WNBA Awards Season Begins with Rookie, Coach, Most Improved and Defensive Player Honors
Quick Look
- The WNBA announced its first four major awards for the 2026 season: Olivia Miles of the Minnesota Lynx won Rookie of the Year, Cheryl Reeve of the Lynx won Coach of the Year, Jessica Shepard of the Dallas Wings won Most Improved Player, and Angel Reese of the Atlanta Dream won Defensive Player of the Year.
- Miles, the No.
- 2 overall pick, was unanimous Rookie of the Year and broke Caitlin Clark's rookie scoring record.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
The 2026 WNBA awards season began with the announcement of Rookie of the Year, Coach of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Defensive Player of the Year honors. The Minnesota Lynx, despite being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the New York Liberty as the first No. 1 seed to lose to an No. 8 seed in WNBA history, had two of their players win awards. The league has not released a schedule for the remaining awards, which include MVP, Sixth Player of the Year, All-WNBA, All-Defensive, All-Rookie Teams, Executive of the Year, and Sportsmanship Award.
Awards season has arrived in the WNBA. Ironically, the first two awards announced -- Olivia Miles, Rookie of the Year and Cheryl Reeve, Coach of the Year -- were won by members of the Minnesota Lynx who were eliminated from the playoffs on Tuesday by the New York Liberty, becoming the first No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 8 seed in the first round in WNBA history.
On Wednesday, Jessica Shepard joined the honorees when she was named Most Improved Player ahead of the Dallas Wings' Game 2 win against the Golden State Valkyries. On Thursday, it was Angel Reese of the Atlanta Dream earning Defensive Player of the Year honors.
The WNBA has not announced an awards schedule this year, so it's unclear when the remaining honors will be announced. Still to come are MVP and Sixth Player of the Year, as well as the All-WNBA, All-Defensive and All-Rookie Teams. In addition, the league will hand out the Executive of the Year and the Sportsmanship Award.
2026 WNBA awards ballot: Revealing picks for All-WNBA, All-Defensive, Most Improved and more
Jack Maloney
Rookie of the Year: Olivia Miles, Lynx
Miles, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, was named the unanimous Rookie of the Year as expected. She is the sixth player to win that honor unanimously, joining Aliyah Boston, A'ja Wilson, Elena Delle Donne, Tina Charles and Candace Parker.
Miles, who averaged 19.8 points and six assists per game, led all rookies in scoring and assists, and finished eighth and seventh in the league, respectively, in those categories. She also broke Caitlin Clark's rookie points record (790) and led the Lynx to a 33-11 record and the No. 1 seed.
Was Olivia Miles a better rookie than Caitlin Clark? Comparing the WNBA's two best rookie guard seasons ever
Jack Maloney
Most Improved Player: Jessica Shepard, Wings
Shepard joined the Wings in free agency on a two-year, $2 million deal that she immediately justified. As a full-time starter for the first time in her career, Shepard averaged 14.5 points, 11.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game, up from eight points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists last season. She finished second in the league in rebounding and 11th in assists, was one of two players (along with Angel Reese) to average a double-double, led the league with six triple-doubles and recorded just the second 20-20-10 game in WNBA history.
Shepard beat out Shakira Austin and Carla Leite in a close race. Marina Mabrey, Dominique Malonga and Rae Burrell also received votes.
PlayerTeamVotes
Jessica Shepard
Wings
29
Shakira Austin
Mystics
25
Carla Leite
Fire
11
Coach of the Year: Cheryl Reeve, Lynx
The Lynx lost six rotation players from last season's team that went 34-10, and star forward Napheesa Collier was sidelined until late July after undergoing surgery on both ankles in the offseason, yet the Lynx once again finished with the best record in the league. That was thanks in large part to a tremendous coaching performance from Reeve, who helped turn Miles into one of the league's best players and got her new-look group to gel -- at least until the playoffs.
Reeve has now won Coach of the Year five times, extending her record and becoming the first coach in major American professional sports to receive the honor five times.
Reeve beat out Natalie Nakase and Sydney Johnson.
CoachTeamVotes
Cheryl Reeve
Lynx
40
Natalie Nakase
Valkyries
20
Sydney Johnson
Mystics
14
Defensive Player of the Year: Angel Reese, Dream
Reese's versatility, rebounding, and impact on one of the league's best defensive teams were impossible for voters to ignore as she earned DPOY honors for the first time. The Dream finished third in the league in defensive rating (103.5) in large part thanks to Reese.
Reese was third in steals per game (1.8), seventh in stocks (steals plus blocks) per game (2.5), fourth in defensive rebounds per game (7.3) and first in defensive win shares (3.4). The Dream's defense was also 13 points per 100 possessions worse with Reese off the floor, and opponents' true shooting percentage was 6.4% worse with Reese on the floor.
PlayerTeamVotes
Angel Reese
Dream
46
Gabby Williams
Valkyries
20
A'ja Wilson
Aces
4
Shakira Austin
Mystics
2
Veronica Burton
Valkyries
1
Rhyne Howard
Dream
1
MVP
To be announced
Sixth Player of the Year
To be announced
All-WNBA Teams
To be announced
All-Defensive Teams
To be announced
All-Rookie Team
To be announced
Executive of the Year
To be announced
Sportsmanship award
Open Questions
- When will the remaining WNBA awards be announced?
- Who will win MVP and Sixth Player of the Year?
- Which players will make the All-WNBA, All-Defensive, and All-Rookie Teams?
- Who will win Executive of the Year and the Sportsmanship Award?
