Sparks building the nicest home on the WNBA's whole block

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The WNBA’s Sparks will open a state-of-the-art training facility in El Segundo in time for the 2027 season, the team announced on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025. (Rendering from sparks.wnba.com)

The WNBA’s Sparks will open a state-of-the-art training facility in El Segundo in time for the 2027 season, the team announced on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025. (Rendering from sparks.wnba.com)The Los Angeles Sparks will open a state-of-the-art training facility in El Segundo in time for the 2027 WNBA season, the team announced Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025. (Rendering from sparks.wnba.com)

The WNBA’s Sparks will open a state-of-the-art training facility in El Segundo in time for the 2027 season, the team announced on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025. (Rendering from sparks.wnba.com)

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The WNBA’s Sparks will open a state-of-the-art training facility in El Segundo in time for the 2027 season, the team announced on Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025. (Rendering from sparks.wnba.com)

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It’s as if the Sparks were like: Here, dang.

The organization heard you. And me. And players. And anyone who’s been clamoring over the past few years for Sparks ownership to meet the moment. To step up and give players the requisite tools to keep up with their competitive colleagues throughout the WNBA.

To get them their own dedicated practice facility. Get them out of public spaces and off of booked courts.

Get ’em their own lockers, for crying out loud!

And this week, the Sparks got back to us: How about lockers and an outdoor spa pool and hydrotherapy suites and wellness spaces for yoga and meditation and – All-Star forward Dearica Hamby posted online that she especially likes this – nap rooms!

How about two WNBA regulation-sized basketball courts, a state-of-the-art weight room – and a view!

How about a $150 million, 55,000-square-foot facility in El Segundo that will be the largest investment to date in the history of women’s sports for a single team?

Like, good enough? Happy now?

Definitely. Yes.

“What I appreciate from our ownership is that they’ve been hearing it, they’re aware,” Sparks general manager Raegan Pebley said of the Sparks’ ownership group that includes Magic Johnson, new Lakers owner Mark Walter and Eric Holoman. “Whether it was coming from players or media or fans, this was something that needed to happen.

“But they didn’t let the noise rush the process and they had a vision all along of wanting to be elite in how we serve these athletes. And if it needed to take a little more time to make sure we were doing it in the most elite way, that was OK.”

Pebley said the planning has been quietly ongoing for years, and that players were regularly consulted, which brought to mind something Kelsey Plum said at her introductory news conference in February.

When the All-Star point guard was asked about amenities – or the lack thereof, especially compared with what she had experienced as a member of the Las Vegas Aces, Plum replied: “First and foremost, I 100% had concerns when I first talked to Coach [Lynne Roberts] and Raegan. But if we’re going to be completely honest, I will say every step of the way they have not just met but exceeded my expectations, I’ve been treated better than I ever have been as a WNBA player. …

Plum continued: “I know that this franchise is extremely valuing the opportunity to be able to support players in any way they can, and I’ve seen that first hand … and as we continue to build, we’ll be able to show players this is a place where you want to play.”

Those sentiments make more sense now.

Because this facility is not only going to mean the Sparks – who flirted with the playoffs this season before falling short for the fifth consecutive summer – are keeping up with the Tsais, with Lacob and Davis and Ishbia, with those owners around the league who got the ball rolling by fixing up their teams with facilities at which to do their best work.

What this $150 million space means is that after years of bouncing between practice sites at The Academy in Glendale, Jump Beyond in Torrance, El Camino College, L.A. Southwest College and JR286, the Sparks will have the nicest home on the WNBA’s whole block.

L.A. could actually be a destination for free agents again. Player development will go all year round. The Sparks’ reputation? Resuscitated.

And right in time, with women’s hoops continually gaining traction across the country, including right here in the city, where the UCLA and USC women’s basketball teams have become national title contenders – and hot tickets because of it. All while the Sparks – the WNBA’s first glamour team, and one of the league’s first three originals still operating – steadily lost ground, in the standings and in terms of prestige.

Ownership making such a bold investment now is a signal to fans – old and new – that they can feel good about doing the same.

“It is a symbol and, I think, evidence of the direction that we’re headed,” Pebley said. “We use this phrase quite often as a guiding mantra: We’re taking the crowns out of the closet and polishing them off – and now we need to make room for more jewels.

“So we’re definitely going to honor that. This building is as much about the Candace Parkers and Lisa Leslies and Delisha Milton-Joneses, the legacy people … while also allowing future players to make sure this is about them and the direction we’re headed.”

Originally Published: September 26, 2025 at 4:00 PM PDT

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