The Las Vegas Aces head into this offseason with one clear goal in mind: retaining Jackie Young. For as good as A'ja Wilson is, re-signing Young is a must because one player alone can't win a championship, but a Wilson and Young pairing is a great thing to build around. That's also something Vegas has to think about this offseason: building around those two players. Vegas has struggled at times to figure out what its bench depth looks like, and that's something this front office needs to address.
Assuming no team will take on Jewell Loyd's contract via trade, the Aces will have to be creative in rebuilding the roster, and letting these three players go is a strong way to start that.
Stephanie Talbot
Stephanie Talbot started 43 of the 44 games she played this season. Despite that, she finished the season with averages of 4.0 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. In 44 games, Talbot was held to single-digit points 41 times, and there were eight games where she didn't make a single field goal. Her wing defense was useful, but her complete lack of scoring upside was an issue.
Sure, the Aces didn't necessarily need much from their fifth starter, but it shouldn't be tough to upgrade so that they can get the occasional offensive production there. Ideally, the Aces have a small forward who plays defense and hits open shots. Talbot got you steals, but she also shot 29.9 percent from deep. There was a time, early in her career, when Talbot was a strong 3-point shooter, but she's now shot under 30 percent in three consecutive seasons. It's just really hard to see a world in which the Aces can justify bringing Talbot back in 2027.
Kierstan Bell
Kierstan Bell was a really intriguing player coming out of college. She averaged 22.8 points per game in her final year at Florida Gulf Coast and when the Aces selected her at the end of the first round, the hope was that they were getting a microwave bench scorer. Five years in and it's probably time for the Aces to give up on this experiment.
Bell has played just 10.2 minutes per game in her career. Her career 3-point percentage is 26.0. In 2025, she averaged a career-high 4.2 points per game. Vegas had a net rating of -3.7 with her on the court this season and +9.4 with her off the court. Bell seems like a great locker room presence, and it'd be great to see her bloom this late in her career, but it should be obvious at this point that Vegas won't be the place where that happens. Bell should sign with a non-contending team, where she can hope to get more consistent run and a chance to actually have the ball in her hands.
Cheyenne Parker-Tyus
Veteran forward Cheyenne Parker-Tyus joined the Aces in 2025, but her pregnancy limited her to just two games. Still, excitement was high for her to be a big part of the 2026 roster. Even with NaLyssa Smith starting at the four, Parker-Tyus was expected to see plenty of minutes as the team's top backup big. This was someone who made the All-Star Game in 2023 and who was an intriguing big with some stretch upside.
The stretch upside was there in 2026, as she shot 52.9 percent from 3-point range. The problem was she only took 0.5 3-pointers per game and only played 11.2 minutes per contest. The team had a solid +5.1 net rating with Parker-Tyus on the floor, but she just wasn't out on the court enough to really make much of an impact, and it's notable that while the Aces offense had no fall-off with Parker-Tyus on the floor, the defense was a decent bit worse. It's just hard to see this as a pairing that continues on.
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