Sparks are going for it all

LOS ANGELES — It’s been real busy in the WNBA. And it is no exception for the Los Angeles Sparks.

April 2026 might be the busiest month in the league’s history. After an extended negotiation about the latest Collective Bargaining Agreement, the schedule that includes free agency, the expansion draft, and the college draft have all been crunched into this short window of time.

In the expansion draft, the Sparks saw Julie Allemand and Sarah Ashlee Barker get chosen by the Tempo and the Fire, respectively.

In free agency, they made a huge trade that sent Rickea Jackson to Chicago and got back guard Ariel Atkins. Azura Stevens also went to Chicago via free agency. Former Sparks Nneka Ogwumike and Erica Wheeler, who both previously played in Seattle, decided to return to L.A. All the while, the team was able to re-sign Kelsey Plum, Dearica Hamby, Rae Burrell, Emma Cannon, and Julie Vanloo (training camp deal).

As for the college draft, the Sparks were able to somehow obtain Ta’niya Latson from South Carolina in the second round. They also picked Chance Gray in that same second round and Amelia Hassett in the third round.

Both General Manager Raegan Pebley, coach Lynne Roberts, and the new/returning Sparks players talked about the month at large.

AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE AT THE DRAFT

Latson was chosen by the Sparks with the 20th overall pick, which was a huge surprise to everyone.

“I love a good scoring guard,” Coach Roberts mused last week after the draft.

“Our draft model and everything had her a lot higher than 20 and so we were excited that she was still there,” Roberts continued. “She can shoot it, she can get to the basket, she’s great in transition, and then I think something that you know we really needed and we’re excited about is just her defense, her point of attack defense. She’s really good on ball but she’s a winner and we’re just excited. It’s hard as a rookie, especially at that point guard/two spot, to adapt but I’m expecting her to be a great addition to our squad.”

“I think I can bring just my defensive tenacity,” Latson said on Monday about what she could bring to the team. “I feel like I grew in defense last year. That was something I really wanted to work on going into South Carolina. I feel like I’m a better two-way guard now.”

Apr 13, 2026; New York, NY, USA; WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert (left) poses for photos with Ta’Niya Latson who was selected twentieth overall by the Los Angeles Sparks during the 2026 WNBA Draft at The Shed at Hudson Yards.

Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Latson mentioned that she grew up watching Nneka Ogwumike. Ogwumike talked about the rookie in her individual presser on Monday.

“I absolutely love her,” Ogwumike said. “I think she’s the biggest steal (in the draft) this year. And you can tell that she’s somebody who is locked in. She’s someone who does not like to lose.

And she’s quite mature for her age. She has a level of joy and commitment in how she plays and she wants to be better. So I’m very grateful to be in this L.A. Sparks team with her.”

Chance Gray, the 24th overall pick, wasn’t even watching the draft when her name was called.

“Yeah, I have really bad anxiety,” Gray confessed. “So I didn’t want to watch the draft because I really didn’t know where it was going to happen. And I was literally in the gym getting shots up, and as I was leaving the gym, I just saw my name pop up at 24. So it’s kind of crazy.”

Amelia Hassett was chosen at 35. With her three-point shooting, she said the Sparks offense is the right fit for her.

THE MASSIVE TRADE

It was not a popular trade made by the Sparks. Fan favorite and young rising star Rickea Jackson was sent to the Chicago Sky for two-way guard Ariel Atkins. But both coach and GM like what they see with Atkins.

“I’m excited about her,” Coach Roberts said. “And people don’t talk about her as much. So it’s almost like she flies under the radar just because she’s not that present (in) social media, whatever. But she was an Olympian. She’s won a championship. She is legit and couldn’t be more happy to have her.”

General Manager Pebley rattled off some stats about Atkins. “When she’s on the floor, her teams are +11. I mean, that’s a career stat, not just a last couple of years stat. She’s top 10 in catch and shoot threes in the last three seasons. Number three in points or opponent points per direct drive. You can go down the list of all the things with her. Also really good at defending off ball screens. I think she was a number two defender in off ball screens the last few years.

“So, again, just in roster construction without over correcting, because that would be a different mistake,” Pebley continued. “We needed to address our defense. And that’s part of that two-way player element.”

As for trading Rickea Jackson?

“We care about the fans. We care about the player as well,” Pebley said. “So all of those things factor in. The integrity of who I am will always be to lead with a straight spine, but also a tender heart. So that’s to the people you build a relationship with. And we recognize that this is hard on the fans. We had a very clear focus on what we’re out to do in building this roster. And the end goal is that we’re going and winning a championship.

“So we had to really work to just find where those fits were for us,” Pebley went on. “We knew it was really important for us to be able to add a backcourt piece. So we’re excited about Ariel. As much as Rickea is a loss, we’re really excited about the addition of Ariel Atkins and what she brings to our team on both ends of the floor.”

What did Atkins like about the Sparks?

