2025 Valkyries free agency 7: Kelsey Plum, Emma Meesseman, Nneka Ogwumike
a semi-realistic target and two long shots
The whole 2025 Valkyries Free Agency series is indexed here.
Update 2025-01-15: Kelsey Plum was cored by the Las Vegas Aces, which means that she has to play for LVA on a super-max contract — unless she threatens to sit out the whole season. If she does that, then the core designation will expire in November. This is a legitimate possibility, since WNBA players can make plenty of money in other leagues, often more than in the WNBA. In that case, the coring team would try to do a sign-and-trade with another team. She would presumably only sign a one-year deal (due to the upcoming raises in 2026), so the trade cost might not be that high.
Kelsey Plum
One of the other oft-rumored moves is there is a certain guard who’s played in Las Vegas who’s also a free agent, who we already saw the Valkyries take Kate Martin from the East, right? And she figures to be a prominent part of what they’re building, right? It was one of the leaks, right? It was one of the players who was leaked before the expansive draft actually happened on Friday. And Kelsey Plum is another player from the West Coast. I mean, not to say that Vegas is like, you know, not the West Coast, but you know what I’m saying? But, you know, she’s given Vegas everything, you know, as far as I’m concerned. Don’t know if she wants a new start. But if Golden State could at least match what Vegas has to offer, I think she takes the meeting. You know what I’m saying? For sure. And so yeah, how tight is their pitch? How convincing is it? I also think Kelsey Plum is a player who is dynamic, clearly, off the court. She has the old Under Armour. Also, by the way, she’s an Under Armour athlete.
Oh, Curry brand!!
And yeah, she has played with the two or three time MVP in A’ja Wilson. I’m sorry, I think it’s three times. But not even on some disease of more stuff, but I’ve put in my time here. You know what I’m saying? What is it like if a franchise is built around me and I just want a fresh start? Also, just her personal life in Vegas and some of the stuff that’s transpired, she could just want a change of scenery. And Vegas will also always be a part of her story.
It makes sense, especially because it’s a nice mix of fresh start but familiar faces, I think, which makes it interesting as well now after the Natalie [Nakase, her previous coach] hire as head coach.
Emma Meesseman
Okay. Like Emma Meesseman is a top 10 player in the world. So I want people to recognize that she has not played in the league for like the last two years, but she's been over in Europe, absolutely getting buckets, taking Belgium to the Olympics and the Euro championships and all this stuff. So, yes, like Meeseeman also coming back into the W is like a different wrinkle. I think you have to be looking at a team like Connecticut. Absolutely. Who they just hired as their coach. Also, yes, a city like San Francisco, like very, very interesting things are afoot.
Nneka Ogwumike
I'll tell you right now, an interesting pick to me personally is the idea of Nneka [Ogwumike] to Golden State. You go home and so you can do a one-year deal just like you did in Seattle with everything that's going down in Seattle [Jewell Loyd’s trade request, investigation into coaching staff abuse]. Now obviously we don't know the specifics. We don't know where Nneka's relationship really is with the Storm. But played right at Stanford. I think just as a one-year deal. You know you're going to have super high-end facilities. Like you're, I'm intrigued by that idea. Now, like you said, it very easily could just be a re-sign with the Storm for another one year and wrapped it up simple. But with everything going on, I think it's fair to throw something like that out there where it's like, it's a city she's familiar with. I can see the vision….
Nneka loves that coach though. Nneka loves Noelle Quinn. I'm expecting to see her back in Seattle, but with everything going on, I don't think it's outrageous to throw something out there like that.
Interesting twist after all the fuss over [Gabby] Williams wanting promises that she wouldn't be cored [by SEA]. Until they get a Loyd trade done, it also rather compresses Seattle's cap situation. If Gabby takes supermax, $198,817 is absolute most they could give Nneka right now, for example