WNBA Offseason in Overdrive: Griner, Loyd, Plum, Thomas All on the Move

It didn’t take long for several more dominoes to fall in the WNBA offseason.

Two days after a three-team deal sent Kelsey Plum and Jewell Loyd away from the franchises that drafted them, Brittney Griner chose to move on as well. The 10-time All-Star agreed to a one-year deal with the Atlanta Dream, ESPN reported Tuesday. Financial terms have not yet been reported, but Griner made $150,000 last season with the Phoenix Mercury.

The 6-foot-9 center is by far the most impactful free-agent signing for the franchise, which has consistently been at the bottom of the WNBA in attendance. This is due, in part, to playing its home games at the Gateway Center Arena, which has a capacity of just 3,500, the league’s smallest. 

But the franchise has also failed to finish with a winning record since 2018—and Griner’s addition to a core consisting of All-Star wings Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray puts the Dream, who finished 15–25 last season, in position to break the drought.

From the Sun to the Valley

Griner’s announcement came just hours after it was announced that the Mercury were finalizing a deal to acquire Alyssa Thomas from the Connecticut Sun via a sign-and-trade, ESPN reported.

The Sun will also send out Tyasha Harris in exchange for Natasha Cloud, Rebecca Allen, and the No. 12 pick in the 2025 draft, according to Howard Megdal of The Next.

Thomas, a 6-foot-2 forward who was on the All-WNBA first team for the last two seasons, was drafted in 2014 by the Sun and had spent her entire career in Connecticut. 

She was an unrestricted free agent before receiving the core designation from the Sun—which is a one-year deal worth nearly $250,000, akin to the NFL’s franchise tag—earlier this month. A sign-and-trade was the only option for Thomas to move out of Connecticut, and she chose to play for Phoenix, according to The Athletic. 

Thomas joins Kahleah Copper in Phoenix, who, together with the now-traded Cloud, was publicly recruiting free agents to join the Mercury by promoting the team’s $100 million practice facility. The former Sun star told The Next in September the team had to share its practice court at Mohegan Sun Arena with a 2-year-old’s birthday party ahead of a playoff game.

“Mohegan has to do better,” Thomas said. “[It’s the] ultimate disrespect.”