Ranking the top 25 WNBA players at midseason

The Paris Olympics may be over, but don't fret, the 2024 WNBA season resumes Thursday, kicking off what should be an entertaining two months as a competitive regular season gives way to a seemingly open-ended playoff push.

The individual play so far in 2024 has been stellar, headlined by a spectacular run from the Las Vegas Aces' A'ja Wilson that could go down as one of the best in league history. And so it was no debate that she would keep her spot as the No. 1 player on ESPN's top 25 WNBA player rankings, now updated through the (unofficial) first half of the season.

Newcomers to this list include two first-year players who are neck and neck in the Rookie of the Year race, the Indiana Fever's Caitlin Clark and Chicago Sky's Angel Reese. Both also earned WNBA All-Star bids, making them the first pair of rookies to earn that distinction since 2014. Other new additions to the rankings include the Los Angeles Sparks' Dearica Hamby, Minnesota Lynx's Kayla McBride and Sky's Chennedy Carter.

The ranking features 10 of the 12 Olympians who just took home gold in 5-on-5 women's basketball, two Olympic bronze medalists in 3x3, one 5-on-5 bronze medalist, as well as all 12 members of the Team WNBA that beat the Olympic squad in the 2024 All-Star Game.

To qualify for inclusion, players had to appear in over half of their team's games. That meant Chelsea Gray, who didn't return for the Aces until late June because of a foot injury, missed the cut, but could make it in another iteration of the rankings later this season. Another player who wasn't eligible was Satou Sabally, an All-WNBA selection last year who recently competed for Germany at the Olympics, but didn't suit up for the Dallas Wings earlier this summer as she recovered from a shoulder injury.

Here's how ESPN's Kevin Pelton, Alexa Philippou and Michael Voepel ranked the top 25 players in the WNBA.

1. A'ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces

Center | 6-foot-4

2024 stats: 27.2 PPG, 12.0 RPG, 2.9 BPG

Preseason ranking: 1

Wilson is in the middle of an amazing season right now. She enters the post-Olympic part of the schedule leading the league in scoring, rebounding, blocks, Player Efficiency Rating (PER) and win shares. The Aces have had bumps in the road and are in fifth place, but Wilson has been brilliant and is racing toward her third MVP award. -- Michael Voepel

2. Breanna Stewart, New York Liberty

Forward | 6-foot-4

2024 stats: 19.3 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 4.0 APG, 2.0 SPG

Preseason ranking: 2

After a disappointing 2023 playoffs, Stewart hasn't yet played to her MVP standard despite leading the Liberty to the WNBA's best record. Stewart's usage rate (25%) is her lowest ever, yet her efficiency as a scorer is also down from the past two seasons. Ahead of her 30th birthday, it could be the first sign of Stewart aging out of her prime. The decline can be traced to a 3-point slump dating back to the postseason. Stewart shot just 18% beyond the arc in May before warming to 33% in June. However, Stewart's 2-point percentage (54%) is her best since 2018. --Kevin Pelton

3. Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx

Forward | 6-foot-1

2024 stats: 20.0 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 2.2 SPG

Preseason ranking: 5

Collier hasn't suited up for the Lynx since July 4 because of plantar fasciitis, but with her on the floor and leading the charge, Minnesota won the Commissioner's Cup championship and emerged as a somewhat unexpected WNBA title contender. Collier and Wilson are the only two players in the league averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds per game, but beyond the stats, Collier shines with her motor and by doing the little things that amount to winning plays. --Alexa Philippou

4. Alyssa Thomas, Connecticut Sun

Forward | 6-foot-2

2024 stats: 11.4 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 7.6 APG

Preseason ranking: 3

Thomas continues to power the Sun into the contender conversation by being her trademark Swiss Army knife self: She's the only player in the league's top five in both rebounds and assists, and she still has a claim as one of the best defenders in the world. Her scoring is down from her MVP runner-up campaign in 2023, more so since Connecticut's revamped backcourt of DiJonai Carrington and Ty Harris has a more pronounced role in the offense this season. --Philippou

