Liberty vs. Lynx WNBA Finals matchups, predictions: Can New York finally win its first title?

It’s not right to frame the WNBA Finals as a meeting of the ingénue Liberty, seeking the franchise’s first title, and the formerly dynastic Minnesota Lynx, looking to hang a fifth banner.Because it’s the Liberty who are loaded with prestige players and are installed as the heavy betting favorites after dominating the league for the best part of the past five months.Whereas the Lynx had to scratch their way from preseason afterthoughts into a clear contender.And it’s overly simplistic to describe the head-to-head — which the Lynx notably controlled in 2024, three games to one, counting the Commissioner’s Cup final — as a matchup pitting the Liberty’s No.

1 offense against Minnesota’s No.2 defense.Because that shortchanges the fifth-ranked Lynx offense, capable of spreading the floor and pinging the ball around with the best of them (they led the WNBA in assists per game and 3-point shooting percentage).It also too narrowly defines the Liberty, who are prone to brutal lulls on offense (see: their six-point third quarter in Game 3 of the semifinals against the Aces) and now are capable of playing some breathtaking defense (see: the fourth quarter of the Game 4 clincher).Let’s take a deeper look at the matchups that will dictate the course of the Finals:Rarely does an individual matchup set up more clearly and more significantly than this: Breanna Stewart vs.

Napheesa Collier.They are both top-three MVP finishers (Collier was second, Stewart third).They play the same position (power forward).

They share an alma mater (Collier was a freshman on Stewart’s fourth straight UConn title team).They are even business partners, having co-founded a glossy new 3-on-3 league debuting this offseason (Unrivaled).Their roles are similar, too: all-world defensive anchors who fly around to “help” and block shots, as well as Swiss Army knives on offense, filling in scoring gaps from the post out to the 3-point line.Based on most recent form, you’d give th...