Thanks to the growth in popularity, viewership and attendance over the last 5 years and the explosion in 2024, the WNBA is adding teams with the first one being in 2025 with the Golden State Valkyries.

Golden State is the first team to be added since the Atlanta Dream in 2008. This addition now brings the WNBA to 13 teams. The new team brings about some questions about offseason outlook, starting with the WNBA Draft.

How does the expansion team affect the WNBA Draft?

The WNBA Draft lottery is set for Sunday, Nov. 17 where the Sparks have the highest probability of getting the No. 1 overall pick. The Wings and Sky will most likely have the No. 2 and No. 3 picks, respectively, with the Mystics projecting to get the No. 4 overall pick.

Now remember, the Wings own the rights to swap 1st-round picks with the Sky in the 2025 draft as a result of the Marina Mabrey trade by James Wade in February of 2023. So even if the Sky were to get the No. 2 pick, the Wings will most likely swap and move up to the 2nd pick.

The WNBA decided to slot the Valkyries with the No. 5 overall draft pick, leaving them out of the lottery conversation. The league will then hold an expansion draft on December 6.

What is the expansion draft?

Prior to the expansion draft, the current 12 WNBA teams will submit a roster list of all players that the team has rights to as of the final day of the 2024 regular season. 

Teams will designate no more than 6 “protected players” that will not be available for selection in the expansion draft. All other players on the roster list will be available for the Valkyries to select. These lists will not be made public by the teams per league policy.

Between now and Dec. 6, Golden State can make trades with existing teams. Those trades can include agreements to select (or not select) a player from a team’s list of available players and agreements to select a player to help facilitate multi-team trades.

Who should the Sky protect?

At the end of the 2024 WNBA season, the Chicago Sky have rights to the following players: Elizabeth Williams, Moriah Jefferson, Rachel Banham, Lindsay Allen, Kamilla Cardoso, Angel Reese, Dana Evans, Michaela Onyenwere and Chennedy Carter.

Evans, Onyenwere and Carter are all restricted free agents while the rest of players are on contract currently for the 2025 season.

Out of the 9 players, Reese, Cardoso and Williams should be automatic protections for the Sky. The two rookies put up solid rookie numbers and also brought fans to the stands; protecting the two faces – especially Reese – of the franchise needs to be the top priority when it comes to protections.

Williams was on track for a stellar season before a knee injury 9 games in ended her year. She still provided a veteran presence for both Reese & Cardoso to rely on and learn from all year long. The experienced center can also be an anchor for new head coach Tyler Marsh as he adjusts to his first head coaching position.

That leaves just 3 players left for the Sky to protect with Carter and Onyenwere likely filling in 2 of those final 3 spots. Carter’s explosiveness played a large factor into the Sky’s success on both sides of the ball. She’s hard to stop when she has the ball in her hands, and her quick hands translate to steals and causing turnovers in the back court.

Onyenwere lacked opportunities to showcase consistency, but when she got regular minutes, the contributions were across the stat sheet. Her physicality and versatility to play just about any position would give the 2025 Chicago Sky a depth piece across the court. 

If the Sky were to max out the protected players list, Evans could possibly round out that list. Evans’ tenure in Chicago does provide Marsh with another anchor to lean on in the guard group. While she saw her minutes decrease as the season went on, she did provide extra offensive sparks through her defensive stops. With Marsh’s developmental history and success in the WNBA, Evans playing the point guard position could be a possible starting point.