The landscape of the WNBA has been dramatically reshaped by a series of blockbuster trades and significant free agent movements during the 2025 offseason, particularly involving the three star players mentioned: Jewell Loyd, Satou Sabally, and Kelsey Plum. The individuals mentioned as the most likely to move to a new basketball home have, in fact, already done so.
The primary mechanism enabling these high-profile moves, especially for players under contract or restricted, is the WNBA’s Core Designation. This rule allows a team to designate one unrestricted free agent as a “core” player, giving them exclusive negotiating rights and effectively offering a one-year, super-max contract. While designed for retention, it often serves as leverage for teams to facilitate sign-and-trade deals when a player expresses a desire to move on.
Let’s break down where each of these stars landed and the context of their “new basketball home”:
- Previous Team: Seattle Storm
- New Team: Las Vegas Aces
- Mechanism: Trade (specifically, a three-team trade)
Context of the Move:
Jewell Loyd’s departure from Seattle was one of the most talked-about storylines of the 2025 offseason. Loyd, a beloved figure who spent 10 years with the Storm, including winning two WNBA championships (2018, 2020) and leading the league in scoring in 2023, publicly expressed a strong desire for a change of scenery. She cited significant personal and emotional struggles during the 2024 season, emphasizing that her situation “cannot be worse” and she needed a fresh start. This sentiment, coupled with a reported trade request, made her exit from Seattle almost inevitable.
The Seattle Storm, recognizing Loyd’s desire to leave and wanting to acquire assets in return, applied the core designation to her. This was crucial, as it prevented Loyd from simply signing with another team outright and allowed Seattle to control her rights.
The eventual trade was a blockbuster three-team deal, finalized on February 1, 2025:
- Las Vegas Aces received: Jewell Loyd and the No. 13 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Los Angeles).
- Los Angeles Sparks received: Kelsey Plum (via sign-and-trade from Las Vegas), the No. 9 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Seattle), and Seattle’s 2026 second-round pick.
- Seattle Storm received: The No. 2 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Los Angeles), the rights to Li Yueru (from Los Angeles), and Las Vegas’s 2026 first-round pick.
This trade sent shockwaves through the league. For the Aces, it meant adding another prolific scorer and champion to their already star-studded roster, creating an even more formidable offensive threat. Loyd’s arrival in Las Vegas, alongside A’ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, and Jackie Young, immediately cemented the Aces as the team to beat. For Seattle, it marked the end of an era, but provided significant draft capital to aid in their retooling efforts, including a high lottery pick.
- Previous Team: Dallas Wings
- New Team: Phoenix Mercury
- Mechanism: Sign-and-trade (facilitated by core designation)
Context of the Move:
Satou Sabally, a dynamic and versatile forward, also made it clear that she intended to leave the Dallas Wings after the 2024 season, stating she had “played her last game for Dallas.” Despite her strong desire for a new home, the Wings, like the Storm with Loyd, used their core designation on Sabally. This ensured that Dallas would not lose a player of her caliber for nothing.
The core designation effectively forced a sign-and-trade scenario, allowing Dallas to recoup assets. The trade that sent Sabally to the Phoenix Mercury was part of a complex four-team deal, also finalized on February 1, 2025:
- Phoenix Mercury received: Satou Sabally (via sign-and-trade from Dallas), center Kalani Brown (from Dallas), and guard Sevgi Uzun (from Dallas).
- Dallas Wings received: Guard Tyasha Harris (from Phoenix), forward NaLyssa Smith (from Indiana Fever), the No. 8 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Indiana), the rights to Mikiah Herbert Harrigan (from Phoenix), and various future pick swaps.
- Indiana Fever received: Guard Sophie Cunningham (from Phoenix), guard Jaelyn Brown (from Phoenix), and the No. 19 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Phoenix).
- Connecticut Sun received: Rebecca Allen (from Phoenix), Natasha Cloud (from Phoenix), and the No. 8 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Indiana – effectively the pick that went from Indiana to Dallas, then to Phoenix, then to Connecticut).
For the Phoenix Mercury, acquiring Sabally (along with Alyssa Thomas in a separate, but related, transaction) immediately reshaped their roster. They have aggressively assembled a new “super team” to compete for a championship, pairing Sabally with All-Star guard Kahleah Copper and defensive stalwart Alyssa Thomas. For the Dallas Wings, losing Sabally was a blow, but they gained valuable young talent like NaLyssa Smith and significant draft capital to aid their rebuilding efforts under new general manager Curt Miller.
- Previous Team: Las Vegas Aces
- New Team: Los Angeles Sparks
- Mechanism: Trade (part of the same three-team trade that sent Loyd to the Aces)
Context of the Move:
Kelsey Plum’s departure from the reigning WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces was perhaps the most surprising of the three. Plum had been instrumental in the Aces’ back-to-back championships in 2022 and 2023, establishing herself as a dynamic scoring guard and a fan favorite. However, with the Aces looking to make a significant roster adjustment after their 2024 semi-final exit, they also used their core designation on Plum.
This core designation, similar to Loyd and Sabally, enabled the Aces to control Plum’s negotiating rights and facilitate a trade that brought them the player they desired. As detailed in the Jewell Loyd section, Plum was the other major piece of the three-team blockbuster trade:
- Los Angeles Sparks received: Kelsey Plum (via sign-and-trade from Las Vegas), the No. 9 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Seattle), and Seattle’s 2026 second-round pick.
- Las Vegas Aces received: Jewell Loyd and the No. 13 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Los Angeles).
- Seattle Storm received: The No. 2 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft (from Los Angeles), the rights to Li Yueru (from Los Angeles), and Las Vegas’s 2026 first-round pick.
For the Los Angeles Sparks, acquiring Plum was a monumental move. It brought a proven champion, an All-Star, and a high-volume scorer to their young, rebuilding roster, providing an immediate boost of veteran leadership and offensive firepower alongside promising talents like Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson. Plum, a Southern California native, also expressed excitement about playing closer to home. For the Aces, trading Plum allowed them to acquire Jewell Loyd, reshaping their backcourt with a different, but equally potent, scoring threat.
The WNBA free agency period officially begins with a period for teams to deliver qualifying offers and core designations (typically January 11-20). The player negotiating period then starts (January 21). However, player contracts can only be formally signed on February 1st. This means that while discussions, agreements in principle, and even leaks about trades often occur in the days and weeks leading up to February 1st, the actual execution and official announcement of these complex transactions usually take place on or immediately after that date.
This pattern was evident in the 2025 offseason, with all three of these major moves—Jewell Loyd to the Aces, Satou Sabally to the Mercury, and Kelsey Plum to the Sparks—being officially announced on or around February 1, 2025, after players could formally sign their new contracts (often as part of the sign-and-trade agreements).
In conclusion, Jewell Loyd, Satou Sabally, and Kelsey Plum, identified as the most likely to move, have indeed found new basketball homes. Loyd is now with the Las Vegas Aces, Sabally with the Phoenix Mercury, and Plum with the Los Angeles Sparks. These blockbuster trades, largely facilitated by the strategic use of the core designation, dramatically altered the competitive balance of the WNBA for the 2025 season and beyond.
