While playoff performances often dominate headlines and fan attention, the WNBA has introduced an innovative midseason competition designed to add more excitement and stakes during the regular season-the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup.
This tournament provides a unique spotlight on early-season games and recognizes top performers, particularly with the MVP award given to the standout player on the championship team.
Launched in 2021 following the end of the COVID-19, WNBA Commissioner’s Cup has become an integral part of the league’s identity and schedule, creating its own distinct rivalry separate from the traditional playoffs.
The competition designates a series of regular-season games as “Cup games” that determine which teams qualify for the Cup final. Each WNBA team plays a set number of five for Eastern Conference teams and six for Western Conference teams.
These games count towards both the overall regular-season record and the Commissioner’s Cup standings, and at the end of this designated stretch, the teams with the best records in the Eastern and Western conferences face off in the championship game.
For the 2025 edition that sees Caitlin Clark‘s Indiana Fever take on Napheesa Collier’s Minnesota Lynx at the Target Center in Minneapolis, with tip off on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, at 20:00 ET / 17:00 PT.
The total purse is $500,000, enhanced by a $120,000 cryptocurrency donation from Coinbase, who will also provide $5,000 to each player on the teams competing in the final.
Who has won WNBA Commissioner’s Cup MVP?
Since its debut in 2021, the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup has crowned four different champions, with the Lynx looking to become the first two-time winners of the competition.
Minnesota won the 2024 edition, preceded by the New York Liberty, Las Vegas Aces and Seattle Storm, the latter winning the inaugural contest back in the 2021 WNBA season.
They have also named an MVP for each of the games, but who are they? Find out below:
- Napheesa Collier (Lynx)
- Jonquel Jones (Liberty)
- Chelsea Gray (Aces)
- Breanna Stewart (Storm)
Where to watch Commissioner’s Cup 2025 as Fever take on Lynx
As the 2025 Cup approaches, attention will turn to which teams rise to the top of their conferences and which players will deliver MVP-caliber performances to etch their names alongside the previous winners.
And it sees two hot properties in the sport go head-to-head as Clark, averaging 18.2 points, 8.9 assists and five rebounds per game, takes on Collier, who is posting 24.4 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per outing.
Fans can watch all of the action live on Amazon Prime Video, which can be found on home streaming devices as well as online as Clark looks for her first silverware in the sport, but will she be denied by Collier’s Lynx side?
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