The WNBA has exploded in popularity since the arrival of Indiana Fever phenom Caitlin Clark in the 2024 draft. Clark’s presence has helped catapult the league into record numbers in television viewership and attendance.
The success has led to rapid expansion for the W, which is expected to have 18 teams in the association by 2030, after having only 12 in 2024 when Clark was drafted. All of this success has resulted in teams putting a premium on building championship-level rosters as quickly as possible.
On Tuesday, one particular cutthroat and shocking move was made via the trade market, according to one league insider.
“The Washington Mystics are trading Brittney Sykes to the Seattle Storm in a deal that will also send Alysha Clark and a 2026 first-round pick to D.C., sources told ESPN,” ESPN’s Alexa Philippou reported.
Ramona Shelbourne then followed up with why the move felt necessary for the Storm.
“The Storm heavily recruited Clark this offseason and she took less money to return to Seattle. But expectations for both her role and the team have fallen short. She’ll have a larger role in Washington.”
Fans reacted to the trade on social media.
“Unfortunately anyone following The Storm’s last 3 months has been begging the Front Office to get out of the 185K contract, you could say her history w/ Team lead to them keeping her past where they should have, leading to people questioning the coach and GM’s decision making,” one fan wrote on Twitter.
“I understand it. You have two great young guards that you drafted and you expect them to be high minutes and high impact players in the future in Sonia and Georgia. So getting them high minutes is important,” another fan added.
It’ll be interesting to see how Clark fits in with the Mystics.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.