WNBA Heat Check, Atlanta Dream 8-2 in Their Last 10

Form is the story the standings tell slowly and the last ten games tell fast. Right now the fast version of WNBA is easy to summarize: Atlanta Dream are rolling, Toronto Tempo are reeling, and the gap between those two feelings is enormous.

The warm end of the table

Nobody is playing better than Atlanta Dream right now. The record says 8-2 over their last 10; the points column says even more, a +158 margin that works out to 97.4 scored and 81.6 allowed a night.

Golden State Valkyries are the closest thing to company at 8-2, with a +118 points margin that says the record is no fluke.

And do not sleep on Indiana Fever, quietly 8-2 across their last 10.

For scale, the league as a whole is averaging 86.2 points a game over this window, Atlanta Dream are clearing that bar by 11.2 a night all on their own.

The cold end

At the bottom of the temperature map sit Toronto Tempo: 1-9 in their last 10, -124 on points margin. That is about 12.4 a game in the wrong direction, and no lineup shuffle fixes it overnight.

Connecticut Sun are not far behind on the misery index at 2-8.

In between the extremes it gets crowded, Washington Mystics at 6-4 and Las Vegas Aces at 6-4 are basically sharing a seat, and the next series either way will split them.

By the numbers

For the fuller picture, the five best recent records in the league:

Worth remembering

Records fib a little and points margins fib less. When the two columns disagree about a team, trust the margin, it is the slower liar.

One to circle: Atlanta Dream meet New York Liberty in their next game, and we will find out quickly whether this stretch travels.