Which WNBA offseason moves are making the biggest impact -- and who still has work to do?

The 2025 WNBA season has been one of the most anticipated in league history, in part due to a flurry of offseason player movement and arguably the most exciting free agency period the W has seen.

A record four No. 1 draft picks switched teams, including Kelsey Plum and Jewell Loyd, who headlined the first trade in league history involving multiple No. 1 selections. Plum, Loyd, Brittney Griner and Alyssa Thomas are among the stars playing for new franchises for the first time in their careers, a reshuffling that has changed the landscape of the WNBA in the process.

There's a lot of basketball left to be played. But two weeks into the season, and with all teams already playing between four and six games, we make some early assessments on how these blockbuster moves are panning out. ESPN ranks the most impactful free agency moves to date and four other players who switched teams but have yet to break through in 2025.

Ranking the five best

1. Kelsey Plum, Los Angeles Sparks: Plum's arrival in Los Angeles promised to revitalize the storied franchise. It hasn't yet translated to wins, but she has brought back star power to the organization. Plum has been every bit the dynamic guard the Sparks needed: Her 25.2 points per game ranks second in the league (on a 60.3 true shooting percentage, no less), while her 151 points are the most through six games of a season in Sparks history.

As soon as she was traded to L.A., Plum said she was eager to be a playmaker, and she has also shined there, boasting a career-best 5.5 assists per game.

According to Elias Sports Bureau, she has scored or assisted on 233 of the Spark's points, tied for the most points scored or assisted on by a player through their first six games of a season. It's typically difficult for a player to win MVP on a team with a losing record, but Plum has managed to assert herself into the early conversation.

2. Natasha Cloud, New York Liberty: It took some time for the Liberty to execute the trade that brought Cloud to New York -- the deal was announced in March on Selection Sunday -- but she's already showing why she was worth the wait. Cloud was sensational in her first game for the defending champs, finishing with 22 points, 9 assists, 6 boards and 5 stocks (steals and blocks) against rival Las Vegas, and she has only continued to shine with her playmaking and defense. Her emergence as another go-to scoring option -- she's New York's third-leading scorer -- takes some pressure off the Liberty's other stars, and Cloud's toughness and voice make the squad all the more threatening in its bid to repeat.

3. Alyssa Thomas, Phoenix Mercury: Thomas is shining in Phoenix and in Nate Tibbetts' system. She's fresh off her second career 15-assist game (tying a franchise record) and is delivering as a reliable scorer, all the more crucial with Copper sidelined: Thomas' 15.2 points per game are second most on the team; alongside Satou Sabally they are the only Mercury players averaging more than 11 points per game. Thomas' fight and toughness have carried over to her new team, particularly on defense, an end of the floor Phoenix has leaned on to win games. Tibbetts has indicated that there are even more ways he is hoping to unlock Thomas as a playmaker and that she'll continue to flourish as she builds trust with the Mercury's younger players.

4. Satou Sabally, Phoenix Mercury: At 4-1, the Mercury are off to their best start since 2014 -- when they won their last WNBA title -- and it's in no small part a product of Sabally thriving in her new city. She's No. 6 in the league in scoring at 19.8 points per game, which the Mercury have needed every bit of with Kahleah Copper sidelined for the first part of the season. Phoenix's focus on spacing, 3-point shooting and playing positionless basketball has been a boon for Sabally, who has long been labeled a basketball unicorn. And she even has room to improve: Her 3-point percentage is down from last year's 45.2% (albeit in 15 games) to 27.3%.

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Satou Sabally drains the dime from Alyssa Thomas for the Mercury

Satou Sabally drains the dime from Alyssa Thomas for the Mercury.

5. Brionna Jones, Atlanta Dream: Jones might have surprised fans by signing with Atlanta after Brittney Griner already decided to play there, but she has acclimated well to Karl Smesko's system, playing alongside Griner or as the sole big. Jones is one of five players across the league averaging a double-double and is registering what would be career highs in field goal attempts per game (11.0), rebounds (10.0) and assists (2.8). She's not yet sinking them at a regular clip, but she has attempted nearly as many 3-pointers this year (12) as she tried the entirety of 2024 (14).

It's a small sample, but the Dream's offense is a team-best 26.5 points per 100 possessions better when Jones is on the court versus off it. Jones starts alongside another center in Griner when the latter is healthy (Griner missed the past two games because of a knee injury), with the pair sharing the court for 87 minutes across four games. We gave Jones the nod in this ranking for her extra reps, but she and Griner (14.8 PPG) have complemented each other well so far, and they remain integral to Atlanta's contention hopes.

Four more to watch

Jewell Loyd, Las Vegas Aces: Heading into the season, coach Becky Hammon raved about Loyd and said she thought the Aces' new acquisition was poised to go on a tear this season. A 20-piece against the winless Connecticut Sun notwithstanding, that version of Loyd hasn't materialized, as her 12.0 points per game on 31.3% shooting would be among her career-low marks. Hammon has continued to reiterate her faith in Loyd, and the Aces will need her to pick up her production if they want to establish themselves as contenders. Keep an eye on her usage within the Las Vegas offense: Historically known for her midrange game, Loyd's 3-point rate this season sits at a whopping 60%, double what it was last year with the Storm.

DeWanna Bonner, Indiana Fever: Bonner was one of the Fever's prized free agency acquisitions this offseason. While her leadership has impressed -- prior to her 21-point outburst on Wednesday -- she had yet to make a splash on the court, averaging 2.5 points and 4.0 field goal attempts in those contests (compared to 15.0 and 12.8 last year, respectively). Bonner's role was always bound to be different in Indiana, where she's appearing alongside a dominant big three with preexisting chemistry, than it was with the Connecticut Sun, where getting her looks was a priority of the offense. Coach Stephanie White has said Bonner is getting accustomed to playing in a faster-paced system, and that with so much of Indiana's offense predicated on playing with freedom and off instinct, Bonner and her teammates are still learning one another.

Courtney Vandersloot and Ariel Atkins, Chicago Sky: After retooling their roster in the offseason, the Sky have fallen short of expectations and are one of two teams remaining without a win. The early going for Vandersloot and Atkins has been tough: Vandersloot, who returned to the franchise with which she won the 2021 title, sports one of the lowest assist-to-turnover ratios (2.10) and 3-point clips (17.6%) of her career. Atkins, the player for whom Chicago traded the No. 3 pick and a 2027 pick-swap, hadn't managed more than 11 points in a game prior to Tuesday, when she scored 21 on a season-high 15 shot attempts.

The issues in Chicago go beyond any one or two players, but for the Sky to recover from their dreadful start, they'll need more from their two veteran guards with championship experience. The team managed to score a season-best 89 points with assists on 25 of 33 baskets in its most recent loss to Phoenix, a performance Atkins, Vandersloot and the rest of the Sky can look to build on.