Look out, WNBA. Lisa Leslie is back, and now she has Candace Parker with her.

The two have helped Los Angeles garner most of the preseason buzz, and the Sparks are the overwhelming favorites to win their third WNBA championship as the league opens its 12th season today. L.A. opens at Phoenix at 12:30 p.m.

Leslie, a perennial All-Star and three-time Olympic gold medalist, has returned after a one-year absence following the birth of her daughter last June. The Sparks were a league-worst 10-24 without her, won the No. 1 pick in the draft lottery and selected Parker — a two-time All-American who led Tennessee to consecutive NCAA championships.

"I wasn't a part of the team last year," Leslie said. "I'm all about winning. I'm excited for us to pick up where I left off."

The Sparks won consecutive championships in 2001 and '02, and although they don't have any titles since then, they were 91-45 in the ensuing four seasons with Leslie — reaching at least 24 wins three times.

"L.A. has the hype for a reason," Seattle Storm star Sue Bird said. "They have their all-time best player ever returning in Lisa Leslie. ... You have one of the best players right now playing, even though she hasn't played in a WNBA game, in Candace Parker. You can really put in anyone around them and they're supposed to be amazing. ... They're expected to do well."

Los Angeles coach Michael Cooper has compared Parker's versatility to that of his former Lakers teammate Magic Johnson, and envisions the rookie being the key to the Sparks' new uptempo offense.

"We're going to really go full throttle because she's the one that can rebound and get our transition game going," Cooper said. "Our goal is to run our way to a championship."

The Sparks also reacquired two-time Olympian DeLisha Milton-Jones, who spent her first six seasons in Los Angeles and teamed with Leslie on the championship teams.

Los Angeles' biggest challenges in the West will come from defending champion Phoenix and veteran-laden Seattle.

The Mercury went 12-2 after the All-Star break, then swept Seattle and San Antonio in the playoffs before beating Detroit in five games to its first championship.

Phoenix thrived under coach Paul Westhead's frenetic pace, averaging a league-best 89.0 points per game. Westhead, however, left to join the NBA's Seattle SuperSonics, replaced by assistant and protege Corey Gaines. Also, second leading scorer Penny Taylor (17.8 ppg) is training with the Australian national team and won't rejoin the Mercury until the stretch run after the Olympics.

Gaines has more than 20 years experience with Westhead's system, having played for him at Loyola Marymount in 1986-87. He knows his biggest challenge will be making up for Taylor's lost production.

He also doesn't mind Los Angeles stealing the headlines.

"That may be a blessing in disguise," Gaines said. "Everybody may be talking about L.A., we'll just sit back like we did last year. Everybody picked us last year to come in fifth or fourth. They didn't think we were going to make the playoffs. ... I guess it all counts in the end what you do."

The Storm also has a new coach — Brian Agler — after Anne Donovan stepped down, and it improved its lineup by acquiring Swin Cash from Detroit and signing veterans Sheryl Swoopes and Yolanda Griffith to complement Bird and Lauren Jackson. Seattle can start a lineup full of past champions, including two with multiple titles — Swoopes won four with Houston, Cash two with Detroit.

The Shock, which won titles in 2003 and '06, appears to be the favorite in the tighter Eastern Conference. All-Star Game MVP Cheryl Ford and Deanna Nolan are the faces of the franchise now, along with veteran star Katie Smith.

Chicago had a nine-win improvement after setting the WNBA record with 29 losses in its inaugural season the year before. The Sky has a new coach again — former assistant Steven Key — its third head coach in three years. However, after adding 6-foot-6 center Sylvia Fowles with the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, Chicago is poised to push for a playoff run.

The Liberty is also on the upswing two years after enduring the worst season in franchise history. New York bounced back last year, earned the East's fourth and final playoff berth and nearly beat Detroit in the first round.

Indiana, another team with a new coach after former assistant Lin Dunn was promoted to replace Brian Winters, could also be tough. It will depend on the health of Tamika Catchings — perennially the team's leader in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. Catchings is still recovering from an Achilles' tendon injury and will miss the early part of the season.

The league is back up to 14 teams with the expansion Atlanta Dream, the second new team in three years, joining the Eastern Conference one season after the Charlotte Sting folded.