WNBA players are focused on the playoff push, but their performances over the next few weeks also will solidify the 2025 season’s honors.

Injuries and teams’ ups and downs continue to be a factor in the awards tracker.

One thing hasn’t changed, though: Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, out because of an ankle injury, remains the front-runner for MVP. Collier, the All-Star Game MVP, is having the best season of her career, and the Lynx are in first place.

Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas has been making a big push in the MVP race, but Collier will be difficult to catch.

The favorites for some other awards have changed each month, and might change again when we make our final votes in September. ESPN’s Michael Voepel, Kevin Pelton, Kendra Andrews and Alexa Philippou weigh in on who seems to have the upper hand for six awards, along with picking the top challengers.

Jump to:
MVP | Rookie of Year | Defensive Player of Year
Most Improved | Sixth Player | Coach of Year

MVP

Kendra Andrews: Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx
Kevin Pelton: Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx
Alexa Philippou: Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx
Michael Voepel: Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx

ESPN’s front-runner: Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx

Despite missing the past three games because of an ankle sprain, Collier remains our consensus pick. Minnesota has won all three games without Collier, albeit by smaller margins, and still holds a six-game cushion in the standings. If Collier is out for more than the two weeks she initially was reported to miss, the race could get interesting. But Collier has been the league’s best player all season and has played more minutes than her closest challenger, Alyssa Thomas.

(Collier was also the front-runner in June and July.)

Top challenger: Alyssa Thomas, Phoenix Mercury

Thomas’ value can be gathered by looking at Phoenix’s rise and Connecticut’s fall this season. She has gotten more comfortable as the months have passed in her first season in Phoenix, becoming the first player in WNBA history to record triple-doubles in three consecutive games earlier this month.

Thomas, the 2023 MVP runner-up, is averaging career highs in points (16.0) and assists (a league-leading 9.0), putting her second on our ballot. However, don’t rule out reigning MVP A’ja Wilson: she became the first player in league history with a 30-20 game earlier this week and has led the Las Vegas Aces on a five-game winning streak. — Kevin Pelton

Rookie of the Year

Andrews: Paige Bueckers, Dallas Wings
Pelton: Paige Bueckers, Dallas Wings
Philippou: Paige Bueckers, Dallas Wings
Voepel: Paige Bueckers, Dallas Wings

ESPN’s front-runner: Paige Bueckers, Dallas Wings

Other than missing seven games because of injury or illness, Bueckers’ transition to the WNBA has been smooth. Bueckers is virtually a lock to be the fourth consecutive No. 1 pick to be named Rookie of the Year, following Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard and Indiana’s Aliyah Boston and Caitlin Clark.

Bueckers is averaging 18.4 points, 5.4 assists and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 45.2%. It has been a challenging season for the 9-24 Wings, but Bueckers has been a bright spot. The Wings have been at their best when she’s on the court, and they could still gain some momentum for next year during the closing weeks of the 2025 season. Personnel moves must be made around Bueckers to improve Dallas for 2026.

(Bueckers was also the ESPN front-runner in July.)

Top challenger: Sonia Citron, Washington Mystics

No. 3 pick Citron, who joined Bueckers and her Mystics teammate Kiki Iriafen as rookie All-Stars, has lived up to her lottery selection. With fellow guard Brittney Sykes having been traded to Seattle on Aug. 5, Citron is Washington’s leading scorer at 14.8 points while shooting 46.5%. She averages 4.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists. Her 51 3-pointers lead the 14-18 Mystics and are the most among all WNBA rookies this season. — Michael Voepel

Defensive Player of the Year

Andrews: Gabby Williams, Seattle Storm
Pelton: Gabby Williams, Seattle Storm
Philippou: Alanna Smith, Minnesota Lynx
Voepel: Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx

ESPN’s front-runner: Gabby Williams, Seattle Storm

This race remains wide open with four weeks left in the season. Three players got first-place votes from our panel, with another (Alyssa Thomas) getting runner-up votes. Williams’ candidacy might depend on Seattle rebounding from a recent six-game losing streak that has dropped the Storm from second to fifth in defensive rating. Still, Williams is a top individual defender whose 2.5 steals are the most by a WNBA player since 2013.

(Napheesa Collier was the front-runner in July, while Natasha Cloud in June.)

