# 2017 Minnesota Lynx season

The 2017 WNBA season of the Minnesota Lynx is their 19th season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Lynx finished the 2016 season with a record of 28–6, finishing first in the Western Conference (and the league as a whole) and qualifying for the playoffs, before ultimately beating Los Angeles in the WNBA Finals to win their league-tying best fourth championship.
The Lynx moved from their normal home, Target Center in Minneapolis, to the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul for the 2017 season due to the renovation that would be taking place at Target Center. Due to the Minnesota Wild season beginning, the Lynx announced that the entirety of their playoff run would be played at the University of Minnesota's Williams Arena.
The Lynx opened the season on May 14 with a 70–61 victory over the Chicago Sky. Sylvia Fowles led the way with 26 points and 10 rebounds. During the May 20 game versus the Dallas Wings, Rebekkah Brunson recorded her 3,000th career rebound, becoming the fifth player in league history to do so. Cheryl Reeve was named the inaugural WNBA Coach of the Month for the month of May. Lindsay Whalen became the all-time winningest player in WNBA history with 295 wins, with a June 9 victory over the Washington Mystics. The win broke the tie with Swin Cash, giving Whalen first place in that category all by herself.
With the win against the San Antonio Stars on June 25, Seimone Augustus, Rebekkah Brunson, Maya Moore, and Lindsay Whalen became the winningest quartet in WNBA History with 122 wins, passing the Los Angeles Sparks quartet of Tamecka Dixon, Lisa Leslie, Mwadi Mabika, and Delisha Milton-Jones who recorded 121 from 1999 to 2004. During the July 6 victory over the Sparks, Maya Moore scored her 4,000th career point.
Four Lynx players were named to the West All-Star Team - Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles, Seimone Augustus, Rebekkah Brunson. Moore and Fowles were named starters, while Augustus and Brunson were named reserves. Brunson was selected as a replacement player for the injured Brittney Griner. During the July 16 game versus the Phoenix Mercury, Sylvia Fowles scored her 4,000th career point. Sylvia Fowles recorded her 500th career block during the July 25 game versus the New York Liberty, becoming the seventh person in league history to do so. Fowles grabbed her 2,500th career rebound during the August 8 game versus the Atlanta Dream. She became the 10th player in league history to reach that milestone.
The Lynx unveiled their new logo, which will be used in the 2018 season, at the halftime of the August 11 game versus the Los Angeles Sparks.
The team made WNBA history with the 111–52 victory over the Indiana Fever, breaking the WNBA record for margin of victory (59), largest run (37-0), and largest halftime lead (45). They also broke Lynx franchise records for most points in a half (68) and most field goals in any half (27), while tying a record for most points in any quarter (37). During the same game, Jia Perkins passed Katie Douglas on the WNBA all-time steals list to move into fifth place. After beating the San Antonio Stars on August 25 to begin a 3-game road trip, the Lynx clinched a spot in the WNBA semifinals.
With their August 30 victory over the Indiana Fever, the Lynx recorded their 25th win of the season, which they have now done for six seasons in team history, tying a WNBA record. During the September 1 game versus the Chicago Sky, Maya Moore passed Katie Smith for the franchise record for career 3-pointers. On September 2, the WNBA and the Lynx announced that Minnesota would be the host of the 2018 WNBA All-Star Game. This would be the first time that the Lynx have hosted the All-Star Game. Following their regular season finale victory over the Washington Mystics, the Lynx clinched the overall top seed in the 2017 WNBA Playoffs.
By earning the top seed in the playoffs, the Lynx advanced to the semifinal round and faced the Washington Mystics. The Lynx swept the Mystics 3–0 to advance to the WNBA Finals. It is the Lynx's sixth time in seven years advancing to the Finals. The Lynx defeated the Los Angeles Sparks in 5 games to win their fourth WNBA championship in seven years, tying the now-defunct Houston Comets for most championship titles.

