WNBA: Trade deadlines signals future-focused direction for Mystics

Just a few hours before the WNBA trade deadline on Tuesday, Aug. 20, the Washington Mystics pulled the trigger on two trades that might have implications on the future direction of the team.

Washington traded Myisha Hines-Allen to the Minnesota Lynx for Olivia Époupa, Sika Koné and a second-round pick. Époupa subsequently was waived, so the return for Washington is Sika Koné and a second-round draft pick in 2026.

According to Across the Timeline, the Mystics now have the three youngest players in the league: Jade Melbourne (22 years, 4 days), Sika Koné (22 years, 40 days) and Aaliyah Edwards (22 years, 44 days). With this move, Washington is clearly looking for young players with high upside as they embark on their rebuild.

The Mystics remain in contention for the No. 1 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft. The Mystics also own the Atlanta Dream’s first-round pick, but as the Dream keep winning and the Los Angeles Sparks and Dallas Wings keep losing, suddenly the Mystics have gone from having the highest odds to land the first overall pick to second-best odds.

It’s not a huge concern, but given that the Mystics recently made another trade for a guard, it’s unclear which players will be a part of the team’s long-term rebuild. Washington also traded away the rights to Klara Lundquist to the Phoenix Mercury in exchange for Sug Sutton and a 2025 third-round pick. Sutton has had a solid year as the backup point guard in Phoenix and she will likely be asked to be the backup point guard for Washington for the remainder of the season.

Sutton initiated quite a bit of pick-and-roll for the Mercury when Natasha Cloud was on the bench. She is very good at controlling the pace and tempo of the offense and not getting sped up or slowed down, which is a crucial element this young Mystics team has mostly lacked. In addition, the Mystics acquired yet another late-round pick. Even though most players drafted that late don’t make rosters, we’ve seen the Mystics package late-round picks in trades for rotation pieces or to move up in drafts.

Mystics and Sparks battle for lottery lead

In what might as well be called the “Tankathon” game, the Mystics face off against the Sparks on Friday, Aug. 23 (7:30 p.m. ET, ION). The two teams with the worst record in the league are vying for the highest lottery odds. As counterintuitive as it sounds, it would actually benefit both teams to lose this game, as doing so would put them in position to secure the No. 1 pick.

Nonetheless, the matchup between Dearica Hamby and Shakira Austin will be very intriguing. Even though they don’t play the same position, Austin is more mobile on the perimeter than Stephanie Dolson so she likely will be tasked with guarding the Most Improved Player frontrunner. In the same breath, rookie sensation Rickea Jackson likely will be matched up with Brittney Sykes, who is recently returning from injury.