The WNBA’s splashy All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis just put everyone on notice, as the second half of the season and thus the push for the eight playoff spots starts to heat up.
Because of the timing, hard salary cap, and overall smaller size of the league, the WNBA’s trade deadline looks a little different compared to other big sports leagues, with most major moves happening in the offseason.
But as this year’s WNBA Trade deadline – Aug. 7 – nears, there’s a chance we may see some big moves. The reason? The standings are pretty wide open outside of the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx, who have a 3.5-game lead on the No. 2 New York Liberty and seem to be a pretty darn good lock for the playoffs and the WNBA Finals.
But a look at the second-place Liberty through to the eighth-place Las Vegas Aces is quite a crowded field. The Liberty and Aces are separated by just 4.5 games. Outside of the Lynx and the Aces, the other six teams could find their front offices willing to take a risk for a trade-deadline deal to make them a serious contender.
As speculation heats up, one thing is for certain. There have been some seriously impactful trade-deadline deals. Let’s look at them.
1. Sylvia Fowles to Minnesota (2015 deadline)
Fowles turned down a contract extension offer with the Chicago Sky in September 2014, the team that had drafted her No. 2 overall in 2008. She sat out the first half of the 2015 WNBA season until a blockbuster three-team deal on July 27, 2015, that sent Érika de Souza to the Sky and Damiris Dantas and Reshanda Gray to the Atlanta Dream. Joining forces with Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus, and Lindsay Whalen in Minnesota,
Fowles went on to average 12.6 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game during the playoffs. She led the Lynx to a title in 2015, earning Finals MVP in the process. Fowles also led the Lynx to the title in 2017 when she also won Finals MVP. One of the best defensive players in WNBA history, he retired after the 2022 season (never leaving the Lynx) and will be inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Hall of Fame later this year.
2. Marina Mabrey to Connecticut (2024 deadline)
The Connecticut Sun acquired veteran guard Marina Mabrey from the Chicago Sky on July 17, 2014. The Sun also acquired Chicago's 2025 second-round pick in the trade. In return, the Sky got Rachel Banham, Moriah Jefferson, and a future first‑round pick. At the time, the trade was huge and had title implications for the Sun at the time, who were looking to get past the hump of two WNBA Finals losses in five years by securing a complete player who added perimeter depth in Mabrey.
But fast-forward to now, and things are not so great for the Sun in 2015. They are 3-19 so far this season and lost their entire starting five from 2024. Mabrey at one point was the team's leading scorer (15.2 points per game), but went down with a knee injury last month, and she hasn't played since June 20.
3. Myisha Hines‑Allen to Minnesota (2024 deadline)
At the trade deadline buzzer, on Aug. 20, 2024, the Lynx acquired Myisha Hines‑Allen from the Washington Mystics in exchange for Olivia Époupa, Sika Koné, and a second‑round 2026 pick.
Though Hines-Allen has since moved on to play for the Dallas Wings, the veteran brought championship experience from winning the title with the Mystics in 2019. In the one season with the Lynx, the forward averaged 7.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game and played a key reserve role for the Lynx to make the WNBA Finals.
4. NaLyssa Smith to Las Vegas (2025 deadline-ish)
Though it was in June of this season and not at the deadline per se, this trade was still worthy one of note. Out of pretty much nowhere, the Las Vegas Aces acquired NaLyssa Smith from the Dallas Wings for a 2027 first-round pick.
Smith was having a down year with the Wings, who certainly are looking ahead to the future with Paige Bueckers and Arike Ogunbowale. The Aces, meanwhile, make a big gamble with the swap, which leaves them now three years in a row without a first-round pick.
They had to forfeit one in 2025 to the league, traded their 2026 first-rounder in the three-team trade that sent Kelsey Plum to the Los Angeles Sparks, and now traded away their 2027 one. Sitting at 11-11 at the All-Star break with no upcoming big draft picks is a rough pill to swallow, even with reigning MVP A’ja Wilson and star Jewell Lloyd.