Four WNBA playoff storylines to follow for Canadians and Tempo fans

The Toronto Tempo are coming.

In one year, the expansion WNBA team could be gearing up for its first-ever playoff run. Even sooner, the Tempo will be in the mix as they seek a head coach and begin to build their team through the expansion draft.

For now, though, fans and management alike will have to settle for remaining on the sidelines and watching the eight remaining teams duke it out for the championship trophy when the post-season begins on Sunday.

It will all culminate in the first-ever best-of-seven Finals series.

Here are four storylines worth watching for Canadians and Tempo fans:

Four Canadian players entered this WNBA season. Just two remain — and they'll face each other in what could be a lopsided first-round series as Bridget Carleton's top-seeded Minnesota Lynx take on Laeticia Amihere and the No. 8 Golden State Valkyries.

Carleton, now a veteran at 28 in her seventh season with the Lynx, started every game for 34-10 Minnesota, averaging 6.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and two assists per game while knocking down 37.3 per cent of her three-point attempts. While the Chatham, Ont., native plays a starring role on the national team, she's likely better suited to her position with the Lynx, where she acts as a facilitator and key defender on a team led by MVP candidate Napheesa Collier.

The Lynx, who fell in the decisive Game 5 of the WNBA Finals last season against the New York Liberty, enter these playoffs as the title favourite.

Amihere, meanwhile, embodies the spirit of the heart-and-hustle Valkyries, who became the first expansion team ever to reach the post-season in Year 1. The 2023 first-round pick out of South Carolina was cut by the Atlanta Dream after two seasons before joining Golden State for training camp — where she was let go yet again.

But the Valkyries brought Amihere back midway through the season and the move has paid off, with the Mississauga, Ont., native providing energy, athleticism and defence in a bench role. It would not be a major surprise to see Amihere alter a playoff game with a big block in a key moment.

Those Valkyries — the first expansion team since 2008 — have now provided a template of success for the Tempo, expansion sister Portland Fire and three more teams to come by 2030.

Though criticized by some following the expansion draft last December, the Valkyries' internationally flavoured roster came through to grab the eighth and final playoff seed with a 23-21 record. Players like Veronica Burton and Kayla Thornton comfortably stepped into bigger roles than they carried with their old teams, and the group coalesced under a defensive identity spearheaded by head coach Natalie Nakase as well as a spirited fan base.

The challenge for the Tempo — who will have to share an expansion draft in some form with the Fire — will only be greater, especially if other teams adjust their protection strategies or simply take the new teams more seriously next year.

Still, the further the Valkyries go, the higher hope and expectations will rise in Toronto in anticipation of next May.

Part of realizing that hope will be selecting the right players to take the court in the inaugural season — even if expansion draft rules are still unavailable, at least publicly.

On the bright side, nearly the entire league is set to hit free agency, meaning there should be multiple team-building avenues available for Tempo general manager Monica Wright Rogers.

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Still, she'll have to dig deep to unearth those hidden gems — who's the overlooked cog in the Lynx machine, or the buried star on the Liberty for whom there simply aren't enough minutes? It's likely Wright Rogers already has some form of long list of players she wants, and she's stated she wants her identity to be defence, just like Golden State.

Picking the right players — the ones who are willing to buy in, and who fit together — might be just as important as talent. To piece together that puzzle, the playoffs would be a good starting point.

Like any pro sports circuit, the WNBA is a copycat league. So, yes, the Valkyries are one example the Tempo can follow — but the expansion label will quickly wear, and success in Toronto will soon be evaluated by championships.

The three leading contenders for that crown this season were all built in somewhat similar fashions. Each of the Lynx, Liberty and Las Vegas Aces boast a highly touted first-round pick in Collier, Sabrina Ionescu and A'Ja Wilson, respectively.

It's an obvious lesson — you need high-end talent, and the best way to get it is through the draft.

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Vancouver hosted the first Women's National Basketball Association regular-season game outside the U.S. Friday. Vancouver does not have a WNBA team of its own, but the WNBA expansion team Toronto Tempo is set to begin play in the 2026 season.

But it's also worth paying attention to how the teams were built around those stars. The Lynx, who are slightly earlier in their title window, have Collier as a clear No. 1 star with depth for days surrounding her.

The Liberty went all in on talent, importing ex- MVPs Breanna Stewart and Jonquel Jones to join forces with Ionescu last season and doubling down this year with a two-time all-star and former Finals MVP Emma Meesseman.

After falling short of the Finals last season following two straight titles, the Aces got ruthless in dealing stalwart guard Kelsey Plum to Los Angeles as part of a trade to bring in former No. 1 pick Jewell Loyd from the Seattle Storm.

The Tempo — and the rest of the league — will be watching closely to see which, if any, of those three teams ultimately emerges with the championship.