## Transactions
### WNBA draft

| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | School/team/country |
| 1 | 12 | Alexis Jones | United States | Baylor |
| 2 | 24 | Lisa Berkani | France | USO Mondeville (France) |
| 3 | 36 | Tahlia Tupaea | Australia | Sydney Uni Flames (Australia) |

### Trades and roster changes

| Date | Trade |
| February 1, 2017 | Signed F Plenette Pierson |
| April 14, 2017 | Acquired the draft rights to F/C Chantel Oshaor from Chicago in exchange for Keisha Hampton |
| April 18, 2017 | Signed F Shao Ting |
| April 19, 2017 | Signed F Keyona Hayes |
| April 20, 2017 | Signed 1st Round Pick, G Alexis Jones |
| April 21, 2017 | Signed F/C Chantel Osahor, F Breanna Richardson, and G Moriah Mack |
| April 26, 2017 | Signed 2nd Round Pick, G Lisa Berkani |
| April 28, 2017 | Waived F Keyona Hayes |
| May 9, 2017 | Waived F/C Chantel Oshaor, F Breanna Richardson, and G Moriah Mack |
| May 12, 2017 | Waived F Shao Ting and Suspend G Lisa Berkani |
| August 28, 2017 | Signed F Cecilia Zandalasini |
| September 1, 2017 | Signed C Sylvia Fowles to a Multi-Year Extension |

## Roster
### Depth chart

| Pos. | Starter | Bench |
| C | Sylvia Fowles | Plenette Pierson Temi Fagbenle |
| PF | Rebekkah Brunson | Natasha Howard |
| SF | Maya Moore | Cecilia Zandalasini |
| SG | Seimone Augustus | Jia Perkins |
| PG | Lindsay Whalen | Renee Montgomery Alexis Jones |

## Schedule
### Preseason

2017 pre-season game log Total: 2–0 (Home: 1–0; Road: 1–0) :
pre-season: 2–0 (Home: 1–0; Road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
May 5
Atlanta
W 113–67
Natasha Howard (19)
Chantel Osahor (6)
Chantel Osahor Alexis Jones (5)
Xcel Energy Center 5,132
1–0
2
May 8
@ Washington
W 74–59
Rebekkah Brunson (14)
Rebekkah Brunson (7)
Lindsay Whalen (5)
Verizon Center 1,426
2–0 :
2017 season schedule :

