The WNBA added a 13th team this season. Some people might have imagined this would fix one of the league's biggest issues, which was how many talented players were cut because there weren't enough roster spots.
Turns out, adding one team didn't change that, because a number of talented players were cut anyway. Enough to build a whole new expansion team from — granted, it'd be an expansion team that probably would finish with so few wins that you could count them on one hand, but this hypothetical all-cuts team could help some players develop skills that could land them on a real roster next year.
(Quick note here: Diamond DeShields was a surprise late cut after I'd finalized this list. I agonized over whether the veteran wing should replace someone here or not, but sadly, I just don't see the point of sticking her on this hypothetical expansion team. The point here feels like giving young players a chance to prove themselves. I think part of why Connecticut waived DeShields was for that same reason — the team is bad, so there wasn't much point having a veteran like DeShields around blocking opportunities for young wings like Saniya Rivers and Aneesah Morrow.
READ MORE: FanSided's WNBA35, ranking the best players in the WNBA this season
So, let's build an expansion team from the players that have been cut so far. We'll try to have the team be at least a little bit cohesive, but since expansion teams aren't always the most put-together teams, I'm sure the fit won't be ideal.
Aari McDonald
Let's start with the most surprising cut we saw, and also the player most likely to wind up on a WNBA team still this season: Aari McDonald.
The Sparks moving on from the former Arizona guard is a bit strange. Sure, after four seasons it's pretty clear that her shooting isn't going to get much better, but she's continued to improve as a ball-handler, and she's a pretty capable scorer when she drives into the paint. Some team needs to give her a shot as the backup point guard.
Deja Kelly
After going undrafted, Deja Kelly played so well in the preseason for the Las Vegas Aces that the team's decision to waive her was met with a ton of groans. Kelly really didn't do anything wrong — the Aces roster just was built in such a way that keeping her didn't make sense.
Haley Jones
I was a big, big fan of Haley Jones in the pre-draft process a few years back. Yes, she struggled to shoot the ball, but she did everything else at such a high level. Surely the shooting would come along, and she's wind up being a solid player in the WNBA, right?
Well, no, the shooting didn't come along, and Atlanta didn't want to wait to see if it would. I, however, as a fake WNBA general manager, am very willing to give Jones one more shot to improve her scoring.
Laeticia Amihere
This was one of the more shocking cuts, because Laeticia Amihere is the exact kind of player an expansion team should keep. This even isn't about her scoring 20 points in the preseason game against the Sparks, which is a big part of the outrage. She could have scored 10 in that game, and I'd still say the same thing. Golden State needs young, imperfect talent, projects like Amihere that have the physical ability to be good WNBA players but just need more reps to figure out how to play in the league.
Jaelyn Brown
I watched the Dallas Wings play last preseason and had no idea who Jaelyn Brown was. Her college career at Cal came at a time where I was heavily focused on watching only conferences that had a Texas team in them, so the Pac-12 just wasn't on my radar, and a Cal team that went 12-19 her senior year especially wasn't.
Then she showed up and was stellar for the Wings last preseason, but injury and illness issues kept her from actually making an impact in the regular season. She was again impressive for the Fever this preseason, with her athleticism really standing out.
Madison Scott
Madison Scott is notable because the No. 14 pick in April's WNBA Draft was the highest-picked player to be cut this offseason.
The Ole Miss product is a versatile player who does a lot of things well, but I guess the Wings just didn't think her shooting was far enough along for her to make the impact they needed her to make on this roster.
Queen Egbo
Former Baylor big Queen Egbo has bounced around the WNBA in her three seasons, including spending time on three different rosters last year.
Still, there were flashes as a rookie back in 2022 and in the right spot, her shot-blocking ability could get her on the court. Rim protection is probably the toughest thing to find for this hypothetical expansion team, which is why Egbo lands here.
Shyanne Sellers
Maybe the fact that Shyanne Sellers was cut twice already this offseason should be viewed as reason to keep her off this team. However, I still firmly believe that with a little more time to rest from her knee issue, she can be a very good backup point guard in the WNBA, so we're taking her and bringing her along very slowly.
Grace Berger
Grace Berger has shot the ball really well in her limited WNBA sample. I don't know if that would hold up with heavier minutes, but I'm willing to give a career 46.2 percent 3-point shooter a shot, even if she's only taken 39 shots from deep in her two seasons in the league.
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan
It's not easy to find versatile bigs on the market. Mikiah Herbert Harrigan can stretch out to the 3-point line, but also shot 76.9 percent in the restricted area last year — though that was only on 13 attempts, so take it with a grain of salt.
Bree Hall
One of the most controversial early cuts was South Carolina's Bree Hall. Indiana drafted her at No. 20, but she was unable to make a crowded roster.
Hall's the kind of player that Connecticut or Golden State should absolutely go after in real life this season, and she's someone I'm happy to have on this fake team. Her finishing inside the arc is a concern, but she shot over 38 percent from deep in her last two college seasons and brings some good defensive skill to the court as well. She can be a solid 3-and-D bench guard if given the chance.
Maria Kliundikova
Maybe you're thinking "who???" right now. Maria Kliundikova was previously known as Maria Vadeeva, a name that might sound a little more familiar.
The No. 11 pick in 2018, Kliundikova is still only 26 years old despite a professional career that began in Russia in 2014. Her limited WNBA sample in 2018 and 2019 with the Sparks showed promise, as she was a solid finisher inside as well as one of the league's best mid-range shooters during her rookie campaign. I'd love to see her get another shot in the league.