The WNBA returns with one week to settle the regular season.

The WNBA has a week to finish its regular season. League play resumes Thursday, September 17, after the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Berlin, with five games on the opening slate and a September 24 finish. There is little room for a leisurely return. Clubs have to settle back into their rotations while the remaining schedule runs out.

Five games on the return slate

The league's return-to-play guide lists Connecticut–Atlanta, Washington–Chicago, Los Angeles–Dallas, Phoenix–Portland and Las Vegas–Seattle. Connecticut–Atlanta is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Eastern. The Liberty are not part of that five-game slate.

For U.S. viewers, the league guide puts Sparks–Wings and Aces–Storm on USA Network, with the other three games on League Pass. The current schedule linked below carries start times and viewing details; local availability can vary. New York fans can follow the restart without mistaking it for a Liberty game night.

The road to the playoffs

According to the WNBA's season announcement, the playoffs begin September 27. The top eight teams qualify regardless of conference. The opening round is best-of-three, the semifinals best-of-five and the Finals best-of-seven. A longer championship series does not give a team extra room in that short first round.

The final week also gives coaches a short window to settle combinations. The closing lineup in a close game may say more about a team's plans than an easy night's final score. Returning international players add another variable: tournament form alone cannot tell us how much work they will take on back with their clubs. Team availability updates and the games themselves will supply that answer.

The New York watch

For the Liberty, the published schedule resumes at Minnesota on Friday, September 18. That is New York's first stop after the league restart, with the September 27 playoff opening already close. This is the original return-to-play preview; the linked current schedule carries subsequent results and changes. It does not assign New York a playoff seed or assume any individual player's minutes.