Sources: Sabally traded to Mercury in 3-way deal

In the next big domino to fall in WNBA free agency, 2020 No. 2 overall pick Satou Sabally is headed to the Phoenix Mercury from the Dallas Wings in a three-team trade, sources told ESPN on Friday.

The Wings are set to receive point guard Ty Harris and the rights to Kiki Herbert Harrigan from Phoenix, as well as 2022 No. 2 overall pick NaLyssa Smith and the 2025 No. 8 pick from the Indiana Fever. Indiana will acquire guard Sophie Cunningham and the 2025 No. 19 pick from Phoenix, which will also receive center Kalani Brown and the rights to point guard Sevgi Uzun from Dallas.

Because Dallas gave her the core player designation, Sabally’s exit had to be via a trade. As it involves a sign-and-trade, the transaction can’t become official until Feb. 1, when contracts are first allowed to be executed.

One of the biggest free agents on the market, Sabally made her desire to leave Dallas known ahead of free agency, telling reporters during a news conference for Unviralved that she had played her last game in a Wings uniform.

Sources told ESPN that Sabally’s biggest criteria for a new team was “great organization infrastructure” with top-tier practice facilities and resources.

Sabally didn’t hide this desire.

“What type of resources do they have? How important is their team to the owner? If you have an owner of a team that doesn’t prioritize the women’s team…That’s a place where I will be less likely to go,” Sabally said before the launch of Unrivaled.

The Mercury have doubled down on player resources under new owner Mat Ishbia, last summer unveiling a dedicated $100 million practice facility for the team in downtown Phoenix.

The Mercury have undergone dramatic changes on the court, even before the Sabally trade was finalized. Phoenix traded for Alyssa Thomas, sending to Connecticut Natasha Cloud and Bec Allen, while seeing 10-time All-Star and franchise stalwart Brittney Griner depart for Atlanta as a free agent. Mercury legend Diana Taurasi could also be gone in 2025 should she choose to retire.

The Mercury compiled a new-look super team last season with the acquisitions of Kahleah Copper, Cloud and Allen, but were hampered by injuries and were swept in the first round of the playoffs.

Sabally joins the organization two years removed from earning 2023 Most Improved Player and her first all-WNBA first team nod. She missed most of the 2024 season for the Wings due to a shoulder injury, but did suit up for the German national team to help them to a quarterfinal finish in the Paris Olympics. She averaged 17.9 points, 5.0 assists and 6.4 rebounds per contest in 15 games across 2024.

Sabally, who also considered the New York Liberty as her next team, had played her entire career with the Wings after being drafted in the 2020 lottery out of Oregon.

Smith spent her first three seasons in the league in Indiana, averaging 13.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. Cunningham was a 2019 second-round draft pick for the Mercury who averaged 7.7 points per game during her time in Phoenix.

ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss contributed to this report.

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