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Mystics can jump into star-studded WNBA free agency if they’re willing to spend

Updated January 13, 2022 at 2:21 p.m. EST|Published January 13, 2022 at 11:18 a.m. EST
Tina Charles, who led the WNBA in scoring while playing for the Mystics last season, is one of several high-profile free agents. (Scott Taetsch for The Washington Post)
5 min

The names on the list are staggering at first glance — Breanna Stewart, Sue Bird, Angel McCoughtry, Sylvia Fowles, Tina Charles. Those are three MVPs and two perennial all-stars with multiple Olympic gold medals who are set to be unrestricted free agents when the WNBA opens its negotiation period Saturday. Teams can begin signing players Feb. 1, and those five are just the beginning of the bevy of all-stars and veteran contributors set to hit the open market.

MVP Jonquel Jones was on this list but received a core qualifying offer from the Connecticut Sun on Monday, which guarantees at least a one-year deal with a base salary equal to a supermax contract. A’ja Wilson, the 2020 MVP, is a restricted free agent who already received a qualifying offer from the Las Vegas Aces last week. And Bird is considered a sure thing to return to the Seattle Storm.

The bottom line is that the most intriguing stretch of the WNBA’s offseason is set to begin with what could be a significant amount of movement involving some of the league’s most familiar names. Much of this was set in motion with the signing of the latest collective bargaining agreement two years ago that provides opportunity for players to reach free agency earlier and limits the number of times a player can receive the core designation.

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“Offseason movement, particularly for the [WNBA], it only continues to legitimize the product for the naysayers,” ESPN analyst Monica McNutt said. “It infuses energy. If your favorite big-name player, i.e. Chicago, Candace Parker goes and plays in Chicago by default, Kahleah Copper is now elevated as a next up-and-coming [player] behind the opportunity to play alongside Candace Parker.”

Copper is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent after having a career year as a first-time all-star and being named WNBA Finals MVP after helping lead the Sky to a championship in 2021. She was a key piece in the trade that sent Elena Delle Donne from Chicago to Washington, which won the championship in 2019. The Mystics now have a chance to get back in contention with smart moves in free agency to go along with the No. 1 overall draft pick.

The team entered free agency with Delle Donne, Alysha Clark, Ariel Atkins, Natasha Cloud, Erica McCall and Sydney Wiese under contract. Megan Gustafson signed a training camp contract with the Mystics last week. Washington has the fifth-most cap space ($384,729), according to salary cap website Spotrac, and General Manager/Coach Mike Thibault expects to have 11 players under contract for the season, one fewer than the roster maximum. Carrying 11 players is not uncommon as teams manipulate the salary cap. Thibault has no plans to use the core designation this offseason.

The post is the No. 1 priority for the roster with Charles headed to free agency after leading the league in scoring (23.4 points per game). The team also needs a backup point guard and an additional wing. Charles was supposed to put the Mystics in prime position for another title the past two seasons, but she opted out of 2020 in the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic and a string of injuries left the roster depleted in 2021. Having to carry the load wasn’t what Charles signed up for, and the 33-year-old continues to hunt for a ring. Expect her to explore all options.

“I just know I need to win a championship before I retire,” Charles told The Washington Post at the end of last season. “Obviously, some decisions are going to have to be made, and I have to look into everything. I’m thankful for my year here and just to see how they do things, and [that] will definitely help moving forward.

“You definitely sit back and see what happens. You just never know. This is a great organization and how they treat their people. We’ll see what happens.”

The organization is in a special position with the No. 1 overall pick of the draft in April. That gives Thibault the opportunity to address one of those needs, but there is no clear-cut favorite for the top pick. That leaves plenty of options for how to approach free agency with the currency of the first pick in Thibault’s back pocket. The Mystics already have a strong corps when healthy and the flexibility to sign an all-star. Whoever becomes that No. 1 pick won’t have to come in and save a franchise.

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Signing a high-priced all-star, though, affects that salary cap flexibility.

“We know we have clear things to address on our team,” Thibault said. “And if you know that you are leaning one way or another with your draft picks, it can affect what you do in free agency. But it's still a little bit of a gray area. It's also a bargaining chip if free agency leads to some sort of trade.

“If we end up spending money on a very high-priced player, it severely limits whatever else we can do. … The biggest thing is that anybody expects us to spend a lot of money on several players, that can't happen.”

Two of the biggest questions are with the Mystics’ own players. Myisha Hines-Allen is a restricted free agent who has already received a qualifying offer from the team. The Mystics would love to keep her, but Hines-Allen developed into an all-WNBA player in 2020 while averaging 17 points and 8.9 rebounds. She is expected to draw significant attention from other teams.

The status of unrestricted free agent Emma Meesseman remains unknown after she sat out last season because of overseas commitments.

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