The dream will be a 7th or 8th seed

Incredible starting 5 but They have the slowest front court in the league. Griner and Bri jones both on the floor two non shooting bigs that don’t rebound well they also don’t have a bench. I just see them running out of gas.

The sparks might struggle

Didn’t like giving up the number 2 pick for plum. Chelsea gray was plums chill pill she would keep plum from going rouge because she would shoot the team out of a game in a hurry well she doesn’t have Chelsea gray now.

Everything about this team screams 2024 Dallas wings

Small backcourt, great offense but poor defense, really fun to watch but not a lot of winning. I think they can score with the best of them

But a defensive lineup with plum, rickea and Hamby is bbq chicken. Rickea is improving but she’s not a good enough defender to offset those 2. If cam brink ever has to go to the bench it’s not gonna be pretty.

Remember if things don’t work out plum can dip next season.

The aces have had a puzzling offseason so far

You left Kate Martin unprotected for tip Hayes who most likely isn’t coming back.

They added Jewell Lloyd. Jewell is a high volume isolation scorer but plum is the better shooter, playmaker and finisher to her credit Lloyd is a way better defender.

The aces seem like they are use their 3 second rounders to draft and develop and I’m all for it.

Kitley is going to be great a 6”6 center with a one legged fadeaway can’t believe she dropped that far even with an injury so I’m definitely excited.

The fever might have went with too much offense

Aliyah Boston has a tendency to be passive and go some games with less touches. Caitlin would sometimes go entire 4th quarters with just 2 shots now you’ve added 2 more high volume scorers so it’s possible they go an extended period without shooting.

The fever have 3 “the possession ends here” players on the floor at the same time Natasha Howard, Kelsey Mitchell and dewanna Bonner. 3 players that are known ball stoppers it’s not enough ball for everybody.

Now they will be 1000% better on defense with Steph white as head coach and Bonner and Howard on defense so this is an improvement

The mercury are contenders now

Though I am a tad bit curious because Satou is a point forward but Alyssa Thomas is also a point forward.

obviously Alyssa Thomas is the superior passer but Satou has averaged 4.5-5.0 assists per game the past two seasons. How will Nate tibbets set this offense up?

The sky will surprise people next season

I’m actually very proud of the sky they seem to be the only team wanting to build around thier stars who are under 25.

Very rare occurrence in the W they could’ve easily went out and grabbed a vet like Lloyd or plum and traded the pick away but actually committing to developing what you already makes me excited.

Why does no one want to be a valkarie

If I were the valkaries my selling point would be come play here we have zero expectations you can play as free as you want to come be the first option.

If I’m Alissa pilli or Rae Burrell or diamond miller I’m otp right now I’m calling my agent “hey get me a trade to golden state I could be a first option instead of just rotting here”

If im in the draft I wouldn’t mind falling to 5 i basically get to become the Face of a brand new team

Other contracts announced (all per Richard Cohen) :

• DiJonai Carrington signed for one year, $200,000, protected, in her sign-and-trade move to the Dallas Wings

• Myisha Hines-Allen signed with the Dallas Wings for one year, $203,000, protected

• Courtney Vandersloot signed to return to the Chicago Sky for one year, $185,000, unprotected

• Michaela Onyenwere re-signed with the Chicago Sky for one year, $125,000, unprotected

• Tina Charles signed to return to the Connecticut Sun for one year, $170,000, protected

• Sami Whitcomb signed with the Phoenix Mercury for one year, $125,000, unprotected

• Anyone else officially signed today - Holmes, KCharles, Geiselsoder, Cannon, Maley - signed for 1-yr, unprotected, at their applicable minimum, and therefore counts as a Training Camp Contract

Every team cap sheet with the signed contract and their amounts can be found on Her Hoop Stats by clicking on the team : https://herhoopstats.com/salary-cap-sheet/wnba/summary/2025/

Who would you rank (in order) as the top 5 current WNBA players and why?

Assuming no major injuries, it looks the Top 5 W teams next season will be NY, MN, LV, PHX, & Indy. Unfortunately, one of these teams will fail to make it out of the first round. Who do you guys think it’ll be?

