WNBA Free Agency 2025: Top Rumors on Contracts, Trades Before Official Start Date

The WNBA offseason finally started to kick into gear thanks to two blockbuster trades.

The negotiating window opened on Jan. 21 and players can officially sign contracts starting Saturday.

Until a few days ago, the offseason had been pretty quiet. That's no longer the case with multiple All-Stars reportedly on the move and the promises of some big deals still to come.

Here's a quick overview of what has transpired so far.

Three-Team Trade Opens the Floodgates

The Chicago Sun-Times' Annie Costabile reported on Jan. 25 that "one move serves as the catalyst for all others in the WNBA." It was a proposed three-team trade sending Kelsey Plum to the Los Angeles Sparks and Jewell Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces.

A day later, the swap came together. Plum and Loyd are the headliners, with the Seattle Storm getting the No. 2 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft.

Plum can assume a bigger scoring role in Los Angeles and be the face of a franchise in a way that wasn't possible with such a top-heavy, star-laden roster in Las Vegas. The Sparks might also have a brighter long-term future thanks to Rickea Jackson and Cameron Brink.

For the Aces, Loyd is probably as good as they could've realistically done in terms of replacing Plum. At her peak, the the 31-year-old was one of the best two-way guards in the WNBA, and her best seasons in Seattle came when she was playing off Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird. That's a dynamic she'll have in Vegas with A'ja Wilson as the No. 1 scoring option and Chelsea Gray the lead playmaker.

And yet, the Storm might have come out the best from the trade. Their hand was forced after Loyd requested an exit in December, and they still managed to flip her for what will be a valuable draft pick. At the very least, Seattle will be in a position to get Notre Dame star Olivia Miles, and maybe the front office can dream bigger than that.

Mercury Add Thomas, Lose Griner

True to Costabile's original report, it took two days after the Plum/Loyd trade for a pair of huge dominoes to fall in WNBA free agency.

ESPN's Alexa Philippou reported the Phoenix Mercury will acquire Alyssa Thomas, who had been designated as a core player by the Connecticut Sun, and Ty Harris. Connecticut will get back Natasha Cloud, Rebecca Allen and the No. 12 overall pick in the 2025 draft.

Almost simultaneously with that news dropping came the revelation that 10-time All-Star Brittney Griner is leaving Phoenix after 11 seasons to sign with the Atlanta Dream.

The Mercury are clearly still going for it despite posting a losing record for the third straight season. Thomas is a five-time All-Star who averaged 10.6 points, 8.4 rebounds and 7.9 assists in 2024 en route to a fifth-place finish in the MVP voting.

Losing Griner is a massive blow, though. She continues to be an elite center, even into her 30s, as she put up 17.8 points, 6.6 boards and 1.5 blocks per game in 30 appearances.

In the case of Atlanta, signing Griner at this point in her career isn't as significant as it would've been four or five years ago, but it's a win for an organization that has historically struggled to attract stars.

This could the prelude to the Dream becoming a major draw in 2026, when pretty much every notable star you can imagine will be a free agent.

Mitchell Staying in Indiana

Two-time All-Star Kelsey Mitchell chose the most anticlimactic path, re-signing with the Indiana Fever after they used the core designation on her. She'll earn the supermax salary for 2025, which is $249,244.

"I'm thrilled that Kelsey is returning to Fever. She has been an integral part of this franchise from the moment she was drafted," Fever head coach Stephanie White said. "I have watched her journey from the sideline since her time in college and have always admired her work ethic, approach to the game and the way she interacts with her teammates. I can't wait to work with her on a daily basis."

The Fever made the playoffs for the first time since 2016 last season, and Mitchell's individual production didn't suffer following the addition of Caitlin Clark to the backcourt. She actually set a career high in scoring average (19.2 points) and had her most efficient shooting season (46.8 percent overall and 40.2 percent on three-pointers).

The Fever probably won't be a threat to the reigning champion New York Liberty just yet. Twelve games separated them in the standings and Indiana was swept out of the first round by the Sun. But a top-four seed is more than attainable in 2025.

Sticking around in Indianapolis was probably an easy call for Mitchell.