WNBA: What is the aim of the Washington Mystics’ rebuild?

For the first time in three seasons, the Washington Mystics missed the playoffs. This year, much like last year, was defined by some difficult injuries and a lot of tough losses.

The Mystics got off to a dreadful 0-12 start to the season, during which they experimented with three different starting lineups. With Brittney Sykes and Shakira Austin dealing with early-season injuries, it felt like the writing was on the wall for the Mystics. They were on pace to have the highest odds for landing the No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.

It was during this time that the Mystics learned a lot about themselves.

What went right for Washington?

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Aaliyah Edwards

Starting with the rookie Aaliyah Edwards, who showed a lot of promise in her first year. She showed flashes of her defensive potential, taking on a variety of different assignments both on the perimeter and inside. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to those who watched her at UConn, as she was tasked with similar roles.

As for areas of improvement, finishing at the rim will need to be a point of emphasis. Her paint finishing wasn’t great this year, and although some of that can be attributed to other factors, it’s important for her development and future as a non-shooting big that those areas on the floor produce efficient offense.

Emily Engstler

Emily Engstler was another fantastic surprise as well. Not only did she take a massive leap as a defender and passer this season, but her 3-point shooting improved drastically. In the first two seasons of her career, Engstler shot 35 percent from 3 on just one attempt per game. This season, that number almost doubled, while shooting a ludicrous 47 percent from 3.

The volume is still low, but as the season progressed, teams started to respect her even more from behind the arc, which opened up a lot for Washington’s offense. In just under 500 minutes, the Mystics were nearly five points better with Engstler on the court, almost attaining an even scoring margin in her minutes. This is a very promising signal given that the Mystics struggled finding positive five-player lineups.

Stefanie Dolson

Another player who had a phenomenal shooting season was Stefanie Dolson. She had a historic season actually, shooting 46.5 percent from 3 on four attempts per game, which is the fifth-best mark for any player attempting at least four 3s per game in league history.

What’s next for the Mystics?

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The Mystics also made midseason moves to get younger, trading for Sika Koné at the deadline, who, along with Edwards and Jade Melbourne, gives the team three of the youngest players in the league.

Despite all the promising moves, the way the season ended left many confused as to the direction of the team. Washington struggled mightily getting shot creation from the guard position. After the first month of the season, it felt like Washington was going to tank for UConn’s Paige Bueckers, one of the most hyped prospects in recent history who also would solve Washington’s glaring issues.

However, as the season progressed, Washington started to hit their stride, which is certainly a positive sign, but the team failed to make the playoffs and simultaneously ruined their chances of securing a generational prospect in the draft. The Mystics aren’t in a position to be drafting for fit, finding the best player available should be the goal. Unless they strike lucky in the draft lottery (they have a 10 percent chance of landing the No. 1 pick), Washington will likely be drafting third or fourth, which isn’t bad, but it doesn’t put them in a situation to turn their fortunes around like the Indiana Fever were able to do this season.

Hopefully, Washington can make some moves this offseason or get lucky in the draft, but if not, we will look back at the final 12 games of this season, where they went 8-4 despite being almost completely eliminated from playoff contention, as one of the most perplexing decisions in WNBA history.