WNBA Power Rankings: Surging Liberty overtake Aces for top spot, healthy Mystics on the rise

The Liberty have beaten the Aces three times in August

By Jack Maloney Aug 29, 2023 at 12:26 pm ET• 6 min read

So much of sports is about timing, and the New York Liberty appear to be peaking at just the right moment. Even when the hastily assembled superteam was racking up wins early in the season, the performances were disjointed and not always convincing. A few months and a few dozen games later, the growing familiarity and overwhelming talent is wreaking havoc on the league. 

Even the defending champion Las Vegas Aces, have felt their wrath, losing three times to the Liberty in August in all competitions, including on Monday night in yet another uncompetitive contest between the clubs. With that success, the Liberty have now won four games in a row, and 11 of their last 12 including the Commissioner's Cup championship game; the sole loss came against the Aces on the road on Aug. 17. 

During that stretch, the Liberty have a 111.8 offensive rating, 94.9 defensive rating and plus-16.9 net rating, all of which are the best marks in the league. They are absolutely crushing most opponents – they have multiple 30-point wins and have won seven of those 11 games by double digits – and grinding out tough wins when necessary, such as their overtime dogfight against the Connecticut Sun. 

Coming into the season, the Aces and Liberty were 1A and 1B, with little to separate them on paper. For much of the summer, though, the Aces dominance on both sides of the ball established a clear hierarchy with them looking down on the Liberty from a tier above. That's changed in the last few weeks, and now the Liberty are the team to beat.