There's a lot of excitement and buzz around the WNBA as its set to tip off its 29th season Friday night thanks in large part to last season's rookie class led by Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese.
The league may have its most anticipated year ahead with the two second year players leading the way. The duo, who helped the league to record ratings and attendance. Their two teams - the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky - will face each other Saturday for the first of five matchups this season.
The league is coming off a thrilling finals that saw the New York Liberty beat the Minnesota Lynx in a decisive Game 5. Both teams are poised to try and get back to the championship round which will now be a best-of-7 format for the first time this year. Standing in their way could be the Las Vegas Aces, who won the title in back-to-back years in 2022-23.
Clark's Fever made a huge splash in the offseason, bolstering their roster with the additions of DeWanna Bonner, Natasha Howard and Sophie Cunningham. They also added a new coach in former Fever leader Stephanie White.
One of the teams playing Friday night will be the expansion Golden State Valkyries, who are the first expansion team in the league since the Atlanta Dream joined in 2008. With the new squad, the league expanded its schedule to 44 games this year.