When the WNBA held its expansion draft for the Golden State Valkyries, every team got to protect six players. For the Las Vegas Aces, that limit created a major problem. If they left Kate Martin, one of the few young players on the roster, unprotected, the Valkyries would almost certainly select her, but the Aces also didn’t want to risk losing any of their championship veterans.
The Aces left Martin unprotected. As expected, the Valkyries selected her, and Martin is thriving in the Bay Area. A bigger role was all she needed to impress. Las Vegas also lost Alysha Clark in free agency and traded Kelsey Plum.
With more teams being added, there will be another expansion draft before the 2026 season. While two teams are joining the league, the WNBA didn’t hold separate expansion drafts when several teams joined before. The Aces should try to hold on to Aaliyah Nye and not let her be selected by an expansion team.
Aaliyah Nye is in a similar position to Kate Martin
Much like Kate Martin, Aaliyah Nye joined the Las Vegas Aces as a second-round pick and made the team. Nye is the only rookie on the Aces’ roster and one of only two players under the age of 25. She averages a solid 18 minutes per game, but is far from a focal point for the Aces.
Unless this season ends in disaster, the Aces will be desperate to hold on to their stars and championship veterans. However, if they leave Nye unprotected, they will very likely lose her.
Even as a rookie, Nye leads the star-studded Aces in 3-point percentage, converting 39.1 percent of her 2.9 attempts per game. She has also put together some impressive scoring performances, like her 16 points on 71.4 percent shooting in a win against the Phoenix Mercury.
Nye has already proven that she can come into a game and have an immediate impact without needing the ball in her hands too much. She is a young role player who could thrive even more with an expansion team.
Las Vegas doesn’t have many young players
Las Vegas isn’t the same team it was when it won two championships. Eventually, the Aces will have to start over and rebuild, or at least retool. When a team reaches that point, having young players is always valuable. The Aces have two young players: Aaliyah Nye, who is only 22, and 24-year-old NaLyssa Smith.
The Aces also don’t have many good draft picks going forward. Las Vegas’s 2026 first-round pick was sent to Seattle in the trade that brought in Jewell Loyd. They also sent out their 2027 first-round pick to get NaLyssa Smith. So, the Aces likely won’t get any high-end talent in the draft for at least two years. That alone should motivate them to hold on to a young player who has shown promise.