Analysis: Could Storm land Kelsey Plum with Jewell Loyd wanting out?

Percy Allen, The Seattle Times on Jan 25, 2025

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SEATTLE — Immaculately adorned in a plum-colored blazer, Kelsey Plum expressed her deep admiration for the University of Washington, where she became a basketball icon, and Seattle, which became her second home.

"I remember when I chose Washington, a lot of people were like 'What?' " said Plum, a Poway, Calif., native, to a sellout audience at Alaska Airlines Arena during a halftime ceremony in which her No. 10 jersey was raised to the rafters Saturday. "As soon as I stepped on campus, UW was home.

"That's what it is here. It's home. There's no place like Seattle."

Before the start of Plum's ensuing news conference, a UW official informed reporters that she would not be answering questions about her free agency.

Still, a few Husky fans in the stands stated the obvious and yelled: "Come to Seattle, Kelsey!" while others chanted: "Bring back Plum!"

It's an entirely plausible scenario considering league sources said the Storm are seeking a deal involving Jewell Loyd, who requested a trade in December.

The Las Vegas Aces gave Plum their core designation, which allows them exclusive rights to sign her to a one-year qualifying offer at the WNBA's highest possible salary ($249,244) and prevents her from signing with another team as a free agent.

The Aces could move Plum, who has been at the center of trade speculation this offseason and would fit nicely in a Storm lineup that includes Skylar Diggins-Smith, Ezi Magbegor and Gabby Williams, who was designated a core player last month.

The Storm have prioritized re-signing star forward Nneka Ogwumike. The period in which WNBA teams can negotiate with free agents began Tuesday and players can officially sign deals Feb. 1.

For weeks, it was believed Chicago was Loyd's preferred destination and the Storm would work out a trade with the Sky that likely included their No. 3 pick in the upcoming WNBA draft for the Lincolnwood, Ill., native.

Those talks appear to have shut down, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Still, a Loyd-Storm divorce appears to be a foregone conclusion considering her allegations of bullying and harassment from the Storm coaching staff that were not supported by an independent investigation, according to the team.

A source familiar with the situation, and not authorized to talk about the team, said the Storm is in "win-now mode" and seeking an equitable return in a Loyd trade that would keep them in title contention following last year's fifth-place finish in the regular season with a 25-15 record and a 2-0 sweep in the first round of the playoffs.

A Loyd-Plum swap keeps the Storm competitive whereas other potential trade partners — including the Los Angeles Sparks and Golden State Valkyrie — could offer a top-5 pick in the 2025 draft, but wouldn't necessarily have comparable players to include in a deal for the six-time WNBA All-Star Loyd.

The 30-year-old Plum, a three-time WNBA All-Star, is nearly as accomplished as Loyd. Last season, the 5-foot-8 Plum averaged 17.8 points, 2.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists while shooting 42.3% from the field, 36.8% on 3-pointers and 86.6% on free throws.

Trading Loyd for Plum would also be ideal financially for the Storm, which would leave them roughly $463,000 to sign five or six players and fill out the roster.

It's unclear why Plum, a two-time WNBA champion, is potentially nearing an end with the franchise that was the San Antonio Stars when they drafted her No. 1 overall in 2017.

Plum, who has been silent on free agency during the offseason, told the Husky crowd: "I've been reading a lot these days on imagination. A lot of times as we get older, we sell ourselves short on what we can do with this life. The more I think about it, I think wait a second, we can do anything we want. So, I leave you with this. When you go home today, dream as big as you can because I promise you anything is possible."