The WNBA preseason is well underway, which means teams are playing games and that newcomers are making names for themselves. Unfortunately, it usually also means that players are being waived, and this year's preseason is no different.
NCAA and WNBA fans have a lot in common, and one thing is that they're both very dedicated to the players they love and are rooting for. As a result, it's not too surprising that fans are having big reactions to news of waived players.
The Golden State Valkyries were the first to waive a player when they say goodbye to Bailey Maupin on Tuesday, April 21. Maupin, who graduated from Texas Tech at the end of the 2025-26 collegiate season, has not yet announced her future plans.
That announcement was followed by several more: to date, the Dallas Wings have waived Shyanne Sellers, Grace Sullivan, Lazaria "Zee" Spearman, and Kyla Oldacre. Plenty of fans were hoping that Sellers, who went to play overseas in Israel after she was not added to a WNBA roster in 2025, would get a second shot at the league, but Spearman and Oldacre's dismissals have garnered the most responses so far.
Fans respond to the Wings waiving Zee Spearman and Kyla Oldacre
"The Wings cutting Zee Spearman and Kyla Oldacre begs the question about what will be done to shore up the front court rotation. The options on the roster are pretty slim," wrote Christian, a journalist and scout for Off the Record WBB, on X. But one fan was quick to note that the team definitely has plenty of players on the roster who might work.
"Li, Awak, Ray, LAN, Jess?" they answered. "In a 3 guard system you can only play 2 at a time. They have plenty. Maddie can also play the 4."
Spearman's dismissal also surprised a lot of fans. "Some people getting waived by your team -or maybe even other teams- is going to be hard at times. I'm aware. As for these 2, I thought one would have made the roster, and one would have had a chance at the development spot at least for the[m]," wrote one person on X. The new CBA allows teams to add on up to two developmental players, which was most recently exercised by the Indiana Fever when the team opted to assign Justine Pissott to the role.
What happens after a WNBA player is waived
After a team has announced they've waived a player, other teams in the league have 48 hours to make an offer and add that player to their own roster. If more than one team attempts to claim a player, the team with the highest waiver usually wins.
If a player isn't picked up by a team, they then move on to their other options. That typically means exploring overseas leagues (like Sellers did last year) and potentially using their WNBA experience to boost their salary offers.
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