5. Jonquel Jones, New York Liberty

Forward | 6-foot-6

2024 stats: 15.3 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.3 BPG

Preseason ranking: 4

Jones' first season with the Liberty got off to a rocky start since she was getting over a foot injury. That's a distant memory now given how dominant she has been this summer, a major reason why New York sports the league's best record. Among the impressive components to her season, she's shooting a career-high 55.5% from the field (including a 39.2% clip on 4.1 3-point attempts per game) and averaging 3.5 assists per contest, a new personal best. --Philippou

6. Jackie Young, Las Vegas Aces

Guard | 6-foot

2024 stats: 18.5 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 5.5 APG

Preseason ranking: 7

Young's 2024 scoring, rebounding and assist averages are all the best of her WNBA career. Her shooting percentage from behind the arc isn't as high as last season, but she's still making about the same number of 3-pointers per game (2.1). Young also has become one of the top perimeter defenders in the WNBA. -- Voepel

7. Sabrina Ionescu, New York Liberty

Guard | 5-foot-11

2024 stats: 19.8 PPG, 6.1 APG, 4.4 RPG

Preseason ranking: 12

Ionescu's development in recent years, including from this past offseason, has been fun to watch. While her 3-point shooting was her calling card last season, this year much of her productivity has come from inside the arc, including adding a floater to her skill set and improving at getting to the rim. With her also taking on more point guard duties when Courtney Vandersloot was away from the team, Ionescu's increasingly well-rounded game solidifies her as one of the best guards in the league. --Philippou

8. Nneka Ogwumike, Seattle Storm

Forward | 6-foot-2

2024 stats: 17.4 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 2.7 APG, 41% 3s

Preseason ranking: 10

While Ogwumike's jersey changed after 12 seasons in Los Angeles, her All-Star level of play has not. Ogwumike's 17.4 points per game are the fifth highest of her surefire Hall of Fame career, and she's still scoring efficiently thanks in large part to her 41% accuracy on 3s -- her career best on more than 30 attempts. As expected, adding Ogwumike and fellow veteran Skylar Diggins-Smith has lifted Seattle from the lottery to the middle of the race for home-court advantage in the WNBA playoffs. --Pelton

9. Dearica Hamby, Los Angeles Sparks

Forward | 6-foot-3

2024 stats: 19.2 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 1.4 SPG

Preseason ranking: NR

Hamby's preseason goal was to earn MVP votes, and with the way she has played through the first half, that could easily happen. The Sparks have had a lackluster season and seem likely to miss the playoffs, but Hamby's brilliance and consistency -- including 52% shooting and a 40.4% clip from 3 -- have been a bright spot, so much so that she went from not ranked in our preseason list to earning a top-10 nod. Her 13 double-doubles in 2024 are only behind Angel Reese's 17 and Wilson's 15. --Philippou

10. Kahleah Copper, Phoenix Mercury

Guard/forward | 6-foot-1

2024 stats: 23.2 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 2.2 APG

Preseason ranking: 19

Copper is a success in her first season in Phoenix, even though the Mercury would like to be a lot further over .500 than they are (13-12). Her scoring average is a career high and third now in the WNBA. She has jelled with fellow Mercury newcomer Natasha Cloud to give Phoenix a stronger defense. Copper's fourth-quarter performance in the Olympic final win -- she scored 10 of her 12 points in that period -- should boost her confidence even more for the rest of the WNBA season. --Voepel

11. Kelsey Plum, Las Vegas Aces

Guard | 5-foot-8

2024 stats: 18.4 PPG, 4.7 APG, 86% FTs

Preseason ranking: 8

Playing much of the first half without Chelsea Gray alongside her in the Las Vegas backcourt, Plum hasn't been the hyperefficient scorer she was the past two seasons, seeing her true shooting percentage (TS%) -- which factors in scoring on 2s, 3s and free throws based on their value -- dip from .620 to .553, her lowest since 2019. Plum's accuracy falling from a career-high 55% in 2023 to 47% is a bit of a concern, but there's no reason to believe her 36% 3-point shooting is anything but a fluke. In eight July games, Plum shot 42% on 3s. --Pelton

