The 2017 WNBA Finals was the best-of-five championship series for the 2017 season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), tipping off on September 24.[1] It was a rematch of the previous year's finals matchup. The top-seeded Minnesota Lynx held home court advantage in the Finals, and won three games to two against the second-seeded Los Angeles Sparks. The Sparks won a semifinal series against the Phoenix Mercury to determine one of the Finals berths; the first-seeded Lynx defeated the Washington Mystics to earn the other. Sylvia Fowles was named the 2017 WNBA Finals MVP.

2017 WNBA Finals
TeamCoachWins
Minnesota Lynx Cheryl Reeve 3
Los Angeles Sparks Brian Agler 2
DatesSeptember 24–October 4
MVPUnited States Sylvia Fowles
(Minnesota Lynx)
Hall of FamersLynx:
Seimone Augustus (2024)
Lindsay Whalen (2022)
Eastern finalsLos Angeles Sparks defeated Phoenix Mercury, 3–0 (Note: the semifinal rounds as of 2016 were not divided by conference)
Western finalsMinnesota Lynx defeated Washington Mystics, 3–0
← 2016 WNBA finals 2018 →

Road to the Finals

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Standings and playoffs

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# Western Conference W L PCT GB Home Road Conf.
1 Minnesota Lynx - (1) 27 7 .794 15–2 12–5 13–3
2 Los Angeles Sparks - (2) 26 8 .765 1 16–1 10–7 12–4
3 Phoenix Mercury - (5) 18 16 .529 9 9–8 9–8 7–9
4 Dallas Wings - (7) 16 18 .471 11 10–7 6–11 7–9
5 Seattle Storm - (8) 15 19 .441 12 10–7 5–12 8–8
6 San Antonio Stars - e 8 26 .235 19 6–11 2–15 1–15
# Eastern Conference W L PCT GB Home Road Conf.
1 New York Liberty - (3) 22 12 .647 - 13–4 9–8 10–6
2 Connecticut Sun - (4) 21 13 .636 1 12–5 9–6 10–6
3 Washington Mystics - (6) 18 16 .529 4 11–6 7–10 12-4
4 Chicago Sky - e 12 22 .353 10 4–13 8–9 6–10
5 Atlanta Dream - e 12 22 .353 10 9–8 3–14 5–11
6 Indiana Fever - e 9 25 .265 13 6–11 3–14 4–12
First round:
Single elimination
(Sept. 6)
Second round:
Single elimination
(Sept. 10)
Semifinals:
Best-of-five
(Sept. 12 – Sept. 17)
WNBA Finals:
Best-of-five
(Sept. 24 – Oct. 4)
2Los Angeles Sparks798689
4Connecticut Sun835Phoenix Mercury667287
5Phoenix Mercury795Phoenix Mercury881Minnesota Lynx8470648085
8Seattle Storm692Los Angeles Sparks8568756976
1Minnesota Lynx1019381
3New York Liberty686Washington Mystics818370
6Washington Mystics866Washington Mystics82
7Dallas Wings76

Note: Teams re-seeded after second round and semi-finals.

Series summary

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All times are in Eastern Daylight Time (UTC−4).

Game 1

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September 24
3:30pm ET
Los Angeles Sparks 85, Minnesota Lynx 84
Scoring by quarter: 32–11, 11–22, 25–23, 17–28
Pts: Gray 27
Rebs: Parker 12
Asts: Gray 6
Pts: Moore 27
Rebs: Fowles 13
Asts: Whalen 6
Los Angeles leads series 1-0
Williams Arena, Minneapolis, MN
Attendance: 11,823
Referees: Cheryl Flores, Kurt Walker, Jeff Wooten

Game 2

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September 26
8:00pm ET
Los Angeles Sparks 68, Minnesota Lynx 70
Scoring by quarter: 10–28, 16–17, 24–15, 18–10
Pts: Parker 17
Rebs: Ogwumike 13
Asts: Parker 6
Pts: Whalen 14
Rebs: Fowles 17
Asts: Brunson, Whalen 3
Series tied 1-1
Williams Arena, Minneapolis, MN
Attendance: 11,434
Referees: Maj Forsberg, Bryon Jarrett, Billy Smith

Game 3

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September 29
9:00pm ET
Minnesota Lynx 64, Los Angeles Sparks 75
Scoring by quarter: 8–17, 18–15, 22–24, 16–19
Pts: Moore 16
Rebs: Fowles 11
Asts: Jones 4
Pts: Ogwumike, Sims 16
Rebs: Ogwumike 10
Asts: Gray 7
Los Angeles leads series 2-1
Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
Attendance: 13,500
Referees: Sue Blauch, Eric Brewton, Roy Gulbeyan

Game 4

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October 1
8:30pm ET
Minnesota Lynx 80, Los Angeles Sparks 69
Scoring by quarter: 21–16, 22–15, 18–13, 19–25
Pts: Fowles 22
Rebs: Fowles 14
Asts: Whalen 8
Pts: Sims 18
Rebs: Ogwumike, Parker 8
Asts: Gray 9
Series tied 2-2
Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
Attendance: 13,500
Referees: Maj Forsberg, Billy Smith, Kurt Walker

Game 5

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October 4
8:00pm ET
Los Angeles Sparks 76, Minnesota Lynx 85
Scoring by quarter: 19–21, 16–20, 21–19, 20–25
Pts: Parker 19
Rebs: Parker 15
Asts: Gray 8
Pts: Moore 18
Rebs: Fowles 20
Asts: Whalen 8
Minnesota wins series 3-2
Williams Arena, Minneapolis, MN
Attendance: 14,632
Referees: Sue Blauch, Roy Gulbeyan, Byron Jarrett

References

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