The WNBA Free Agency: A Planned Chaos
Las Vegas Aces President Nikki Fargas joked about the challenges WNBA franchises face as they prepare for the most important free agency period in league history. “You’re going to need to have Plan A, Plan B, and 9-1-1,” Fargas said. “There’s nothing normal about this offseason, so you can’t look at it from a normal perspective.” The WNBA is preparing for an unprecedented free agent market, anticipating strategic moves and crucial decisions for the future of the franchises. Because it was assumed that players would opt out early of their 2020 collective bargaining agreement, almost all, except those with rookie contracts, will be free agents. The league must also conduct an expansion draft for the two new franchises that will join the WNBA in 2026. The league and players must agree on a new collective bargaining agreement before all this happens. But once we get to free agency, how chaotic will it be?A’ja Wilson, four-time MVP, tops that list. The 29-year-old player has played her entire eight-year career with Las Vegas, who drafted her at number 1 in 2018. Will she stay there or could she be lured to another team? Satou Sabally, who just finished her first season with the Phoenix Mercury after five with the Dallas Wings, said it will be interesting to see what the choices of the different players dictate.“You have to be prepared for multiple scenarios and different plans for each scenario,” said Fargas, whose Aces won their third WNBA title in four years last week. “There are a lot of great players in this league. But the most important thing is that we want to keep our core together.”
Nikki Fargas, President of Las Vegas Aces
Much is unknown, but we can speculate on which teams might be most affected by the movement of free agents, or the lack thereof.“If you want to win a championship, you need good players around you,” Sabally said. “You also want to get your money. So, what are people’s goals? What are they willing to do? Maybe they want to lead a team and get on the radar, which is totally understandable. Or maybe they are more willing to concede a little on the salary aspect and have a super team.”
Satou Sabally, Phoenix Mercury Player
Teams That Could Change a Lot
Dallas Wings: With the first draft pick, Paige Bueckers, as the clear star of the franchise, and the Wings having the best odds for the first pick in the 2026 draft, next season will be about Dallas consolidating its vision around Bueckers, and it’s a future that includes new team facilities now under construction and the hiring of a new coach to replace Chris Koclanes. A key question of the offseason revolves around whether Arike Ogunbowale returns to the franchise with which she has spent her entire career. Beyond that, the Wings have many other young players who can provide depth while the team maintains salary flexibility to make some big moves in free agency.Golden State Valkyries: It makes sense that free agents before the 2025 season would want to see how the first year went for the expansion Valkyries. It’s safe to say they were impressed by the atmosphere at Chase Center, which sold out all home games and was dubbed “Ballhalla”, and the success of Golden State, which became the first expansion team to reach the playoffs in its inaugural season. So in the next free agency, the Valkyries could bring in some bigger stars to play for 2025 Coach of the Year, Natalie Nakase. Golden State seems likely to try to re-sign its two top scorers from this season: Kayla Thornton, who was limited to 22 games due to injury, and Veronica Burton, who won the league’s Most Improved Player award.Chicago Sky: On the one hand, the Sky were unlucky with injuries, with Courtney Vandersloot missing all but seven games and Angel Reese and Ariel Atkins out for extended periods. But general manager Jeff Pagliocca said during exit interviews that the team “absolutely needs to improve the roster” in free agency, indicating that change is on the horizon. After trading the No. 3 pick for Atkins this offseason, the Sky would likely look to re-sign her, and Pagliocca has already said they intend for Vandersloot to return once she recovers from an ACL tear. Then there’s the big question of what will happen with Reese. Technically she is not a free agent, but she is someone who could be traded, or request a trade, after a tumultuous end to the season that left her status in Chicago in doubt.
Teams That Might Not Change Much
Atlanta Dream: The Dream won a franchise-record 30 games in coach Karl Smesko’s first season, and Allisha Gray had the best season of her career. Keeping free agents Gray, Brionna Jones, and Jordin Canada and restricted free agents Rhyne Howard and Naz Hillmon, 2025 Player of the Year, would put the Dream in a great position for 2026. We’ll see if center Brittney Griner, who signed with Atlanta this season and moved to a reserve role in August, will also be in the mix to return.
Indiana Fever: Given their numerous injuries throughout the 2025 season, the Fever couldn’t truly see what their revamped roster from last free agency could have done if they were healthy, but they still finished five minutes away from reaching the WNBA Finals. One thing that plays in their favor: Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston are still on rookie contracts. Indiana’s general manager, Amber Cox, made it clear that the team’s top priority is to re-sign Kelsey Mitchell, who enjoyed an MVP-caliber season and has spoken highly of her relationship with coach Stephanie White and her time in the organization. When asked how many roster changes she anticipated this offseason, Cox focused on how special the chemistry of this 2025 group was and said that, while there is still a lot of uncertainty surrounding free agency, “many of these players will be in our plans”.
