Once Sue Bird retired from the WNBA, and Breanna Stewart decided to join the New York Liberty as a free agent, things changed quickly for the Seattle Storm. By now, the Storm replaced their former stars, signing Skylar Diggins-Smith and Nneka Ogwumike in the last offseason.
The Storm were a veteran team with plenty of All-Star power. They put together the seventh-best offense in the league during the regular season and the fourth-best defense. It was a solid regular season, but the Storm did not find any playoff success, losing to the Las Vegas Aces in two games in the first round. It marked only the second time since 2018 that the Storm did not make it out of the first round.
With such a top-heavy roster, not even winning a playoff game was not the plan for the Storm. As a result, the Storm have plenty of work to do this offseason. After all, winning will not get easier next season. The New York Liberty, Minnesota Lynx, and Las Vegas Aces are not going anywhere, and the top of the WNBA will still be stacked next season. So, the Storm must act quickly and address some of their most serious issues.
3. The Jewell Loyd situation
Since being drafted by the Seattle Storm with the number-one pick in 2015, Jewell Loyd has not played for any other WNBA team. She quickly became a staple in Seattle, winning two championships with the Storm and making six All-Star teams in her time there. Now, it seems, Loyd is ready for a change.
Earlier this month, Loyd reportedly requested a trade. Loyd may already be 31 years old, but she is not slowing down. In 2024, Loyd still led the Storm in scoring, averaging 19.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. It marked the second-highest scoring average of her career. She can still be a difference-maker for any team and losing her will be a serious blow.
So, the Storm must figure out how to best approach the situation. Fortunately, several teams are likely interested in Loyd, which means the Storm should be able to get appropriate assets in return. Loyd would, for example, be a great fit with Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso in Chicago.
Other than making sure they get valuable assets in return for Loyd, the Storm also must figure out how to replace her. Losing almost 20 points per game is not an easy thing to stomach for a team that ideally wants to compete.
2. The team’s depth
The Storm were a top-heavy team in the 2024 season, relying strongly on Jewell Loyd, Nneka Ogwumike, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Ezi Magbegor, and Gabby Williams. The only other players to give the Storm noticeable production during the regular season were Jordan Horston, 36-year-old Sami Whitcomb, and Mercedes Russell to an extent.
In the playoffs, that did not look much different. Only seven players played more than seven minutes in the playoffs, and only four players averaged double-digit scoring. Jewell Loyd struggled in the playoffs, averaging only 7.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2 assists per game, which marked a steep decline from her regular-season numbers.
Lacking depth, the Storm struggled to make up for Loyd’s struggles and Ezi Magbegor’s injury and to just compete with the Aces in general. The Storm actually posted the worst offensive rating in the playoffs and got the least production from their bench.
The Storm need an improved bench in 2025, but getting that won’t be easy. Seattle currently only has Jewell Loyd, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Ezi Magbegor, Jordan Houston, and Nika Mühl under contract. The first three make a lot of money and Nneka Ogwumike also won’t come cheap if the Storm want to re-sign her.
So, where will the Storm be able to find extra depth? Maybe they can land some role players from a team looking to add Loyd to the mix, or maybe they can find some young players on cheap contracts to step up.
1. The Storm’s lack of young talent
The Golden State Valkyries’ expansion draft was a harsh reminder of the Storm’s current roster situation. Golden State opted not to select anyone off the Storm’s roster, which was not entirely surprising. The Valkyries were looking for young players to develop and proven veterans who could give them solid production.
Seattle only had two young players—Jordan Horston and Nika Mühl—and few impactful veteran contributors. They could protect six players, not including Nneka Ogwumike, who was ineligible for the draft and likely covered Diggins-Smith, Horston, Loyd, Magbegor, Mühl, and Williams. That left the Valkyries with few options and reminded Storm fans of how few interesting young players their team currently features.
The Storm featured two players under the age of 25, but only Jordan Horston played significant minutes, while Nika Mühl spent most of her season on the bench. On top of that, Mühl tore her ACL playing overseas and may not be ready for meaningful minutes in the 2025 season either.
While that may not be a huge problem for the Storm right away, it could be soon. Diggins-Smith and Ogwumike are both 34 already, and Loyd wants out of Seattle. Soon, the Storm will need younger players to step up, but those players are not on the roster yet.