With training camp underway for the Minnesota Lynx and the rest of the WNBA heading into the start of the 2020 season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., the team and league officially released an updated schedule for the unusual year.
The season will feature 22 regular season games, starting July 25 and finishing on Sept. 10 before a traditional playoff format begins in Florida.
On opening night, and for the first two nights of the opening weekend, the WNBA announced it will have back-to-back days of triple-header broadcast airing nationally on either ABC, ESPN or CBS Sports Network. That opening weekend will also be dedicated to the Black Lives Matter movement.
On the first night of action on July 25, the slate of games will consist of matchups between the Seattle Storm and New York Liberty at 11 a.m. (CT), the Los Angeles Sparks vs. the Phoenix Mercury at 2 p.m. (CT) and the Indiana Fever vs. Washington Mystics at 4 p.m. (CT).
On the second night of games, that’s when Minnesota and other teams will officially begin their seasons. The first game will feature the Lynx vs. the Connecticut Sun at 11 a.m. (CT), followed by the Chicago Sky and Las Vegas at 2 p.m. (CT) and the Dallas Wings vs. the Atlanta Dream at 4 p.m. (CT).
The WNBA also announced that at least 64 games will be aired on national television during the regular season. CBS Sports Network will air 39 of those games, with ESPN2 airing 15, ESPN airing six, ABC airing three and CBS Television Network airing one.
Specifically for the Lynx, they will have a total of eight games on national television in 2020. Five contests will be on CBS Sports Network, two will be on ESPN2 and one will be on ESPN. The team also announced that FOX Sports North will televise a number of Lynx games, although those telecasts and details will be announced at a later date.
TOUGH STRETCHES, KEY GAMES FOR LYNX
As Minnesota kicks off its 22nd season in 2020, it will consist of three games during the month of July, 13 games in August and six games in September to round out the regular season schedule.
Of the 22 games, every game with the exception of the July 26 season opener at 11 a.m. (CT) will be in the afternoon or evenings. The Lynx will play two games at 3 p.m. (CT), six games at 5 p.m. (CT), four at 6 p.m. (CT), five at 7 p.m. (CT), two at 8 p.m. (CT) and two at 9 p.m. (CT).
Minnesota will have a tough opening slate of games, including four games within the first six games of the year. Those games will feature contests against the Connecticut Sun (twice), Seattle Storm and Chicago Sky. You also look at the month of August and the fact that the team has 13 games packed into that month, although the rest of the league will also be at that disadvantage as well. Luckily for Minnesota and the rest of the WNBA, there are no back-to-back game nights for any of the 12 teams.
One game of note that will serve as a key date for Lynx fans to keep an eye on, outside of the season opener on July 26, comes at 6 p.m. (CT) on Aug. 9 on ESPN2. During that game, Minnesota will square off against former Lynx player and franchise icon Seimone Augustus and the Los Angeles Sparks for the first time since she departed during free agency this past offseason.
Outside of that anticipated game against Augustus and the Sparks, the Lynx will take the New York Liberty at 6 p.m. (CT) on Aug. 5 featuring former Lynx assistant coaches Walt Hopkins and Shelley Patterson, as well as the 2020 No. 1 overall draft pick Sabrina Ionescu. Hopkins left Minnesota this offseason to become the head coach of the Liberty, and Patterson, a longtime assistant coach under Cheryl Reeve, followed Hopkins to join his staff as an assistant.
Minnesota will also take on former Lynx assistant coach and current Chicago Sky head coach and general manager James Wade and the Sky for the first time in 2020 at 7 p.m. (CT) on July 30. Wade, who was an assistant on the 2017 Lynx championship team, was named the WNBA’s Coach of the Year in 2019.
FULL LYNX 2020 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE
July
- Sunday, July 26 vs. Connecticut, 11 a.m. (ESPN)
- Tuesday, July 28 vs. Seattle, 9 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
- Thursday, July 30 vs. Chicago, 7 p.m.
August
- Saturday, Aug. 1 vs. Connecticut, 3 p.m.
- Wednesday, Aug. 5 vs. New York, 6 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
- Friday, Aug. 7 vs. Indiana, 5 p.m.
- Sunday, Aug. 9 vs. Los Angeles, 6 p.m. (ESPN2)
- Tuesday, Aug. 11 vs. Washington, 5 p.m.
- Thursday, Aug. 13 vs. Las Vegas, 8 p.m. (ESPN2)
- Saturday, Aug. 15 vs. New York, 5 p.m.
- Wednesday, Aug. 19 vs. Dallas, 8 p.m.
- Friday, Aug. 21 vs. Phoenix, 9 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
- Sunday, Aug. 23 vs. Atlanta, 3 p.m.
- Wednesday, Aug. 26 vs. Los Angeles, 7 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)
- Friday, Aug. 28 vs. Atlanta, 6 p.m.
- Sunday, Aug. 30 vs. Phoenix, 5 p.m.
September
- Wednesday, Sept. 2 vs. Chicago, 6 p.m.
- Friday, Sept. 4 vs. Dallas, 7 p.m.
- Sunday, Sept. 6 vs. Seattle, 5 p.m.
- Tuesday, Sept. 8 vs. Washington, 7 p.m.
- Thursday, Sept. 10 vs. Las Vegas, 7 p.m.
- Saturday, Sept. 12 vs. Indiana, 5 p.m.
Note: All times are Central Time
