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The WNBA has its first blockbuster trade of 2025.
The Seattle Storm have reached an agreement to trade Jewell Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces in a three-team deal that will send Kelsey Plum to the Los Angeles Sparks, a person with knowledge of the trade confirmed to USA TODAY Sports. The person requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly until the trade is officially announced by the teams.
As part of the deal, Seattle will acquire the No. 2 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft and 6-foot-7 center Li Yueru from the Sparks, who will get the No. 9 pick in 2025 from the Storm. The Aces will obtain the No. 13 pick in the 2025 draft from the Sparks to complete the trade, according to ESPN.
Loyd and Plum were teammates on the U.S. women’s basketball team that won the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Loyd, a two-time WNBA champion, six-time All-Star, three-time All-WNBA performer and the 2023 league scoring champion, reportedly requested a trade from Seattle, where she has played since being taken with the first overall pick in the 2015 WNBA draft.
This came in conjunction with an investigation of the Storm over allegations of player mistreatment. The Chicago Sun Times reported that it was Loyd who filed the complaint. After the completion of an investigation conducted by an outside firm, the Storm said in a statement that “there were no findings of policy violations or any discrimination, harassment, or bullying.”
Loyd, 31, averaged 19.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.4 steals as an All-Star for Seattle in 2024 and will help the Aces remain a contender. Las Vegas won back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023 but lost in the semifinals last season to champion New York.
Plum, who won two titles with Las Vegas, has been an All-Star the past three years. The 30-year-old averaged 17.8 points and 4.2 assists and shot 36.8% on 3-pointers in 2024.
Yueru, 25, averaged 5.1 points and 3.7 rebounds coming off the bench for Los Angeles last season.
(This story was updated to change the headline.)
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