### Regular season

2017 game log Total: 27–7 (Home: 15–2; Road: 12–5) :
May: 6–0 (Home: 3–0; Road: 3–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
1
May 14
Chicago
W 70–61
Sylvia Fowles (26)
Sylvia Fowles (10)
Maya Moore (6)
Xcel Energy Center 9,234
1–0
2
May 18
@ New York
W 90–71
Maya Moore (16)
Maya Moore (11)
Maya Moore (6)
Madison Square Garden 7,004
2–0
3
May 20
@ Dallas
W 89–87
Sylvia Fowles (27)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Lindsay Whalen (6)
College Park Center 5,169
3–0
4
May 23
Connecticut
W 80–78
Sylvia Fowles (21)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Maya Moore (5)
Xcel Energy Center 8,033
4–0
5
May 26
@ Connecticut
W 82–68
Sylvia Fowles (20)
Maya Moore (11)
Seimone Augustus Renee Montgomery (4)
Mohegan Sun Arena 6,333
5–0
6
May 28
San Antonio
W 80–66
Sylvia Fowles (14)
Sylvia Fowles (12)
Lindsay Whalen (10)
Xcel Energy Center 9,034
6–0 :
June: 6–1 (Home: 2–1; Road: 4–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
7
June 3
@ Seattle
W 100–77
Sylvia Fowles (26)
Sylvia Fowles Seimone Augustus (7)
Maya Moore (4)
KeyArena 7,576
7–0
8
June 9
@ Washington
W 98–73
Sylvia Fowles (21)
Sylvia Fowles (11)
Maya Moore Lindsay Whalen (6)
Verizon Center 6,518
8–0
9
June 11
@ Dallas
W 91–74
Sylvia Fowles (30)
Rebekkah Brunson (14)
Seimone Augustus (9)
College Park Center 3,998
9–0
10
June 17
Connecticut
L 93–98
Maya Moore (22)
Sylvia Fowles (7)
Rebekkah Brunson (5)
Xcel Energy Center 10,121
9–1
11
June 23
Washington
W 93–76
Maya Moore (22)
Sylvia Fowles (15)
Maya Moore (7)
Xcel Energy Center 9,723
10–1
12
June 25
San Antonio
W 87–78
Sylvia Fowles Maya Moore (22)
Rebekkah Brunson Sylvia Fowles (10)
Seimone Augustus (5)
Xcel Energy Center 9,013
11–1
13
June 30
@ Phoenix
W 91–83
Maya Moore (21)
Rebekkah Brunson (10)
Maya Moore (5)
Talking Stick Resort Arena 11,330
12–1 :
July: 7–1 (Home: 5–0; Road: 2–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
14
July 6
Los Angeles
W 88–77
Sylvia Fowles Renee Montgomery (20)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Renee Montgomery (4)
Xcel Energy Center 9,821
13–1
15
July 8
@ Chicago
L 76–100
Rebekkah Brunson (22)
Sylvia Fowles (6)
Lindsay Whalen (5)
Allstate Arena 6,942
13–2
16
July 14
@ Phoenix
W 88–71
Seimone Augustus Maya Moore (19)
Sylvia Fowles (10)
Maya Moore (7)
Talking Stick Resort Arena 10,493
14–2
17
July 16
Phoenix
W 81–66
Sylvia Fowles (18)
Maya Moore (9)
Seimone Augustus (3)
Xcel Energy Center 10,022
15–2
18
July 19
Dallas
W 100–74
Sylvia Fowles (24)
Sylvia Fowles (12)
Seimone Augustus (9)
Xcel Energy Center 17,834
16–2
19
July 25
New York
W 76–75
Maya Moore (27)
Sylvia Fowles (9)
Seimone Augustus Rebekkah Brunson Plenette Pierson (3)
Xcel Energy Center 10,123
17–2
20
July 28
@ Atlanta
W 90–80
Sylvia Fowles (29)
Rebekkah Brunson Sylvia Fowles (8)
Seimone Augustus (10)
McCamish Pavilion 4,197
18–2
21
July 30
Seattle
W 93–82
Sylvia Fowles (29)
Sylvia Fowles (12)
Jia Perkins (7)
Xcel Energy Center 12,432
19–2 :
August: 6–5 (Home: 3–1; Road: 3–4)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
22
August 3
Atlanta
W 69–54
Sylvia Fowles (25)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Renee Montgomery (7)
Xcel Energy Center 9,622
20–2
23
August 6
@ Indiana
L 82–84
Maya Moore (28)
Rebekkah Brunson (12)
Seimone Augustus (4)
Bankers Life Fieldhouse 8,226
20–3
24
August 8
@ Atlanta
W 81–72
Sylvia Fowles (27)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Renee Montgomery (6)
McCamish Pavilion 4,006
21–3
25
August 11
Los Angeles
L 64–70
Sylvia Fowles (17)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Seimone Augustus (6)
Xcel Energy Center 11,533
21–4
26
August 16
@ Seattle
L 61–62
Maya Moore (15)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Renee Montgomery (4)
KeyArena 7,876
21–5
27
August 18
Indiana
W 111–52
Sylvia Fowles (25)
Natasha Howard Jia Perkins (7)
Seimone Augustus (8)
Xcel Energy Center 9,621
22–5
28
August 20
@ New York
L 61–70
Maya Moore (22)
Sylvia Fowles (15)
Renee Montgomery Seimone Augustus Plenette Pierson (3)
Madison Square Garden 10,007
22–6
29
August 22
Phoenix
W 105–69
Maya Moore (21)
Sylvia Fowles (10)
Renee Montgomery (7)
Xcel Energy Center 10,723
23–6
30
August 25
@ San Antonio
W 89–70
Maya Moore (24)
Sylvia Fowles (10)
Renee Montgomery (8)
AT&T Center 7,950
24–6
31
August 27
@ Los Angeles
L 67–78
Sylvia Fowles (17)
Sylvia Fowles (14)
Seimone Augustus (6)
Staples Center 19,282
24–7
32
August 30
@ Indiana
W 80–69
Maya Moore (18)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Maya Moore Seimone Augustus Natasha Howard (3)
Bankers Life Fieldhouse 7,625
25–7 :
September: 2–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 0–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceRecord
33
September 1
Chicago
W 110–87
Sylvia Fowles (27)
Sylvia Fowles (12)
Maya Moore (9)
Xcel Energy Center 9,709
26–7
34
September 3
Washington
W 86–72
Maya Moore (26)
Sylvia Fowles (8)
Sylvia Fowles (5)
Xcel Energy Center 10,321
27–7 :
2017 season schedule :

