LOS ANGELES — The Sparks have traded five-time All-Star guard Kelsey Plum to the Phoenix Mercury for second-year guard Monique Akoa Makani and the Mercury’s first-round pick in 2027, and second-round pick in 2028, according to ESPN and various other reports.
The transaction has not yet been officially filed with the WNBA. The WNBA’s trade deadline is Sunday at noon PDT.
Plum is averaging a career-high 23.9 points and 6.4 assists this season. The Sparks were 7-5 with her in the starting lineup.
However, she was on an expiring contract, would not say if she wanted to re-sign with the team during free agency, and only played in 12 of the Sparks’ 27 games, including missing the last 11 games with a lower left leg injury.
Plum’s last game with the Sparks was on June 21.
“I want to play basketball,” said Plum when directly asked if she wanted to be traded, in what ended up being her final interview as a member of the Sparks on Friday afternoon.
Plum, who was acquired via trade for the No. 2 pick in the 2025 draft, which ended up being used by the Seattle Storm to select All-Star center Dominique Malonga, said she was planning to come off the bench due to a minutes restriction in Sunday’s Sparks game at Portland.
“The thing about professional sports is, it’s a business,” Plum said after Thursday’s practice at Crypto.com Arena. “At the end of the day, people have to do what’s best for them, and I respect that. I’m not taking anything personal.”
Akoa Makani, 25, a 5-foot-10 guard from Cameroon, is averaging 9.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.2 steals in 23. 4 minutes over 16 games this season. She was injured earlier in the season with a hamstring issue.
She has started 56 of 60 games over the past two seasons and is a career 41% 3-pointer shooter, which would be an added plus to Sparks coach Lynne Roberts’ pace-and-space system.
The Sparks will host Plum and the Mercury on Aug. 11 at the Galen Center. Los Angeles is 2-1 against Phoenix this season but lost the most recent matchup 86-82 on July 22, without Plum’s scoring punch. The two-time WNBA champion scored a career-high 43 points against the Mercury in a 111-102 overtime victory on June 13.
The trade gives the Sparks two potential lottery picks, including their own, in the upcoming draft if both teams end up missing postseason play.
Both squads are at least 5.5 games back of making the playoffs. The Sparks (10-17) have 17 games remaining. The Mercury (11-19) only have 14 games to go in the regular season.
The Sparks have not made the playoffs since 2020 and are on the verge of missing the post-season for the sixth straight season.
Phoenix is currently sitting at 11-19 and is six games behind the New York Liberty, who are in eighth place. New York edged Phoenix 94-92 on Saturday.
The Mercury are coming off a WNBA Finals appearance last season, but have seldom looked like that team despite returning stars Alyssa Thomas and Kahleah Copper.