The Washington Mystics are a professional women's basketball team in the WNBA's Eastern Conference, founded in 1998 and currently owned by Ted Leonsis, with Sheila C. Johnson as managing partner, and they play at CareFirst Arena in Washington, D.C. Despite featuring stars like two-time MVP Elena Delle Donne and Chamique Holdsclaw, the team got off to a rocky start, finishing with a league-worst 3-27 record in their inaugural season. Over 23 seasons they made the playoffs 13 times, yet until 2018 they were famously the only WNBA franchise never to reach the Finals—falling short in the 2002 Eastern Conference Finals and the 2017 semifinals. Their breakthrough came when they finally reached the WNBA Finals in 2018 and then captured their first championship in 2019. Other notable players include Alana Beard and Crystal Langhorne, making the Mystics a resilient franchise that turned early struggles into a championship legacy.