Top challenger: Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx; Alyssa Thomas, Phoenix Mercury; A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces

As was the case last year, the MVP front-runners are also at the forefront of the DPOY race. Collier’s stats are just as good as when she won this award, though she could split votes with her teammates. Thomas, meanwhile, has led Phoenix to second in defensive rating after the Mercury finished ninth a year ago. And though the Aces’ defense isn’t in the same class, Wilson remains the WNBA’s leading shot blocker. — Peloton

Most Improved Player

Andrews: Allisha Gray, Atlanta Dream
Pelton: Veronica Burton, Golden State Valkyries
Philippou: Veronica Burton, Golden State Valkyries
Voepel: Veronica Burton, Golden State Valkyries

ESPN’s front-runner: Veronica Burton, Golden State Valkyries

Burton’s story is about perseverance meeting opportunity. Burton, the No. 7 pick in the 2022 draft out of Northwestern, played two seasons with Dallas, averaging about 2.5 points, before being waived before the 2024 season. Connecticut picked her up, and she has played 31 games for the Sun, averaging 3.1 points.

She was selected No. 3 by the Valkyries in the expansion draft and has been one of the keys for the first-year franchise. The 25-year-old guard has always been a strong defensive player, and is now averaging 11.2 points, 5.2 assists and 4.3 rebounds. She scored a career-high 30 points Wednesday in a victory over Washington as the 17-15 Valkyries seek a playoff berth.

(Allisha Gray was the front-runner in July.)

Top challengers: Allisha Gray, Atlanta Dream; Azura Stevens, Los Angeles Sparks

Gray, 30, is already a well-established player — an All-Star, Olympic gold medalist and 2017 Rookie of the Year — who is enjoying a career-best season. Stevens, 29, is also having a career-best year (14.6 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 51.4% FG) and has moved into a more elite status during her eighth season in the league as she hopes to help return the Sparks to the postseason. — Voepel

Sixth Player of the Year

Andrews: Naz Hillmon, Atlanta Dream
Pelton: Naz Hillmon, Atlanta Dream
Philippou: Naz Hillmon, Atlanta Dream
Voepel: Naz Hillmon, Atlanta Dream

ESPN front-runner: Naz Hillmon, Atlanta Dream

The Dream have outscored opponents by 13.5 points per 100 possessions with Hillmon on the court, the best net rating for any WNBA rotation player who’s not on the Lynx. That reflects Hillmon’s newfound ability to stretch the floor (1.2 3-pointers per game after one total in her first three pro seasons). By removing long 2s from her game under Karl Smesko, Hillmon is also shooting 69% inside the arc and has stayed in the starting lineup next to Brionna Jones since Brittney Griner returned from injury. Because Hillmon came off the bench for Atlanta’s first 27 games, she’ll qualify for the Sixth Player Award even if she remains a starter the rest of the way.

(Kennedy Burke was the front-runner in June and July.)

Top challenger: Jessica Shepard, Minnesota Lynx

With early front-runner Kennedy Burke of the New York Liberty missing more than two weeks because of a calf strain, Shepard has moved ahead in the pecking order. Shepard and Natisha Hiedeman have averaged 7-plus points off the Minnesota second unit, but Shepard is doing so with superior efficiency (61% shooting) and has been one of the league’s best rebounders this season. — Pelton

Coach of the Year

Andrews: Natalie Nakase, Golden State Valkyries
Pelton: Natalie Nakase, Golden State Valkyries
Philippou: Natalie Nakase, Golden State Valkyries
Voepel: Natalie Nakase, Golden State Valkyries

ESPN’s front-runner: Natalie Nakase, Golden State Valkyries

Nakase was a big part of the Aces’ championship success as one of Becky Hammon’s assistants, and that made her an excellent head coaching candidate this season. Nakase was ready to strategize at the highest level. That has been a big factor in the expansion Valkyries being a potential playoff team. Golden State has been particularly impressive on defense, allowing the second-fewest points in the league (77.3 PPG).

(Nakase was the front-runner in July. Phoenix’s Nate Tibbetts was the front-runner in June.)

Top challenger: Karl Smesko, Atlanta Dream

Smesko has transitioned from being consistently good at Florida Gulf Coast to finding success in his first season in the WNBA. The 21-11 Dream are in second and have won six games in a row, and eight of their past nine. Gray and Hillmon are having career-best years. The Dream, who averaged a league-worst 77.0 points last season, are scoring 84.3 points this year. — Voepel