WNBA: Can Sarah Ashlee Barker create a Spark in Los Angeles?

In 2024, the Los Angeles Sparks won a franchise-low 20 percent of their games, missed the playoffs for the fourth-straight year and fired their head coach, Curt Miller.

However, the calendar has turned—and 2025 looks very different. Lynne Roberts is now coaching the Sparks. They turned the No. 2 pick in the draft into Kelsey Plum. They also picked up not one, not two, not three, but four players from the draft pool, setting up their future.

The biggest splash came when Sparks drafted Sarah Ashlee Barker at the ninth spot. The wing from Alabama made noise in the NCAA Tournament, going off against Maryland and scoring 45 points in the team’s double overtime loss. The defeat was tough, but it didn’t take away from Barker’s sensational final year. She improved each season as a collegian, and in her final season, she averaged 18.2 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. Now, she’ll have a chance to grow under Roberts and become the wing the Sparks have desperately needed this decade.

Los Angeles then drafted Sania Feagin from South Carolina with the No. 21 pick, and, as general manager Raegan Pebley later expressed, the team was shocked to find her still on the board.

Feagin spent her four seasons of college basketball at South Carolina, averaging 8.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game during her final season. If the Sparks are right and she was a high-value selection, perhaps she will make the roster and become one of the steals of the draft.

LA’s final selection was Notre Dame forward Liatu King. She played three years at Pittsburgh, averaging 10.9 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists during her career as a Panther. During her one season with Notre Dame, she averaged 11.5 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game. In a press release, Pebley spoke fondly of the Fighting Irish forward, saying:

Liatu is just scratching the surface of what she can accomplish at the professional level. She is an efficient shooter, excellent rebounder and a tenacious defender. Her motor and explosiveness fit the identity of our team.

The Sparks’ final rookie pick up came after the draft, signing North Carolina guard Alyssa Ustby as an undrafted free agent. Ustby played five seasons for the Tar Heels, averaging 11.9 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.

All these new Sparks will have to turn around and quickly prepare for training camp, which opens on April 27. Of all the players selected, this draft will likely be thought of fondly or forgotten based on how well Barker does in the City of Angels.

That can be a lot of pressure, but with Plum, Roberts and a young core featuring Cameron Brink, Rickea Jackson and Rae Burrell, that pressure will be shared. Collectively, maybe they can dig the Sparks out of the WNBA’s basement and put them back in the penthouse where they belong.