### Playoffs

2017 playoff game log Total: 6–2 (Home: 4–1; Road: 2–1) :
WNBA Semifinals: 3–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
September 12
Washington
W 101–81
Seimone Augustus (24)
Sylvia Fowles (7)
Maya Moore (4)
Williams Arena 7,834
1–0
2
September 14
Washington
W 93–83
Sylvia Fowles (25)
Rebekkah Brunson (10)
Lindsay Whalen (7)
Williams Arena 9,033
2–0
3
September 17
Washington
W 81–70
Maya Moore (21)
Sylvia Fowles (14)
Lindsay Whalen Maya Moore (5)
Capital One Arena 7,950
3–0 :
WNBA Finals: 3–2 (Home: 2–1; Road: 1–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation AttendanceSeries
1
September 24
Los Angeles
L 84–85
Maya Moore (27)
Sylvia Fowles (13)
Lindsay Whalen (6)
Williams Arena 11,823
0–1
2
September 26
Los Angeles
W 70–68
Lindsay Whalen (14)
Sylvia Fowles (17)
Rebekkah Brunson Lindsay Whalen (3)
Williams Arena 11,434
1–1
3
September 29
Los Angeles
L 64–75
Maya Moore (16)
Sylvia Fowles (11)
Alexis Jones (4)
Staples Center 13,500
1–2
4
October 1
Los Angeles
W 80–69
Sylvia Fowles (22)
Sylvia Fowles (14)
Lindsay Whalen (8)
Staples Center 13,500
2–2
5
October 4
Los Angeles
W 85–76
Maya Moore (18)
Sylvia Fowles (20)
Lindsay Whalen (8)
Williams Arena 14,632
3–2 :
2017 playoff schedule :

## Statistics
### Regular season

| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG |
| Sylvia Fowles | 34 | 34 | 30.8 | .655 | .000 | .768 | 18.9 | 10.4 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 2.0 |
| Maya Moore | 34 | 34 | 31.3 | .442 | .411 | .858 | 17.3 | 5.0 | 3.5 | 1.9 | 0.4 |
| Seimone Augustus | 32 | 32 | 27.7 | .502 | .432 | .868 | 10.9 | 2.9 | 4.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| Rebekkah Brunson | 30 | 30 | 26.9 | .449 | .348 | .711 | 10.2 | 6.7 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 0.4 |
| Lindsay Whalen | 22 | 22 | 23.6 | .451 | .353 | .750 | 8.0 | 2.5 | 4.1 | 0.5 | 0.1 |
| Renee Montgomery | 34 | 12 | 21.9 | .424 | .358 | .842 | 8.0 | 1.6 | 3.4 | 0.7 | 0.1 |
| Plenette Pierson | 34 | 4 | 13.7 | .427 | .339 | .792 | 5.2 | 2.2 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 0.1 |
| Natasha Howard | 34 | 0 | 11.7 | .484 | .214 | .733 | 4.3 | 2.4 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 0.6 |
| Jia Perkins | 34 | 2 | 16.3 | .369 | .316 | .833 | 4.2 | 2.0 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 0.0 |
| Alexis Jones | 29 | 0 | 7.3 | .342 | .379 | .857 | 2.6 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
| Temi Fagbenle | 21 | 0 | 4.2 | .500 | .000 | .778 | 1.2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.2 |
| Cecilia Zandalasini | 3 | 0 | 6.3 | .250 | .000 | .000 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |

### Playoffs

| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG |
| Sylvia Fowles | 8 | 8 | 35.4 | .631 | .000 | .559 | 18.6 | 13.1 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 2.0 |
| Maya Moore | 8 | 8 | 33.4 | .515 | .542 | .730 | 18.3 | 5.3 | 3.0 | 1.8 | 0.4 |
| Seimone Augustus | 8 | 8 | 31.8 | .490 | .526 | .500 | 13.9 | 4.8 | 3.5 | 0.4 | 0.5 |
| Rebekkah Brunson | 8 | 8 | 28.0 | .361 | .111 | .793 | 9.5 | 6.0 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 0.5 |
| Lindsay Whalen | 8 | 8 | 22.9 | .457 | .222 | .789 | 7.4 | 2.0 | 4.9 | 0.5 | 0.1 |
| Renee Montgomery | 8 | 0 | 17.1 | .449 | .393 | .500 | 7.0 | 1.3 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 0.3 |
| Plenette Pierson | 8 | 0 | 5.4 | .364 | .500 | .000 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Natasha Howard | 7 | 0 | 5.6 | .200 | .000 | .800 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
| Jia Perkins | 8 | 0 | 15.8 | .333 | .286 | 1.000 | 3.3 | 2.0 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.1 |
| Alexis Jones | 5 | 0 | 6.0 | .333 | .667 | .000 | 2.4 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Temi Fagbenle | 2 | 0 | 2.0 | .667 | .000 | .000 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Cecilia Zandalasini | 5 | 0 | 2.2 | 1.000 | .000 | .000 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |

