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Kendra Andrews
Alexa Philippou
Alexa Philippou
ESPN
Covers women’s college basketball and the WNBA
Previously covered UConn and the WNBA Connecticut Sun for the Hartford Courant
Stanford graduate and Baltimore native with further experience at the Dallas Morning News, Seattle Times and Cincinnati Enquirer
The next big domino in WNBA free agency has fallen. The Dallas Wings are trading forward Satou Sabally, the No. 2 overall pick in 2020, to the Phoenix Mercury in a three-team trade, sources told ESPN on Friday.
The Wings will receive point guard Ty Harris and the reserved rights to free agent forward Kiki Herbert Harrigan from Phoenix, as well as NaLyssa Smith, who was selected second overall in 2022, and the No. 8 pick in this year’s draft from the Indiana Fever. Indiana will acquire guard Sophie Cunningham and the No. 19 pick this year from Phoenix, which will also receive center Kalani Brown and the reserved rights to point guard Sevgi Uzun from Dallas.
Sabally could leave Dallas only via a trade because the club designated her its core player. The transaction includes a sign-and-trade and can’t become official until Saturday, the first day players can sign contracts.
One of the most coveted free agents on the market, Sabally told reporters before free agency that she had played her last game in a Wings uniform.
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According to sources, Sabally wanted her new team to have a “great organization infrastructure” with top-tier practice facilities and resources.
Sabally didn’t hide this preference.
“What type of resources do they have? How important is their team to the owner? If you have an owner of a team that doesn’t prioritize the women’s team … that’s a place where I will be less likely to go,” Sabally said before the launch of Unrivaled.
The Mercury have doubled down on player resources under owner Mat Ishbia. Last summer, they unveiled a $100 million practice facility for the team in downtown Phoenix.
The Mercury have already undergone dramatic changes on the court before Friday’s trade. Phoenix traded for Alyssa Thomas, sending Natasha Cloud and Rebecca Allen to the Connecticut Sun in return. The Mercury also saw 10-time All-Star and franchise stalwart Brittney Griner depart for Atlanta as a free agent, and franchise legend Diana Taurasi is weighing retirement.
The Mercury made significant changes last offseason, acquiring Kahleah Copper, Cloud and Allen. But the team, which was hampered by injuries, was swept in the first round of the playoffs.
Sabally was named the most improved player in 2023 and selected to the All-WNBA first team for the first time in her career. She averaged 17.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 5.0 assists in 15 games last season, when she missed time due to a shoulder injury. Sabally played for the German women’s national team, which was eliminated in the quarterfinals in the Paris Olympics.
Sabally played her entire career with the Wings after being drafted out of Oregon.
Smith spent her first three seasons in Indiana, averaging 13.0 points and 8.0 rebounds. Cunningham, a second-round pick in 2019 for the Mercury, averaged 7.7 points during her six years in Phoenix.
ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss contributed to this report.
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