12. Ezi Magbegor, Seattle Storm

Center | 6-foot-4

2024 stats: 13.0 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 2.4 PBG

Preseason ranking: 22

Having led the WNBA in blocks per game for much of the season, Magbegor has slipped behind two-time Defensive Player of the Year A'ja Wilson. Still, Magbegor anchors the WNBA's third-best defense on a per-possession basis, just 0.2 points per 100 behind Minnesota for first. Magbegor is no bystander on offense either, seeing her scoring average (13.0 points per game) drop by less than a point despite the addition of Ogwumike and Diggins-Smith. Magbegor is coming off a monster effort for Australia to win bronze on Sunday, finishing with 31 points, 13 rebounds and 2 blocks against Belgium. -- Pelton

13. Arike Ogunbowale, Dallas Wings

Guard | 5-foot-8

2024 stats: 22.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 5.2 APG

Preseason ranking: 15

Ogunbowale's scoring average is the second-best of her career, and her 2.7 steals average is a career high that leads the WNBA. She was MVP of the WNBA All-Star Game. But the struggling Wings are tied in last place with Washington at 6-19. Forward Satou Sabally is expected to rejoin Dallas now, though, after she played for Germany in the Olympics. That should help the Wings, who have a deep hole to climb out of to try to make the playoffs. -- Voepel

14. Jewell Loyd, Seattle Storm

Guard | 5-foot-11

2024 stats: 20.1 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 4.1 APG

Preseason ranking: 9

As well as it has translated in the standings, flanking Loyd with veteran All-Stars hasn't helped her efficiency the way the Storm surely anticipated. After leading the WNBA with 24.7 points per game, Loyd has dropped to 20.1 this season, but her TS% is a career-low .496. In part, blame a season-long 3-point slump. Lloyd hasn't shot this poorly on 3s (26%) since her rookie campaign. Still, Loyd's shots remain some of the league's most difficult. According to Second Spectrum tracking, only Arike Ogunbowale has a lower quantified shot quality based on the location, type of shots and distance to nearby defenders. -- Pelton

15. Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever

Guard | 6-foot-0

2024 stats: 17.1 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 8.2 APG

Preseason ranking: NR

We didn't include rookies in our preseason ranking of the top 25 WNBA players. Now everyone has seen the 2024 draft class enough to know Clark is an easy pick for this list. After a 1-8 start against a rough schedule, the Fever have gone 10-7 since and are in playoff position. Clark leads all rookies in scoring and is 13th overall. She also leads the league in assists and has dealt well with the enormous pressure. -- Voepel

16. Brittney Griner, Phoenix Mercury

Center | 6-foot-9

2024 stats: 18.6 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 1.9 APG

Preseason ranking: 11

Injuries limited Griner to 15 of the Mercury's 25 games thus far in the 2024 season. But when she has been healthy, Griner is much like her usual self for Phoenix. With a new coach, general manager and new players on court, the Mercury hope to bounce back from missing the playoffs last year. Griner -- who just won her third gold with the U.S. Olympic team -- will need to be a big part of that playoff push. -- Voepel

17. Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever

Forward/center| 6-foot-5

2024 stats: 14.2 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 1.5 BPG

Preseason ranking: 14

It took just a little while for Boston to click on court with Clark as point guard, but once it happened, the Fever were immediately better. That bodes well for the franchise being able to end its seven-season playoff drought. Boston was an All-Star for the second year in a row, and her stats overall have been very similar to her WNBA Rookie of the Year season in 2023. -- Voepel

18. DeWanna Bonner, Connecticut Sun

Forward | 6-foot-4

2024 stats: 16.7 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 1.3 SPG

Preseason ranking: 17

Bonner, who turns 37 next week, put together her first string of consecutive All-Star nods as a member of the Connecticut Sun, with her 16.7 points per game pacing the squad. She also moved into the No. 5 spot on the league's all-time scoring list earlier this season and could climb even higher in the coming weeks, yet another testament to her longevity over the decades. -- Philippou

