It's blockbuster season in the WNBA, as another all-star is set to switch teams.
The Dallas Wings have traded two-time All-Star Satou Sabally to the Phoenix Mercury in a three-team swap involving the Indiana Fever, ESPN's Alexa Philippou reported Friday.
Along with Sabally, the Mercury will also receive centre Kalani Brown and guard Sevgi Uzun.
In return, the Wings will receive guard Tyasha Harris, the rights to forward Kiki Herbert Harrigan, forward NaLyssa Smith and the No. 8 overall pick in the 2025 Draft from the Fever.
The Fever will receive guard Sophie Cunningham and the 19th overall pick in the 2025 Draft from the Mercury.
The deal can’t be official until Saturday, when free agents are allowed to sign.
Sabally has long been rumoured to be dealt after she made her intentions clear earlier this month, saying that she planned to be somewhere other than Dallas for the upcoming WNBA season. She was cored by the Wings due to her free-agency status so that the team could recoup assets for her in a trade.
By giving a player a core qualifying offer, the team gets exclusive negotiating rights with the free agent in exchange for a one-year, guaranteed supermax contract, which is worth $249,244 for the 2025 season — similar to a franchise tag in the NFL.
The 26-year-old forward only suited up for 15 games with Dallas last season as she prepared to suit up for the German national team at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She averaged 17.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists in her limited time with the Wings.
While they lose Sabally, the Wings have the No. 1 pick in the upcoming WNBA draft after winning the lottery.
The Wings went 9-31 last season and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2020.
Brown, 27, came off the bench for Dallas last year and averaged 5.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in 13.2 minutes a night. Uzun, 27, averaged 4.4 points, 1.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game last season — her first in the WNBA.
For parting with those three pieces, the Wings received guard Tyasha Harris — who averaged 10.5 points and 3.0 rebounds with the Connecticut Sun last season — and forward NaLyssa Smith, who put up 10.6 points and 7.1 rebounds starting for the Fever in 2024.
Indiana, meanwhile, came away strong in this trade by acquiring Cunningham, who averaged 8.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists while shooting 37.8 per cent from three-point range last season.
It has been an offseason of change for Phoenix. On Tuesday, the Mercury were finalizing a deal to acquire Alyssa Thomas from the Connecticut Sun, a person familiar with that trade told the AP. They lost star center Brittney Griner, who announced her plans to sign with Atlanta.
It’s also not clear whether veteran Diana Taurasi will play again or retire.
-- With files from the Associated Press
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