WNBA: What to expect during trade deadline week 2025

This week, is it about the games or the transaction game?

The WNBA trade deadline is at 3 p.m. ET on Thursday, Aug. 7. Due to the fact that nearly every WNBA player not still on her rookie-scale contract is an impending free agent, a product of the forthcoming expiration of the current CBA, the 2025 deadline could feature more action than usual, as the uncertainty ahead could encourage teams to take chances and make changes.

For teams with playoff ambitions, that means aggressively adding talent that could help them advance. Teams all but officially eliminated from playoff contention, in contrast, can cash in on opponents’ sense of urgency, selling off vets who are likely to depart after the season for draft assets and/or under-contract young players who can help them in 2026 and beyond.

Such a confluence of circumstances resulted in Sunday’s trade between the Minnesota Lynx and Dallas Wings, when the league-leading Lynx sought to level up by acquiring DiJonai Carrington. The Wings, instead, turn toward the future, as they received a package headlined by former No. 2 pick Diamond Miller in return.

The conditions seem right for lots of movement, although the league’s hard salary cap, the variable valuation of draft assets and teams’ competing priorities can make seemingly sensible deals difficult to consummate.

Nevertheless, the possibility of more activity makes it worth thinking about Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s games through a trade-centric lens. Who could be playing her last game in her current team’s threads?

Dallas Wings (8-21) vs. New York Liberty (18-10)

Tuesday, August 5 at 7 p.m. ET (NBA TV)

With Sunday’s trade of Carrington already following the late-June trade that sent NaLyssa Smith to the Las Vegas Aces in exchange for Vegas’ 2027 first-round pick, Dallas might be done dealing. However, general manager Curt Miller also should eagerly listen to any inquiries about Arike Ogunbowale, even though it would be surprising to see the multi-time All-Star on the move.

The New York Liberty also already made their big move, signing free agent Emma Meesseman. Yet, Jonathan Kolb has proven to be one of the league’s shrewdest general managers. If there’s a move out there that could make New York better, especially considering how much they’ve…