Storm Activate Awa Fam, Sign Joyner Holmes to Hardship Contract
The Seattle Storm made two moves ahead of their second straight bout with the Connecticut Sun on Friday, May 22, at Climate Pledge Arena.
Seattle activated rookie No. 3 overall pick Awa Fam now that she has joined the team and also signed forward Joyner Holmes to a hardship contract on Friday.
The Storm have been without Ezi Magbegor since the season began, and Dominique Malonga has now missed two games due to a concussion. Her status for Friday’s game against the Sun is uncertain, but the signing of Holmes suggests she will still be on the sidelines.
Storm Desperately Need Champion Awa Fam Ready to Roll
Awa Fam, the Seattle Storm’s No. 3 overall pick in this year’s WNBA Draft, will be joining her new team as a champion.
Fam and Valencia, the team she has played for in Spain since 2021, won the Liga Feminina Endesa Championship on Sunday, May 17, defeating Casademont Zaragoza 68-67 on a buzzer-beater layup.
It wasn’t her best game, but Fam totaled six points on two 3-pointers and added four rebounds, one assist and a steal.
Valencia’s season is what has been keeping Fam, 19, from joining the Storm, who are currently 1-2 ahead of Sunday’s matchup with the Indiana Fever (1-2). Fam will still have to get to Seattle and potentially get a short rest before she can get on the court for the Storm this season.
What to Watch For in Storm’s Preseason Finale vs. Portland Fire
Almost nothing is the same about the Seattle Storm in 2026, and on Saturday, we saw for the first time how many of the new pieces fared against another WNBA team.
It was an especially young lineup for the Storm, with eight players 25 or younger playing big minutes in the team's 78-76 loss to the Golden State Valkyries to begin the preseason.
Even in a loss, there were many positives for the Storm’s new additions. Rookie No. 8 overall pick Flau’jae Johnson, No. 14 pick Taina Mair, and free-agent signings Jade Melbourne and Rennia Davis stood out.
Storm Center Ezi Magbegor Out At Least 6-8 Weeks
The WNBA regular season is less than a month away, and it appears the Seattle Storm will be without center Ezi Magbegor — their highest-paid player — to begin the campaign.
Magbegor is currently sidelined with a right foot injury suffered while playing for Australia during the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers in mid-March, the team announced on Monday, April 20. Her timetable for a return is unclear, but “updates on her progress will be made available in 6-8 weeks.”
Too-Early Storm Starting Lineup Projection For 2026 Season
The Seattle Storm more than likely have their roster set for training camp after a whirlwind 10 days that included the free agency, the WNBA Draft and the post-draft signing period, where the team brought in training camp tryout players.
Currently, the Storm’s roster is at 19 players. Only eight of those players were with the team at all in 2025, and only five actually played regular-season minutes for Seattle.
Training camp begins on Sunday, April 19, before the Storm play their first preseason game on Saturday, April 25, on the road at the Golden State Valkyries.
Storm Rumble Into the Future with Bold 2026 WNBA Draft
The Seattle Storm have found a direction after a frenzied few days of free agency.
The four-time WNBA champions held the No. 3 overall pick after going 23-21 last season with stars Nneka Ogwumike, Skylar Diggins and Gabby Williams leading the way. All three players departed the Emerald City in the past few days, leaving 2026 No. 2 overall pick Dominique Malonga and recently re-signed All-Defensive center Ezi Magbegor to build around.
The Storm watched top guards like No. 1 pick Azzi Fudd and No. 2 pick Olivia Miles fly off the board before taking Spanish teen star Awa Fam, who many experts projected to go first, at No. 3. With the 14th pick, Seattle took Duke point guard Taina Mair before selecting TCU’s Marta Suárez at No. 16.
But moments later, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert shocked viewers by announcing that Seattle had traded Suárez and a 2028 second-rounder for the night’s No. 8 pick, LSU star Flau’jae Johnson.
Storm Free Agency Recap: Good, Bad and Ugly From Transformational Signing Period
It’s hard to say the dust has settled on an expectedly tumultuous free agency period for the Seattle Storm, especially with the team rolling straight into a four-pick menu in Monday’s WNBA Draft.
