Sparks trade Kelsey Plum to Mercury for first-round pick
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- Sparks traded five-time All-Star Kelsey Plum to the Mercury for guard Monique Akoa Makani, a 2027 first-round pick, and a 2028 second-round pick, ahead of Sunday's 3 p.m. ET WNBA trade deadline.
- Kelsey Plum is averaging a career-high 23.9 points this season and has not played since June 21 due to a lower leg injury; she signed a one-year, $999,999 deal and plans to test free agency, with her 32nd birthday coming Aug. 24.
- Phoenix Mercury (11-19) sit 12th in the league with 14 games remaining and would need to win 11 of them just to reach .500, while the Sparks (10-17) need 12 wins in 17 games to hit .500 as the New York Liberty currently hold the final playoff slot at a 56.7 winning percentage.
- ESPN graded the deal a B for Phoenix and a B+ for LA, noting the Mercury would earn an A if they re-sign Plum beyond 2026, but would drop to an F if she becomes a 14-game rental.
- Alyssa Thomas, Kahleah Copper, Sami Whitcomb, and Natasha Mack are all signed through 2027 in Phoenix, giving the Mercury a potential long-term core if Plum stays, while the Sparks now hold two first-round picks and cap space for a new general manager to reshape the roster.
- Sparks GM Raegan Pebley was fired in July after the team's all-in 2026 push — which included trading the No. 4 pick Rickea Jackson for Ariel Atkins and signing both Plum and 36-year-old Nneka Ogwumike to one-year deals — failed to produce a playoff run.
Why it matters: The deal is a high-stakes audition: Phoenix surrenders a 2027 first-round pick in what ESPN calls a quality draft class for a 32-year-old pending free agent who hasn't played since June 21, with Alyssa Thomas turning 35 in April. For the Sparks, trading their franchise face less than two years after signing her confirms the 2026 championship push has collapsed and hands the next GM draft capital and cap space to rebuild.