## Standings

| # | Western Conference vte | 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 |

### Playoffs

| First round: Single elimination (Sept. 6) | First round: Single elimination (Sept. 6) | First round: Single elimination (Sept. 6) | Second round: Single elimination (Sept. 10) | Second round: Single elimination (Sept. 10) | Second round: Single elimination (Sept. 10) | Semifinals: Best-of-five (Sept. 12 – Sept. 17) | Semifinals: Best-of-five (Sept. 12 – Sept. 17) | Semifinals: Best-of-five (Sept. 12 – Sept. 17) | Semifinals: Best-of-five (Sept. 12 – Sept. 17) | Semifinals: Best-of-five (Sept. 12 – Sept. 17) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 24 – Oct. 4) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 24 – Oct. 4) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 24 – Oct. 4) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 24 – Oct. 4) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 24 – Oct. 4) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 24 – Oct. 4) | WNBA Finals: Best-of-five (Sept. 24 – Oct. 4) |
| | | | | | | 2 | Los Angeles Sparks | 79 | 86 | 89 | | | | | | | |
| | | | 4 | Connecticut Sun | 83 | 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 66 | 72 | 87 | | | | | | | |
| 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 79 | 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 88 | | | | | | 1 | Minnesota Lynx | 84 | 70 | 64 | 80 | 85 |
| 8 | Seattle Storm | 69 | | | | | | | | | 2 | Los Angeles Sparks | 85 | 68 | 75 | 69 | 76 |
| | | | | | | 1 | Minnesota Lynx | 101 | 93 | 81 | | | | | | | |
| | | | 3 | New York Liberty | 68 | 6 | Washington Mystics | 81 | 83 | 70 | | | | | | | |
| 6 | Washington Mystics | 86 | 6 | Washington Mystics | 82 | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| 7 | Dallas Wings | 76 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Note: Teams re-seeded after second round and semi-finals.

## Awards and milestones

| Recipient | Award/Milestone | Date Awarded |
| Rebekkah Brunson | 3,000th Career Rebound | May 20 |
| Sylvia Fowles | Player of the Week | May 13–21 May 22–28 June 5–11 July 17–23 August 7–13 |
| Minnesota Lynx | Tied WNBA All-Time Record for Consecutive Wins in May (23 Straight) | May |
| Sylvia Fowles | Player of the Month | May June July |
| Cheryl Reeve | Coach of the Month | May |
| Lindsay Whalen | Became WNBA's All-Time Winningest Player (295 Wins) | June 9 |
| Seimone Augustus, Rebekkah Brunson, Maya Moore, Lindsay Whalen | Became WNBA's Winningest Quartet (122 Wins) | June 25 |
| Maya Moore | 4,000th Career Point | July 6 |
| Maya Moore Sylvia Fowles | All-Star Starters | July 11 |
| Sylvia Fowles | 4,000th Career Point | July 16 |
| Seimone Augustus | All-Star Reserve | July 18 |
| Rebekkah Brunson | All-Star Reserve | July 19 |
| Maya Moore | All-Star Game MVP | July 22 |
| Sylvia Fowles | 500th Career Block | July 25 |
| Sylvia Fowles | 2,500th Career Rebound | August 8 |
| Maya Moore | Franchise Record for Career 3-Pointers (461) | September 1 |
| Sylvia Fowles | 1st Team All-Defense | September 12 |
| Rebekkah Brunson Maya Moore | 2nd Team All-Defense | September 12 |
| Sylvia Fowles | MVP | September 14 |
| Sylvia Fowles Maya Moore | 1st Team All-WNBA | September 29 |
| Sylvia Fowles | Finals MVP | October 5 |