After being traded to the Sparks, Kelsey Plum reportedly views Los Angeles as a long-term home and wants to remain with the franchise long-term.
The Sparks pulled off a blockbuster trade on Sunday, landing All-Star guard Kelsey Plum in a three-team trade with the Aces and Storm.
While it came at the cost of the No. 2 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, the Sparks fill their biggest need on the roster in the form of a point guard.
However, a looming question will exist for just about any signing. With the CBA likely to be renegotiated after the upcoming season, it seems unlikely that any free agent will sign more than a one-year deal before seeing the details of the new deal.
However, that doesn’t mean Plum’s time in Los Angeles will be short. According to Alexa Philippou of ESPN, who helped break the initial trade, Plum chose to join the Sparks and wants to remain with the franchise beyond next season.
Adding some context to today’s news:
Kelsey Plum joins L.A. hoping to be a Spark beyond 2025, sources tell me. As a cored player, Plum had to be traded to leave Las Vegas, but she signed off, i.e. chose, Los Angeles as her new destination
— Alexa Philippou (@alexaphilippou) January 27, 2025
Coring a player in the WNBA is similar to franchise-tagging a player in the NFL. A franchise can only core a player a certain number of times, and it gives the franchise exclusive negotiating rights.
In this instance, it also means that, if she leaves, it’d be by trade, as Philippou notes. And, considering how much she’s meant to the franchise, the Aces helped Plum find a landing place that she also signed off on.
It should give Sparks fans optimism, then, that Plum chose LA and wants to remain with the Sparks. She’s an All-Star point guard who will still be 30 years old once the season starts.
Paired with Dearica Hamby, who will be 31 this season, it gives the Sparks another much-needed veteran presence on the roster who can still be part of the franchise in the future.
In all, it feels like a big win of a deal for LA.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.