The Storm are going to look very different just one year after a disappointing 23-21 finish in 2025 that saw them eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Las Vegas Aces for the second straight season.
Seattle Storm Free Agency Tracker: Signings, Departures and Rumors
As expected, WNBA free agency began this week and quickly picked up steam once it started rolling. The Seattle Storm are already looking at making an entirely new team heading into the 2026 season.
Veterans are on their way out, and it remains to be seen how much interest the team will get from unrestricted free agents. More than two-thirds of the WNBA players are free agents, and a lot of money will be moving around under the new CBA.
Teams have to act fast ahead of the WNBA Draft on Monday, April 13, to see how their rosters will look before making rookie selections.
Storm Core Ezi Magbegor, Extend Reserved Qualifying Offers to 2 Others
The Seattle Storm made a trio of qualifying offers on Tuesday as they attempt to retain Ezi Magbegor, Mackenzie Holmes and Zia Cooke, per the WNBA’s transaction wire.
Seattle extended a core qualifying offer to Magbegor, which is a one-year, fully guaranteed deal valued at the new supermax figure of $1.4 million. It does not guarantee Magbegor will sign for that amount, but it does give Seattle exclusive negotiating rights.
What Historic New WNBA CBA Means For 2026 Seattle Storm
Play ball. After weeks of intense negotiations, the WNBA and the WNBPA verbally agreed to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement early in the morning on Wednesday that will completely reshape player compensation, per ESPN’s Alexa Philipou.
The new salary cap will be set at $7 million, a massive increase from $1.5 million in 2025, with the supermax starting at $1.4 million ($249,244 last season), per ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Average player salaries will be around $600,000 ($120,000 last season), and the minimum salary could be higher than $300,000 ($66,079 last season). All of that, coupled with a revenue share of “nearly 20% across the length of the deal,” per Philippou, makes for a historic deal.
Storm Roundup: Dominique Malonga Highlights Week With Unrivaled Dunk
Getting deep into the WNBA offseason, 2025 Storm players are still balling out in other leagues both locally and overseas.
Dominique Malonga Wins Unrivaled Battle of Storm Stars vs. Ezi Magbegor
Seattle Storm star Dominique Malonga and the Breeze defeated Ezi Magbegor and the Hive on Friday, while being led by former franchise head coach Noelle Quinn.
Reunion Between Storm’s Dominique Malonga, Former Coach Noelle Quinn Yields Early Returns
In their first game back together in the Unrivaled basketball league, the Seattle Storm’s youngest star and its most recently fired head coach earned a big win.
Where 2025 Storm Players are Competing During WNBA Offseason
The WNBA offseason is in full swing, and 11 of the Seattle Storm’s players are already competing or have plans to play in other leagues in 2026.
Which Storm Free Agents Should the Franchise Prioritize Re-Signing?
The Seattle Storm have just four players under contract for 2026. The front office and new coaching staff will have to make tough decisions on who to re-sign and who to let go.
Free Agency Primer: Storm’s Future Both Murky, Exciting
Entering an uncertain offseason, the Seattle Storm have just four players under contract in 2026. But they might be exactly the nucleus the team needs as it enters a true rebuild.
Seattle Storm 2025 Season Grades: Ezi Magbegor
Posting arguably the worst statistical season of her career offensively after an impressive two-season stretch from 2023-24, center Ezi Magbegor was underwhelming in 2025 — even with her dominant defensive presence.
Seattle Storm 2025 Season Grades: Mackenzie Holmes
Kicking off the 2025 Seattle Storm season grades, rookie post Mackenzie Holmes was a small-but-efficient piece to the team in her first WNBA season.
Gabby Williams, Ezi Magbegor Earn WNBA All-Defensive Team Honors
Seattle Storm wing Gabby Williams earned the first All-Defensive First Team honor of her career, while center Ezi Magbegor was named to her third Second Team.
Instant Takeaways: A’ja Wilson, Aces End Storm’s Season in Down-to-the-Wire Game 3
Jackie Young dropped in the game-winner off A’ja Wilson’s miss and the Seattle Storm couldn’t muster a response in a season-ending 74-73 loss to the Las Vegas Aces in Game 3 of the opening round of the playoffs.
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