WNBA Superstar Alyssa Thomas to Be Traded to Phoenix Mercury

One of the WNBA's best players is reportedly being traded.
Sep 29, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas (25) celebrates during the second half against the Minnesota Lynx of game one of the 2024 WNBA Semi-finals at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images
Sep 29, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Connecticut Sun forward Alyssa Thomas (25) celebrates during the second half against the Minnesota Lynx of game one of the 2024 WNBA Semi-finals at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images / Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

The first domino to fall when it came to top WNBA players joining new teams this offseason occurred over the weekend when Kelsey Plum and Jewell Loyd were involved in a three-team trade that sent Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces and Plum to the Los Angeles Sparks.

Earlier on in the weekend, Chicago Sun-Times reporter Annie Costabile noted that once this trade went through, the rest of the free agency dominoes would likely soon follow.

And that's exactly what has happened on January 28.

ESPN's Alexa Philippou broke news on X Tuesday that longtime Connecticut Sun star Alyssa Thomas will be traded to the Phoenix Mercury.

In her ensuing article, Philippou wrote, "The Phoenix Mercury are finalizing a trade to acquire five-time All-Star forward Alyssa Thomas from the Connecticut Sun, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.

She later added, "Thomas was an unrestricted free agent but the Sun cored her, meaning the only way she could leave the team was to be traded. Thomas also had to sign off on her ultimate trade destination. Because the transaction involves a sign-and-trade, the move can't be made official until Feb. 1."

Thomas made waves earlier this month when she was critical of the Connecticut Sun's sub-par facilities when compared to what Unrivaled has.

"I'm focused on Unrivaled right now. They have everything you possibly need here. They don't really have a lot of those things in Connecticut. I've been trying to absorb as much knowledge as I can," Thomas said, per an X post from Sara Jane Gamelli.

Philippou later added the additional players involved in the trade (which was first reported by Howard Megdal) with an X post that wrote, "Can confirm Natasha Cloud, Rebecca Allen and the No. 12 overall pick are headed to Connecticut in return for Alyssa Thomas. Ty Harris is also headed to Phoenix."

While this trade can't be executed on February 1, Thomas will soon be heading to a new WNBA team.


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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.