# 2001 WNBA season

The 2001 WNBA Season was the Women's National Basketball Association's fifth season. The season ended with the Los Angeles Sparks winning their first WNBA championship.

## Regular season standings

Eastern Conference
| Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
| Cleveland Rockers $^x$ | 22 | 10 | .688 | 15–6 | – |
| New York Liberty $^x$ | 21 | 11 | .656 | 13–8 | 1.0 |
| Miami Sol $^x$ | 20 | 12 | .625 | 14–7 | 2.0 |
| Charlotte Sting $^x$ | 18 | 14 | .563 | 15–6 | 4.0 |
| Orlando Miracle $^o$ | 13 | 19 | .406 | 9–12 | 9.0 |
| Indiana Fever $^o$ | 10 | 22 | .313 | 7–14 | 12.0 |
| Detroit Shock $^o$ | 10 | 22 | .313 | 7–14 | 12.0 |
| Washington Mystics $^o$ | 10 | 22 | .313 | 4–17 | 12.0 |
Western Conference
| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | Conf. | GB |
| Los Angeles Sparks $^x$ | 28 | 4 | .875 | 19–2 | – |
| Sacramento Monarchs $^x$ | 20 | 12 | .625 | 13–8 | 8.0 |
| Utah Starzz $^x$ | 19 | 13 | .594 | 11–10 | 9.0 |
| Houston Comets $^x$ | 19 | 13 | .594 | 13–8 | 9.0 |
| Phoenix Mercury $^o$ | 13 | 19 | .406 | 8–13 | 15.0 |
| Minnesota Lynx $^o$ | 12 | 20 | .375 | 9–12 | 16.0 |
| Portland Fire $^o$ | 11 | 21 | .344 | 5–16 | 17.0 |
| Seattle Storm $^o$ | 10 | 22 | .313 | 6–15 | 18.0 |
Note: Teams with an "X" clinched playoff spots.

## Season award winners

| Award | Winner | Team |
| WNBA Finals MVP Award | Lisa Leslie | Los Angeles Sparks |
| WNBA Most Valuable Player Award | Lisa Leslie | Los Angeles Sparks |
| WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award | Debbie Black | Miami Sol |
| WNBA Most Improved Player Award | Janeth Arcain | Houston Comets |
| WNBA Peak Performer | Latasha Byears | Los Angeles Sparks |
| WNBA Peak Performer | Elena Baranova | Miami Sol |
| WNBA Rookie of the Year Award | Jackie Stiles | Portland Fire |
| Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award | Sue Wicks | New York Liberty |
| WNBA Coach of the Year Award | Dan Hughes | Cleveland Rockers |

## Playoffs

| First Round Best of 3 | First Round Best of 3 | First Round Best of 3 | Conference Finals Best of 3 | Conference Finals Best of 3 | Conference Finals Best of 3 | WNBA Finals Best of 3 | WNBA Finals Best of 3 | WNBA Finals Best of 3 |
| E1 | Cleveland | 1 | | | | | | |
| E4 | Charlotte | 2 | | | | | | |
| E4 | Charlotte | 2 | E4 | Charlotte | 2 | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E4 | Charlotte | 2 | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E2 | New York | 1 | | | |
| E2 | New York | 2 | E2 | New York | 1 | | | |
| E3 | Miami | 1 | | | | | | |
| E3 | Miami | 1 | | | | E4 | Charlotte | 0 |
| | | | | | | W1 | Los Angeles | 2 |
| W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | | | | | | | W1 | Los Angeles | 2 |
| W4 | Houston | 0 | | | | | | |
| W4 | Houston | 0 | W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W1 | Los Angeles | 2 | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W2 | Sacramento | 1 | | | |
| W2 | Sacramento | 2 | W2 | Sacramento | 1 | | | |
| W3 | Utah | 0 | | | | | | |

## Coaches
### Eastern Conference

* Charlotte Sting: Anne Donovan
* Cleveland Rockers: Dan Hughes
* Detroit Shock: Greg Williams
* Indiana Fever: Nell Fortner
* Miami Sol: Ron Rothstein
* New York Liberty: Richie Adubato
* Orlando Miracle: Carolyn Peck
* Washington Mystics: Tom Maher

### Western Conference

* Houston Comets: Van Chancellor
* Los Angeles Sparks: Michael Cooper
* Minnesota Lynx: Brian Agler
* Phoenix Mercury: Cynthia Cooper
* Portland Fire: Linda Hargrove
* Sacramento Monarchs: Maura McHugh
* Seattle Storm: Lin Dunn
* Utah Starzz: Fred Williams and Candi Harvey