Nika Muhl was drafted as the 14th overall selection by the Seattle Storm in 2024, but has yet to actually play much in the WNBA. Muhl played 57 minutes over 16 games for the Storm that season, and then tore her ACL during the preseason in 2025.
That injury meant Muhl missed the entire season last year, and fans have been hoping that 2026 would finally be the year she sees action on the floor. Unfortunately, reports out of Europe appear to indicate Muhl has suffered another knee injury. It's currently unclear if this will rule her out of play for the 2026 WNBA season.
Muhl, who is currently playing for Sopron Basket in Hungary, is also representing Croatia in the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers. She suffered her latest injury with around 4:32 left in the first quarter of Thursday's game against Greece.
Nika Muhl's injury will make a WNBA return difficult
The severity of Muhl's injury will impact how she's able to recover and if she will be able to play for the Storm during the 2026 season. The Croatian Basketball Federation has not released a statement about Muhl's status, and she also has not publicly commented on the injury.
Muhl suffered her 2025 ACL injury while playing for Besiktas in Turkey, and was added to the sidelined list for the Storm that year. The decision to add a player to the sidelined list allows a team to keep the player on their roster while also keeping that roster flexible and not taking away from available cap space for the team as a whole. (Muhl's teammate Jordan Horston was also added to the sidelined list after suffering a knee injury during the fourth season of Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball.) She has not yet been added to the list for the 2026 season.
While the Storm have plenty of resouces for her, Muhl could end up facing an uphill battle as she recovers from this latest injury, especially with the WNBA season presumably around the corner. (The 2026 season is scheduled to begin on May 8, but it's unclear how protracted CBA negotiations may impact that start date. The players and the league have been negotiating terms of a new deal all week in New York.)
Muhl graduated from UConn in 2024
Before she was drafted into the WNBA Muhl played for the UConn Huskies for four seasons, from 2020-2024. She started in 39 games in her senior year and averaged 6.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game.