The W is back. Three openers on ION: Sun at Liberty (Brooklyn, 7:30 ET), Tempo at Mystics (DC) and Storm at Valkyries (San Francisco). 30th season. 15 teams for the first time, with Toronto and Portland in as expansion. Twelve teams make the playoffs.

The 30th WNBA season tips off tonight, and the league is bigger than it's ever been. Fifteen teams now — Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire join as expansion franchises, the first new W teams since the Atlanta Dream in 2008.

Three games on the slate, all on ION: Connecticut Sun at New York Liberty in Brooklyn (7:30 ET), Toronto Tempo at Washington Mystics, and Seattle Storm at Golden State Valkyries in San Francisco. Aces are the betting favorites to take the trophy back from New York; the Liberty are walking into the opener missing two All-Stars (more on that below). Twelve teams will make the playoffs out of fifteen — the bottom three are locked out.

The headliner is on Saturday: Caitlin Clark vs. Paige Bueckers, Indiana at Dallas, 1 PM ET on ABC. But tonight is a milestone all on its own — the W returning bigger, with Toronto and Portland adding tens of thousands of new fans. The wait is finally over.