Las Vegas Aces: Fargas said the Aces have been very lucky to keep former No. 1s Wilson and Jackie Young together for seven seasons. Chelsea Gray has played with those two for five seasons. The trio established the foundation for the Aces even before coach Becky Hammon arrived in 2022. They have had a good relationship with Hammon, as has Jewell Loyd, who played this past season for the Aces after spending a decade with Seattle. If the four stay, Las Vegas picks up where it left off this season. “It starts with, ‘What are our core values and are they aligned with everyone we’ve kept and brought in?'” Fargas said. “And the answer is ‘Yes’. We have been able to maintain consistency because the players feel valued.”Phoenix Mercury: The Mercury added forwards Sabally and Alyssa Thomas this season, and formed a strong trio with Kahleah Copper when they were all healthy. Despite returning only two players from 2024, the Mercury’s chemistry was very good, Sabally said, and it carried them all the way to the WNBA Finals. Keeping key players together should be a big benefit for Phoenix. “I think we have something really good here,” Sabally said during the Finals. “People are less likely to leave this place just because of the resources and comfort that comes with [this franchise]. But also really the culture. You can tell that the staff likes being around each other, the players like being around each other. It’s a business, and you never forget that, but you want an environment that creates a family atmosphere and where you feel heard, and there’s clear communication. Instead of things being murky or messy.”Washington Mystics: The best players for the Mystics this past season were Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen, two of the five rookies under contract. Washington has only three unrestricted free agents: Alysha Clark, Stefanie Dolson, and Jade Melbourne, none of whom are at the top level. With three first-round draft picks in 2026, Washington could focus further ahead to add to the young talent they already have as the rebuilding process continues.
The Hardest Teams to Predict
Connecticut Sun: Although 2025 had a shaky start for the Sun, it ended with a clear direction, as the organization seeks to rebuild around a young core of Leila Lacan, Saniya Rivers, Aneesah Morrow, and Aaliyah Edwards, all of whom are under contract for the foreseeable future. General Manager Morgan Tuck will have to make decisions from there about which players she wants to surround them with: for example, could Marina Mabrey and Tina Charles return to provide a veteran presence? Either way, the franchise hopes to have firmer answers about where the team will play beyond 2026 in order to answer free agent questions.Los Angeles Sparks: The Sparks find themselves in an interesting situation: they have two stars in Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby who seem likely to be re-signed, as well as two young cornerstones in Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson. And yet, the group they fielded in 2025 couldn’t make the playoffs despite undoubtedly having the talent to do so. Management must determine how much change is needed for Los Angeles to return to the postseason for the first time since 2020, and improving on the defensive end will be the top of those priorities. The Sparks appear to be in a better position to make free agent offers, with Plum signing with them this offseason and a beautiful new practice facility on the way.Minnesota Lynx: This year, the Lynx brought back a team very similar to the one that lost in the 2024 WNBA Finals. That worked very well, giving Minnesota the best regular season record, until things went wrong in the playoffs. Minnesota’s semifinal loss to Phoenix could push the Lynx to make more changes for 2026. Napheesa Collier is expected to return; she has played her entire career with the Lynx since being drafted in 2019, but Minnesota could look to add more scoring from the forward position and perhaps a “true” point guard. Free agency could help the Lynx, and they also have a lottery pick thanks to a 2024 trade with Chicago.
New York Liberty: There’s a big change in Brooklyn that we know for sure: a new head coach will replace Sandy Brondello. How much change will we see from there? The first indications are that the Liberty’s core seems ready to return, as general manager Jonathan Kolb said in his exit interview that he has the “utmost confidence” that Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, and Jonquel Jones will return. But even if those three are back, the cast of characters around them could change depending on the team’s coaching hire. Kolb said that New York would be interested in bringing back Emma Meesseman, while acknowledging that Meesseman “doesn’t make decisions before she needs to,” and said that the organization is “always evaluating” who is the best backcourt partner alongside Ionescu.Seattle Storm: After a first-round loss to the Aces, Storm coach Noelle Quinn was fired. How Seattle moves forward could depend heavily on who the new coach is. The Storm have young post player Dominique Malonga on a rookie contract, but another, Ezi Magbegor, is a free agent. Veterans Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins, who will turn 36 next season, are also free agents. Seattle could keep its core, if those players want to stay, but the Storm could also look to make some big changes.