“Obviously, the roster they were working to put together was huge for me,” Atkins said on her press conference on Monday. “Something that I don’t think a lot of people think about: being in a women-led organization was something that I was really thinking very heavy about. This is the WNBA, and I think it’s a space where more women should be empowered, and to have a colleague, Coach Pebley… I’ve been knowing Coach Pebley since TCU days (Pebley coached TCU from 2014-23). But to have Raegan here and Lynne here at the helm of this, it’s huge for me to be led by women and to be in that space. I know a lot of people are probably like, that’s not important but it’s very important for me, and I think it’s important for our sport.”

WHEELS UP

The losses of Allemand and Barker left the Sparks thin in the backcourt. After pulling the trigger to get Atkins, the Sparks were able to get an old friend back. Erica Wheeler, who played for L.A. in 2021, has returned to the fold.

What led Wheeler to come back to Los Angeles? She had a simple answer in her press conference on Monday.

“KP,” Wheeler said bluntly, referring to Kelsey Plum. “Throughout last season, we stayed in contact and she was just like, ‘Yeah, let’s go get some lunch.’ I’m like, why do you want to go get lunch during the season? The whole time she meant after the season, let’s have some lunch to potentially get me here in L.A.

“So KP plays a big role in having me here,” Wheeler continued. “Nneka was the tip of the iceberg. It was a no-brainer. Once Nneka decides she wanted to come here because as you know, your life is always easy around her.

Wheeler immediately mentioned her role.

“I’m adjustable,” Wheeler answered. “If you look at my career, when I played for Seattle just recently, I started, came off the bench, started, came off the bench, was a shot away from sending us to the championship. I think that I’m great for this team because I can play any role. I can come off the bench or start. And I have no ego. My goal is to be the connector-in-chief. That’s what I plan to do, take some heat off Kelsey. And just be a great teammate.”

THE RETURN OF A LEGEND

Talk of the Sparks offseason wouldn’t be complete without the return of Nneka Ogwumike. Her accolades are endless: 2012 Rookie of the Year, 2016 MVP, 10-time all-star, 8-time all-WNBA, 7-time all-defensive team, and, of course, she helped bring the Sparks a championship in 2016.

Why return now?

“When Raegan was hired just before I decided to leave, I told her I didn’t actually want to leave,” Ogwumike said. “But I felt like I needed to, considering the growth that we wanted to see further in the organization. And I really wanted to come back.

“And I’m seeing just that, going into this free agency, I was kind of all doors wide open, including returning to Seattle,” Ogwumike continued. “I think the timeline of a lot of things accelerated me narrowing down certain organizations. But L.A. was in the mix, not just because of the time that I’ve had here but because of the amazing progress that I’ve seen in just the two years in my absence. It just made a lot of sense at the end, after talking to players, talking to Lynne and, of course, Raegan, for me to make the move to come on back home.”

When asked to elaborate more on the progress, Ogwumike obliged.

“To put it generally, I’ve always experienced, for the most part, investment in the Sparks,” the WNBPA president said. “I always say that the killer combination is investment and engagement. And so I’m seeing both at very high levels. It permeates every aspect of the organization whether it’s basketball, ops, front office, player experience, practice facility. It’s just something that I’ve always believed was our standard. And not only have we matched what our expectations were but we’re now exceeding it in a timeline that I think is much faster than I ever expected. So I’m really happy to be back and to hopefully contribute to that to that progress.”

GREAT EXPECTATIONS

The Sparks still have a great duo in Kelsey Plum and Dearica Hamby, who has taken her game to another level in the two years Ogwumike was in Seattle. Coach Lynne Roberts mentioned that Cameron Brink’s 2026 will be her “springboard” year. They have a young big in Sania Feagin. Veterans Emma Cannon and Julie Vanloo were brought back as well.

Putting all the moves in context, there is no doubt about it; the Sparks are going for it all. They have a lot of veterans and some of them have won, too. Kelsey Plum has two championships from her time in the Aces. Hamby won one in Vegas as well. Ogwumike took the Sparks to the promised land a decade ago and hopes to get them back there soon. And Ariel Atkins won with the Mystics in 2019.

Two years ago, the Sparks had the worst record in the league. Last year, they barely missed the playoffs. With the Sparks missing the playoffs since the wubble year, the team has decided to push all their chips in and essentially skip all the steps on the rebuild. The team wants this playoff drought to come to a halt.

There is no right or wrong way to build a team. The Aces, who have won three championships in four years, put together a team from the draft. The Liberty, who won the title in 2024, did have Sabrina Ionescu as their draft pick in 2020 but acquired a few stars through free agency and trade. Those acquisitions immediately paid off as they got to the championship round in 2023 before winning it all the next season. The Sparks are seemingly assembling in a similar fashion as the Libs.

Will this roster construction pay off? We’re all about to find out come fall.

Source link

Sparks

Sparks are going for it all

Raptors’ Immanuel Quickley (hamstring) out for Game 2 vs. Cavs

Lexie Hull Reveals Why She Chose to Stay with the Indiana Fever in Free Agency

You may also like