2024 WNBA season

2024 WNBA season
LeagueWomen's National Basketball Association
SportBasketball
DurationMay 14 – September 19
Number of games40 per team
Number of teams12
TV partner(s)ABC/ESPN/ESPN2
Ion
CBS/CBSSN
Amazon Prime Video
NBA TV
Draft
Top draft pickCaitlin Clark
Picked byIndiana Fever
WNBA seasons

The 2024 WNBA season is the 28th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), a professional women's basketball league based in the United States.

The regular season runs from May 14 to September 19 with each of the 12 teams playing 40 games—four games against five teams from the same conference and two teams from the other conference, and three games against the remaining four teams.[1] Five regular season games in early June were played against teams in the same conference to determine qualification for the WNBA Commissioner's Cup, an in-season tournament first played in 2021; the final will be hosted by the team with the better win–loss record in qualifying games.[2] The 2024 season includes a month-long break for the Summer Olympic Games that begins after the annual WNBA All-Star Game on July 20 in Phoenix, Arizona.[3][4]

The eight teams with the best regular season records, regardless of conference, qualify for the WNBA Playoffs to determine the league's champion in the 2024 WNBA Finals. Since 2022, the playoffs have used a best-of-three series in the first round, where teams are seeded based on regular season performance, and a best-of-five format for the semifinals and WNBA Finals.[5] The Las Vegas Aces are the defending champions, having won in the 2023 WNBA Finals to retain their title in back-to-back seasons.[6]

  1. ^ Allen, Percy (December 18, 2023). "Here's a look at the Storm's 2024 schedule". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on January 29, 2024. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  2. ^ Voepel, M.A. (December 18, 2023). "WNBA goes to more compact format for Commissioner's Cup". ESPN. Archived from the original on January 29, 2024. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  3. ^ Pickman, Ben; Merchant, Sabreena (December 18, 2023). "WNBA unveils 2024 schedule with 40 regular-season games, new Commissioner's Cup format". The Athletic. Archived from the original on July 6, 2024. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  4. ^ Feinberg, Doug (December 18, 2023). "WNBA to take its usual month-long break for the Olympics". Associated Press. Archived from the original on January 29, 2024. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  5. ^ Henderson, Cydney (September 12, 2023). "2023 WNBA playoffs: Finals schedule, scores, matchups and award winners". USA Today. Archived from the original on January 29, 2024. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
  6. ^ Lev, Jacob (October 18, 2023). "Las Vegas Aces become WNBA's 1st repeat champions in 21 years". CNN. Archived from the original on October 31, 2023. Retrieved January 30, 2024.