WNBA Expansion has finally arrived, and that means that on Friday afternoon, the league’s two newest teams built their initial rosters. The Portland Fire selected 10 players from the league’s pool of unprotected players, while the Toronto Tempo selected 11.
WNBA Expansion Draft: Marina Mabrey, Bridget Carleton headline selections
Marina Mabrey, Bridget Carleton, and Nyara Sabally are among those selected by the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo in Friday’s WNBA Expansion Draft.
Noa Dalzell is a senior writer covering the WNBA and all of women’s basketball for Breakaway, SB Nation’s women’s sports vertical, as well as the Celtics for CelticsBlog.
Both teams were only able to select one unrestricted free agent, and the Fire and Tempo will be the only players able to offer those players the supermax.
The Portland Fire selected 10 players
The Fire, who will be coached by former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Alex Sarama, had the first overall pick in the draft.
First Round
- Bridget Carleton (Minnesota Lynx)
- Carla Leite (Golden State Valkyries)
- Luisa Geiselsoder (Dallas Wings)
- Emily Engstler (Washington Mystics)
- Maya Caldwell (Atlanta Dream)
Second Round
- Chloe Bibby (Indiana Fever)
- Haley Jones (Dallas Wings)
- Nyadiew Puoch (Atlanta Dream)
- Sug Sutton (Washington Mystics)
- Nika Muhl (Seattle Storm)
Carleton, who averaged 6.5 points per game and shot 37.3% from three, was the Fire’s first pick.
“Bridget immediately stood out,” Portland Fire GM Vanja Černivec said. “Bridget is someone everybody wants to play with. Her character speaks for itself.”
The Toronto Tempo selected 11 players
The Tempo, who will be coached by former New York Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello, picked Los Angeles Sparks guard Julie Allemand with the second overall pick.
First Round
- Julie Allemand (Las Angeles Sparks)
- Nyara Sabally (New York Liberty)
- Marina Mabrey (Connecticut Sun)
- Aaliyah Nye (Las Vegas Aces)
- Lexi Held (Phoenix Mercury)
Second Round
- Maria Kliundikova (Minnesota Lynx)
- Adja Kane (New York Liberty)
- Nikolina Milic (Connecticut Sun)
- Kitija Laksa (Phoenix Mercury)
- Kristy Wallace (Indiana Fever)
On Wednesday, Portland and Toronto completed trades with the Chicago Sky. As such, neither was able to select players from Chicago’s unprotected list; the Sky swapped pick No. 17 in the April 13 draft with Portland’s No. 21 pick, and Chicago sent pick No. 26 (via New York) in the April 13 draft to Toronto.
“Today is an important step in building the foundation of the Toronto Tempo,” said Tempo general manager Monica Wright Rogers in an official statement. “Our goal was to construct a roster that reflects the style of play and culture we want to establish — one that balances competitiveness with long-term flexibility, and features players who bring versatility, toughness, and winning experience. This group gives us the ability to compete from day one while continuing to build, and embraces the opportunity to help shape something new in a new country as Canada’s first WNBA team.”
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