It’s been nearly a week since the Aces extended a core qualifying offer to Kelsey Plum.
While the All-Star guard’s future will impact the team’s free agency outlook, the Aces’ needs in the frontcourt stand out.
Last month, coach Becky Hammon expressed an awareness of the task ahead to address the Aces’ roster demands.
“I think (in) free agency, we’re going to look at specific needs that we have, and then go from there,” she said. “We all have ideas right now, but until we can get on the phone and actually talk to people, it’s a little bit of a guessing game.”
Luckily, the window for teams to contact and negotiate with WNBA free agents opens Tuesday.
Plum could accept the core offer and play with the Aces on a supermax contract for at least one more season or negotiate a sign-and-trade to a new team. The latter option seems likely for Plum, but multiple sources have indicated that the uncertainty has clouded the picture of whom the Aces might target in free agency.
Regardless, there was a glaring need for offensive production in the frontcourt from someone other than three-time league MVP A’ja Wilson last season.
The real question is whether the Aces could manage signing major help while remaining under the salary cap. The team has six players under contract for 2025, with $656,520 in cap room.
That doesn’t account for the $249,244 supermax contract Plum could add to the books, the contracts of any of their other four free agents or unsigned 2024 draftee Liz Kitley.
It might help that most players aren’t looking to sign past this season as negotiations continue with the league for a new collective bargaining agreement.
Perfect Storm?
The Seattle Storm presents some interesting options for the Aces.
The team is looking at a tight salary cap situation after extending a core qualifying offer to international star forward Gabby Williams. If she takes the supermax deal, the team wouldn’t have much to offer All-WNBA forward Nneka Ogwumike ($198,817 at most).
Either of those two free agents would be major additions to the Aces’ frontcourt. Ogwumike shot a career-high 40.5 percent from 3 for the Storm last season, while Williams starred in France’s run to the Olympic gold medal game against Team USA this summer in Paris.
It’s possible both could stay in Seattle. But the Storm have another interesting potential addition for the Aces in guard Jewell Loyd, who is not a free agent but demanded a trade last month.
The two-time WNBA champion and six-time All-Star averaged 19.7 points and 4.5 rebounds last season and would arguably offer a defensive boost in the potential absence of Plum.
Loyd has played on two Olympic teams with Wilson, whose opinion will be heavily valued in the Aces’ offseason moves, sources said.
Loyd is primarily based in Chicago in the offseason, but the Aces would likely have a better pitch than the rebuilding Chicago Sky.
There are multiple Aces players participating in Unrivaled who could attempt to subtly recruit Loyd, who is also playing in the new Miami-based offseason women’s basketball league.
Thomas, Bonner
Another big target at Unrivaled is Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas, who has finished in the top five in MVP voting for the past three seasons.
The Sun gave her the core designation Friday, but like Plum with the Aces, that doesn’t mean she’s staying in Connecticut.
A strong passer and defender, Thomas stayed vague about her free agency plans during an Unrivaled media day.
Thomas has been critical of the Sun’s lack of resources and shared facilities. That wouldn’t be a problem in Las Vegas.
She’s playing on the same Unrivaled team as Ace guards Jackie Young and Tiffany Hayes. Young is signed through next season, and Hayes is an unrestricted free agent the Aces could retain.
“I’m focused on Unrivaled right now. They have everything you possibly need here,” Thomas said. “They don’t really have a lot of those things in Connecticut. I’ve been trying to absorb as much knowledge as I can.”
It’s unclear if she and her partner, Sun forward DeWanna Bonner, would be a package deal, but it seems likely the couple would want to stick together. Sources said Bonner seriously considered the Aces when she explored free agency last offseason.
Contact Callie Fin at cfin@reviewjournal.com. Follow @CallieJLaw on X.
