The Indiana Fever and Katie Lou Samuelson reportedly agreed to a contract buyout earlier this week. With the additions of DeWanna Bonner, Natasha Howard, and Sophie Cunningham, the decision was not much of a surprise, as the Fever simply do not have minutes left for Samuelson anymore. Allowing her to become a free agent means that Samuelson will now have the opportunity to find a team that can offer her a bigger role.
The 2024 season was a down year for Samuelson, but that is not surprising considering that she missed the previous season due to maternity leave. Now that Samuelson played her first post-pregnancy WNBA season and is competing in Unrivaled during the offseason, she should be well set up for a bounce-back season and attract some attention in free agency.
Plenty of teams still need depth and could really benefit from Samuelson becoming available.
4. Seattle Storm
The Seattle Storm desperately need depth. Even after losing Jewell Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces, the Storm have an established core. Between Skylar Diggins-Smith, Nneka Ogwumike, Ezi Magbegor, Gabby Williams, and Jordan Horston, they retained most of their key players from the 2024 season. The problem is the bench.
A lack of depth already hurt the Storm last season, and they must address that issue if they want to be more successful this season. Signing Alysha Clark in free agency is a good start, but they need more. Samuelson could help fill out the Storm’s bench without facing the pressure of having to play a huge role.
The Storm already have a rather stacked frontcourt, but most of their forwards are not good 3-point shooters. If Samuelson can rediscover her 3-point shot, it could go a long way for the Storm.
3. Minnesota Lynx
The Lynx have been incredibly quiet this offseason, largely keeping their roster from the 2024 season intact. That group led them all the way to Game 5 of the WNBA Finals, after all. Nevertheless, the Lynx should take a look at Samuelson in free agency.
The Lynx could use some veteran forward depth behind Napheesa Collier. Between Alanna Smith, Dorka Juhasz, and Napheesa Collier, the Lynx have three great forwards/ centers, but they also need solid backups.
Losing Cecilia Zandalasini in the expansion draft means that Diamond Miller and Alissa Pili are next in line to see forward minutes off the bench. Both are young and inexperienced, particularly Pili, and the Lynx might want to have a more experienced forward to fall back on.
2. Las Vegas Aces
Last season, the Aces had two frontcourt players who shot the three well: Megan Gustafson and Alysha Clark. The latter signed with the Storm in free agency, and the Aces could use another forward who can hit a couple of threes off the bench each game. They already signed Cheyenne Parker-Tyus, but she has not been a good 3-point shooter in recent seasons, shooting only 29.2 percent for her career.
If Samuelson can go back to shooting around 35 percent from three, she would be a nice addition to the Aces’ bench and potentially a steal, depending on the price tag. Samuelson was on a big contract until now, but after a down season and being bought out by a potential contender, she will probably be available at a reasonable price this offseason.
1. Washington Mystics
The Washington Mystics are not expected to win much in the 2025 WNBA season. They are still rebuilding and looking for young stars to add to the roster. While Aalyiah Edwards is looking great in Unrivaled and Shakira Austin has been playing well behind Napheesa Collier, the Mystics do not have enough to be a competitive team yet.
Nevertheless, Washington could be an interesting destination for Samuelson. For one, her sister is currently under contract with the Mystics. Secondly, they still have roster spots available. Last but not least, signing with a non-competitive team means that there would be little pressure on Samuelson to get back into pre-pregnancy form right away. Instead, she would have a full season with little pressure to rediscover her 3-point shot and build up her value for the 2026 season.
In return, the Mystics would get a selfless veteran presence to work with their young players. That can go a long way for a young team still trying to figure out its future. Unlike the Fever, the Mystics have not outgrown that stage of their rebuild yet and could thus benefit from the Fever’s decision to part ways with Samuelson.