Tomorrow, Tuesday, July 7, is the midseason cut down date for the 2026 WNBA season.
What does that mean? All non-guaranteed contracts on a team’s roster become fully guaranteed once the clock strikes midnight.
If a team desires roster flexibility for the second half of the season, whether in preparation for trades or to cycle through players on 7-day contracts in an effort to find the best answer to a roster question, cutting a player (or two) before the cut down date passes could be part of their
process.
But if the cut down date is one of opportunity for teams, it’s one of anxiety for players, especially those who have seen their minutes dwindle, or never really materialize, over the course of the season.
Of the six teams in action on Monday night, which ones could make moves? And which players could see their stay in the WNBA, at least temporarily, terminated?
Golden State Valkyries vs. Washington Mystics (7:30 p.m. ET, WNBA League Pass)
The Golden State Valkyries, going for the fifth-straight win on Monday night, play everybody.
Well, almost everybody. Justē Jocytē and Nadia Fingall remain outside head coach Natalie Nakase’s regular rotation.
Jocytē, the Valkyries’ first-ever draft pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft who came over to the WNBA this season, isn’t going anywhere. The 6-foot-0 and 20-year-old sharpshooter is longterm project for Golden State.
Fingall, however, could be waived if Golden State desires an open roster spot. Signed on June 7, she has appeared in just two games.
On the other side, the Washington Mystics will be seeking a third-straight win.
And if this team is serious about making a push for the playoffs, acquiring an experienced ball handler, even if she ends up occupying a small, off-the-bench role, seems like a must.
If the Washington brass agrees, that probably endangers Rori Harmon.
The No. 34 overall pick in the 2026 draft, Harmon has played in seven games, yet none since June 14. Entrusted to play 20 and 22 minutes in the first two games of the season, her playing time since has withered away.
For the season, she’s scored just eight points on nine shots; known for her ball security as a collegian, she has 12 turnovers to 11 assists. The shooting and size concerns that lowered Harmon’s draft stock, unfortunately, have so far come to fruition in the WNBA.
Connecticut Sun vs. Minnesota Lynx (8 p.m. ET, WNBA League Pass)
The Connecticut Sun, like the Valkyries, tend to play just about everyone. Albeit for different reasons.
While Nakase utilizes her full roster so players can best execute a high-effort and aggressive style of play that has Golden State looking like contenders, Connecticut and head coach Rachid Meziane have been forced to embrace their fate. The future, with a bit of present-day stability from veteran stalwarts Brittney Griner and Kennedy Burke, is the franchise’s orientation.
With Griner at full health of late, Raegan Beers could be cut if Connecticut, which rosters other higher-priority young bigs in Olivia Nelson-Ododa, Aliyah Edwards and Aneesah Morrow, wishes to make a change. But considering Griner’s age and spotty availability in recent seasons, expect the Sun to keep her around as a bench big.
Additions, not subtractions, are the focus for the Minnesota Lynx, who will be looking to lock down career win No. 380 for head coach Cheryl Reeve and make her the WNBA’s all-time winningest head coach.
Those additions, of course, are Napheesa Collier and Dorka Juhász. Collier, who has returned to practice, is listed as out on Monday, but Juhász is questionable to play.
The returns of those two, however, could motivate Minnesota to rebalance their roster.
The team is heavy on forwards and light on guards. Outside of Olivia Miles and Courtney Williams, the Lynx roster does not feature another primary ball handler. That need could become evident on Monday night, as Miles, who exited Minnesota’s loss to the New York Liberty early, is questionable to play due to a right calf issue.
If the Lynx wishe to make space for another initiator, Liatu King, who spent time with Minnesota in training camp, signed a development contract and later was converted to a standard contract, could be the casualty.
A 5-foot-11 forward, King has played in seven games, totaling 71 minutes, 24 points and 23 rebounds.
Seattle Storm vs. Los Angeles Sparks (10 p.m. ET, USA Network)
As with Connecticut, the future is the focus for the Seattle Storm.
While the team may choose to part with some vets ahead of the Aug. 2 trade deadline, it seems unlikely that the team would cut ties with any of their young pieces at this moment, unless they need to make space for an intriguing young player who pops up on the market after being cut by another team.
The Los Angeles Sparks already have made some roster moves.
Laura Ziegler, who was signed to a development contract, was released, allowing the franchise to add Alissa Pili, who joined the Sparks at the end of last season and, of course, played for head coach Lynne Roberts at Utah, as a development player. According to Roberts, Pili is not yet ready to play, as she is still recovering from a leg injury.
Another development player move seems likely for the Sparks, as Kate Martin has utilized 10 of her 12 development appearances.
Could the team’s desire to convert Martin to a standard contract result in Ta’Niya Latson seeing an early end to her time in LA?
A projected first-round pick in the 2026 draft who slipped to the Sparks at No. 20 overall, Latson has gained no traction in the WNBA. She’s averaged five minutes of playing time in her 10 appearances, scoring less than two points per contest on less than 30 percent shooting.
The Sparks could waive Latson with the intent of signing her to the development spot vacated by Martin. That process risks another team picking up Latson off the waiver wire. Based on her collegiate reputation another team, maybe even the Sparks’ Monday night opponent in the the Storm, likely would be tempted to take on flier on her.
Let us know your thoughts on the possibility of some roster changes for these teams and others.
Which teams do you see making some moves ahead of the cut down date? If young players like Harmon or Latson get waived, where would you like to see them end up?