19. Angel Reese, Chicago Sky

Forward | 6-foot-3

2024 stats: 13.5 PPG, 11.9 RPG, 1.4 SPG

Preseason ranking: NR

After dropping to the No. 7 pick in the WNBA draft, Reese spent the first half of her rookie campaign making the teams that passed on her -- and even some that didn't -- pay. Chosen a rookie All-Star alongside Clark by coaches, Reese ranks second in the league with 11.9 rebounds per game and put together a WNBA-record 15 consecutive double-doubles. Although Reese doesn't space the floor (two 3s all season) and has shot just 41% on 2-point attempts, her relentless energy on the offensive glass already makes Reese one of the league's best players. -- Pelton

20. Kayla McBride, Minnesota Lynx

Guard | 5-foot-11

2024 stats: 16.4 PPG, 3.4 APG, 43% 3s

Preseason ranking: NR

Let's call it the "Kayla-ssaince." Five years removed from her last All-Star appearance with the Las Vegas Aces, McBride was an easy pick for coaches after boosting her scoring average to 16.4 points per game -- her highest since 2018 -- based largely on dangerous 43% 3-point shooting and a league-high 76 total 3s. A volume scorer when she was last an All-Star, McBride is now one of the WNBA's most efficient. Her .625 TS% is far and away a career high. -- Pelton

21. Brionna Jones, Connecticut Sun

Forward | 6-foot-3

2024 stats: 13.3 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 1.3 SPG

Preseason ranking:20

In her first season back from her 2023 Achilles tear, Jones has reminded onlookers just how valuable of a player she is on both ends of the floor, helping the Sun achieve a WNBA-best start at 13-1 and making her way back to the All-Star Game. Her interior presence fortifies championship-minded Connecticut, and she remains one of the most efficient players in the league with a 53% clip from the field. -- Philippou

22. Rhyne Howard, Atlanta Dream

Guard | 6-foot-2

2024 stats: 15.4 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 3.4 APG

Preseason ranking: 16

An ankle injury limited Howard to 14 of the Dream's 24 games thus far. She was hurt in a June 19 game and didn't return until July 17, playing just once before the Olympic break. The Dream went 1-9 while she was out, and at 7-17 overall will have to make up ground to get back in the playoff picture. In Paris, Howard helped the 3x3 women's team win a bronze medal, and the Dream hope she's back to her normal self as the season restarts. -- Voepel

23. Allisha Gray, Atlanta Dream

Guard | 6-foot

2024 stats: 15.5 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.5 APG

Preseason ranking: 18

The Atlanta Dream's season has been disappointing, but the contributions of Gray, the Dream's leading scorer, were enough to secure her second All-Star bid. In Phoenix, she became the first player to win both the skills challenge and the 3-point shooting contest in the same year, momentum Atlanta hopes she can carry into the second half of the season with more help surrounding her. -- Philippou

24. Chennedy Carter, Chicago Sky

Guard | 5-foot-9

2024 stats: 17.2 PPG, 2.7 APG, 1.3 SPG

Preseason ranking: NR

No one knew what to expect when Carter made her return to the WNBA following a one-year hiatus. But she has been nothing short of sensational in Chicago, carving out a starting role after initially coming off the bench, leading the Sky in scoring. With her lightning-quick first step, no one in the league can stop her from getting downhill to her spots.-- Philippou

25. Kelsey Mitchell, Indiana Fever

Guard | 5-foot-8

2024 stats: 16.9 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 1.8 APG

Preseason ranking: 24

After six seasons with the Fever and no playoff appearances, Mitchell has embraced having the team's younger stars on board now, including Clark and Boston. She joined those two on the WNBA All-Star team in July. Mitchell's scoring and assist numbers have gone down just a bit with Clark also in the starting lineup. But Mitchell is still very capable of generating scoring runs by getting to the rim as well as hitting big 3-pointers. -- Voepel

Also considered: DiJonai Carrington, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Natasha Howard, Alanna Smith, Diana Taurasi