ranks have been key to driving a surge of interest in the women's game, and who's entering the league with more fanfare as a rookie than ever seen before... is only 27th? To be fair, this makes her comfortably the highest-ranked rookie on the list, and would put her firmly in the all-star conversation. But it does mean that she's not only outside the top 25 league-wide, but third in our rankings on her own team. It's the clearest evidence of the phenomenon I've mentioned a couple of times already - our voters saying clear and loud, "prove it". They know you're good already, they'll give you credit for that, but if you want them to really believe, first go out and show them on the WNBA level. The transition to the WNBA isn't easy, especially for guards, who often struggle with the increased level of physicality from pro athletes who've been in the gym for a decade or more. Our voters clearly think Clark is going to be good from the off, just not quite walk in as the immediate superstar some appear to be expecting. There will be a lot of eyes trained on her waiting to see how it plays out.

#26 Natasha Howard

See, players who've proven it. Howard was very raw when she entered the WNBA, but that was a decade ago now. She's evolved into a strong and solid defensive force, who can score efficiently inside and these days has enough of a 3-point shot that she can't be ignored beyond the arc. Alongside Satou Sabally's leap, Howard's addition was a big part of helping Dallas take a meaningful step towards genuine contention last season. On a roster that has to handle McCowan's inconsistencies, Sabally's frequent absences and Arike Ogunbowale's fluctuations from superstar shotmaker to volume-shooting tech-magnet, Howard is the rock that the Wings can rely on to produce every night.

Natasha Howard of the Dallas Wings. Photo credit: Chris Poss

So who else is rated higher than Clark? Which stars didn’t quite make it into the top 10? Join us tomorrow for the next stage in the countdown, covering everyone from Nos. 25 to 11.

---

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.