My thoughts: Hate to say this but I think Indy would struggle the most out of these teams in the playoffs. Compared to the other 4 teams, Indy’s big 3 of CC, AB, & KM are the worst defensively, the least experienced, & the least physical. Also, while AB is a great player I’m not exactly sure she has MVP caliber player written on her which is important as every W championship team has had an MVP caliber big.

PHX meanwhile would probably be the 2nd most likely team to be eliminated in the first round simply b/c as basketball history has shown, assembling big 3s where none of the players have prior playing experience in the league isn’t always a recipe for success. So there’s definitely a chance they just end up underperforming.

I’m thinking of Dyaisha Fair, McKenzie Forbes, Destanii Henderson, Kaylynne Truong, and the like.

Edited to add: I’d love to see Forbes to GSV. She was fun to watch at Harvard, has done well in Australia (championship!), and is a CA native. Her demeanor would vibe well with Kate Martin.

Obviously there is a lot of time left and moves to be made, which makes this the perfect moment for our way too early reactions to what is happening …

Top tier teams Currently, in alphabetical order I would say Indiana, Minnesota, New York and Phoenix.

Work in progress Las Vegas and Seattle. I place them a tier below the teams above but they remain dangerous and both have moves left to make.

Making a splash Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and Los Angeles each got better, and could make additional moves. It’s hard to tell how well it will gel for any of them this year, but they are trying for a playoff slot, or in the case of Dallas at least positioning themselves for the future.

Connecticut obviously went full rebuild. They are likely to be in the lottery next year with Golden State, Washington, and two of the teams above.

Where do you agree or disagree? What moves or teams are surprising you the most? I think the Atlanta experiment will either surprise some folks or fail in spectacular fashion. I also think Vegas could be in trouble but with Wilson you can never write them off entirely.

Seattle seems to run a tight ship and there have been very few leaks. I continue to worry about Gabby, who conspicuously hasn't signed yet -- she's the last Core player to make a decision. I know it's relatively early still, but early signs have been worrying.

https://preview.redd.it/sg336lr60rge1.png?width=732&format=png&auto=webp&s=b7c0f25c2b8d95f24dbb07dd6a8ec87a6ffa5a37

How can we make sure she's ok? I'm a new Sun fan and these trades are ridiculous. I know she's living it up with her cooking lessons at Unrivaled but she can't be happy at this moment. I'm hoping for a Valkyries trade if she actually asks for one.

I really want a podcast/newsleter that includes player’s personal lives. Like, I’ll watch a game and then 2 weeks later I find out that in the game I watched, one person was playing against their ex-wife and their ex’s new partner and I think DAMN I wish I had known that during the game!

Does something like that exist?

(Las Vegas Aces player) A’ja Wilson will add another impressive accolade to her still-growing resume this Sunday.

The South Carolina women’s basketball legend will have her jersey retired and hung in the rafters of Colonial Life Arena in a ceremony before the Gamecocks’ matchup with Auburn.

How to watch on TV

Can’t make it to the game on Sunday? Wilson’s jersey retirement ceremony will be streamed on SEC Network.

• Who: A’ja Wilson jersey retirement ceremony
• When: Sunday, 11:30 a.m. (game follows at noon)
• Where: Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, S.C.
• TV channel: A special edition of “SEC Now” on SEC Network
• Stream: ESPN app and ESPN.com

Source: https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/a-ja-wilson-s-usc-jersey-retirement-will-be-broadcast-live-on-tv-here-s-how-to-watch/ar-AA1yfXtA

Other players that have officially signed contracts (all per Richard Cohen) :

• Both Brittney Griner and Brionna Jones signed with the Atlanta Dream for one year, $214,466, protected. That's the full regular max, the most any team other than their previous franchises could give them

• Shatori Walker-Kimbrough signed with the Atlanta Dream for one year, $150,000, protected

• Natisha Hiedeman re-signed with the Minnesota Lynx for one year, $135,000, protected

• Odyssey Sims signed with the Los Angeles Sparks for one year, $130,000, unprotected

• Badiane, Burke, Martinez, Carrera, Li Yueru - signed for one year, unprotected, at their applicable minimum, and therefore counts as a training camp contract

you know what after the luka trade yall can't tell me nothing....YALL CAN'T TELL ME NOTHING....CHENN IS COMING BACK TO CHICAGO ...if luka and lebron can play can play on the same team....CHENN CAN COME BACK TO CHICAGO lol