The Sparks were far from a championship contender last season despite trading for Kelsey Plum. They finished with a 21-23 record and lost the final playoff spot to the Valkyries. There are a few reasons for that: Cameron Brink missed most of the season, as she was still recovering from an ACL tear, the Sparks struggled defensively, Lynne Roberts was in her first season as a head coach, and adding Plum to the mix changed the team’s dynamic.
Missing the playoffs wasn’t the end of the world under those circumstances, but now the Sparks are under a ton of pressure to build a more competitive team around Plum—and not just because it would be a waste of talent to not compete with a roster that features Plum, Brink, Dearica Hamby, and Rickea Jackson. The players are desperate for some success.
When Cameron Brink appeared on We Need To Talk Now, she told host Alicia Jay, “I want to win, and I want to bring LA back to the top of the W.”
That goal isn’t unattainable. Even after the expansion draft and free agency, the Sparks should have a very talented core. The challenge is building a great team around that core when the Sparks may not be the most attractive free agency destination and other teams will remain competitive no matter what happens in the offseason.
Free agency could make or break the Sparks’ season
A free agency period in which all but two veterans are not under contract promises a lot of player movement and many bidding wars. Brink and Jackson are still under contract with the Sparks, and Plum and Hamby haven’t given any indication that they want to leave in free agency. So, keeping the core together shouldn’t be too difficult.
Filling out the roster around them could be a challenge. Many teams in the league will have ample cap space and will be eyeing championship-level role players. At least some of those teams will have advantages over the Sparks when it comes to player experience. The Sparks still don’t have a practice facility and also don’t have a reputation for taking care of their players, like the Valkyries, Storm, Liberty, Aces, and Mercury do, for example.
Given the Sparks’ defensive struggles in 2025, they should target players who can make a difference on that end of the floor. If they cannot do that, it will be difficult to keep up with other top offenses. Scoring a lot is great, but it doesn’t really do you any good if you can’t keep your opponents from scoring as well.
The league is filled with good teams
Even though we have no idea what rosters will actually look like, the upcoming season already promises a tight playoff race. Many of last season’s playoff teams will stay competitive, while others are desperate to enter the race.
Last season, the Lynx, Aces, Dream, Mercury, Liberty, Fever, Storm, and Valkyries all made the playoffs. Out of that group, the Aces and Fever have the fewest question marks. Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston are still under contract in Indiana, and Kelsey Mitchell should expect a max offer from the Fever. Likewise, A’ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, and Jackie Young have no reason to leave Las Vegas unless the new CBA features a salary cap that forces the Aces to move on from one of them. As long as Wilson and at least one of Gray and Young are on the team, the Aces are championship contenders.
The Liberty and Mercury should also be able to keep their big threes together. Atlanta faces some question marks after Bri Jones suffered an injury while playing overseas, but the front office can still build around Allisha Gray, Rhyne Howard, and Naz Hillmon. The Valkyries should only get better after going on a historic playoff run with a roster full of role players and Kayla Thornton sidelined for most of the season.
The Lynx and Storm are wildcards, but even without them, six of last season’s playoff teams should be back in the postseason picture. If you then also factor in the Sparks, Wings, and Sky, which are all desperate to make the playoffs, the race immediately becomes very competitive.