Minnesota Lynx guard Courtney Williams (10) and forward Napheesa Collier (24) celebrate the win against the Phoenix Mercury after Game 2 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff game Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

This season for the Women’s National Basketball Association has been like no other. It has reached a new height of audience and attention, and we’ve finally arrived at the postseason with just four teams left fighting for a title.

Heading into the postseason, the Minnesota Lynx have every reason to expect aggressive, down-to-the-wire series. They certainly have what it takes to win, but it won’t come easy.

The Lynx were the second overall seed in regular season standings, finishing with a 30-10 record, a significant increase from their 2023 19-21 campaign that ended with a first-round elimination at the hands of the Connecticut Sun.

Minnesota won titles in 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017 under current head coach Cheryl Reeve, who was named the 2024 WNBA Coach of the Year and Executive of the Year.

Ball movement has been instrumental to Minnesota’s success, making them incredibly tough to guard. You can often find them making five to 10 passes on a single possession, taking time to run a play and cutting at the right moments to lose the defense.

Several players center the Lynx offense and play through selflessness. Napheesa Collier was fifth in the league in scoring during the regular season with 20.4 points per game, Courtney Williams was sixth in assists averaging 5.5, followed by Collier, Kayla McBride and Alanna Smith each with just over three a game.

McBride also leads the team beyond the arc, with 2.7 threes a game.

Pair Minnesota’s ball movement with being first in the league in assists per game and three-point percentage, second in steals, third in field-goal percentage, and it composes itself as a serious threat.

Collier has been the heart of the squad since she was drafted by the Lynx with the sixth overall pick in 2019. She was named this season’s Defensive Player of the Year and was the runner-up in MVP voting to the Las Vegas Aces’ A’ja Wilson, who set the league’s scoring record this year.

Also contributing heavily to the Lynx’s success has been the acquisition of Smith and Williams, who were both picked up from the Chicago Sky coming into this season. Bridget Carleton has also found her footing on the team.

After being traded to the Lynx from the Connecticut Sun during her 2019 rookie campaign, Carleton averaged 4.3 points per game over her first five seasons with Minnesota. After averaging 3.2 points per game last season, she shot 44.4% from 3-point range on more than five attempts per game to more than double her career average up to 9.6 points per game.

The Lynx also were this year’s 2024 Commissioner Cup champions, an in-season tournament, after defeating No. 1 New York Liberty. The two have a large possibility of meeting again for the title series.

The ongoing semifinal matchup between Las Vegas and New York is a revenge series for the top-seeded Liberty. The No. 4 Aces defeated the Liberty last season for their second consecutive title, but New York has already claimed a 2-0 advantage in this series.

The Lynx and No. 3 Connecticut Sun also have some revenge on the line after the Sun defeated Minnesota in the first round of last season’s playoffs.

The two are currently tied 1-1 in the semifinals. Minnesota dropped game 1 over the weekend after an abnormally subpar shooting night. But, the Lynx responded Tuesday night to tie the series behind a better shooting and rebounding performance.

In game 1, Minnesota shot 25% from 3-point range, compared to 42% in game 2. Connecticut also outrebounded the Lynx 39-32 in the first, but Minnesota got more boards 35-32 the second time around.

Of the three times the two have met over the season, Minnesota defeated the Sun once by a single basket. Connecticut won the other two meetings by 5 or fewer points.

If the Lynx can continue to find answers to the Sun’s defense and stick true to their offense and shot selection, they have a strong chance of taking the title. New York is favored to defeat Las Vegas and advance to the finals. If so, Minnesota has defeated the Liberty in three of their four games this year.

If the Aces are able to come back and take the series against New York, Minnesota has also beaten them three of four times.

Solely looking over the trends of the regular season, Connecticut has been Minnesota’s biggest threat and toughest competition. If it makes its way through the semifinals and to the finals, the Lynx have a good chance of finding themselves at a future ring ceremony and being crowned the 2024 champions.

All four teams will play again on Friday in game three, as Minnesota travels to Connecticut for a 6:30 p.m. tipoff.

May the best one win.