Ever since the buzzer sounded on October’s thrilling WNBA Finals, anticipation has been building about what 2025 might have in store. With free agency under way, we’re about to find out.
For Jan. 11-20, teams are allowed to extend reserved, restricted and core qualifying offers to players. Some notable stars — the New York Liberty‘s Breanna Stewart, Las Vegas Aces‘ Kelsey Plum, Indiana Fever‘s Kelsey Mitchell, Connecticut Sun‘s Alyssa Thomas, Dallas Wings‘ Satou Sabally and Seattle Storm‘s Gabby Williams — already received a core qualifying offer, what is often referred to as “being cored.”
Negotiations officially begin Tuesday, and players can sign contracts starting Feb. 1, but news of moves and trades will leak well before then. With a new CBA featuring massive salary bumps expected to come into effect in 2026, expect to see players sign only one-year deals.
What movement might we see? We can expect two significant changes: Seattle’s Jewell Loyd isn’t a free agent, but she has already requested a trade from the Storm. And earlier this month Sabally announced she has played her last game for the Wings and is working to find a new home. Because she has been cored, that would have to come via trade.
Other big-name free agents to…
