As free agency picks up in the WNBA over the coming weeks, the Minnesota Lynx have been named a potential fit for a few notable free agents.
As January continues, so does the WNBA offseason and the start of free agency. And over the next few weeks, the news will start flying across the league as players begin to either re-sign with their existing squads or take their talents elsewhere in 2025.
As of Jan. 21, following the qualifying offer period from Jan. 1-20, free agent players have been able to speak with WNBA to begin negotiating contracts. Deals can’t become official until Feb. 1, when free agents can put pen to paper and sign their offer sheets. But leading up to that date, news will fall well before then as player agree to terms on deals.
For the Minnesota Lynx, they have room to make some additions to a roster that reached the WNBA Finals in 2024 and came seconds away from winning the title. Minnesota currently has four players not under contract:
- Natisha Hiedeman, Unrestricted Free Agent
- Myisha Hines-Allen, Unrestricted Free Agent
- Olivia Époupa, Unrestricted Free Agent
- Jessica Shepard, Suspended/Contract Expired Player
With those four players not under contract, that leaves eight players on the roster at the moment, with the Lynx looking at just over $401,000 in cap space this offseason, according to Her Hoop Stats.
With space available to make some moves, could the Lynx look to make a splash in free agency? Well, ESPN’s team of contributing writers believe Minnesota could be a fit for these top free agent players.
Photo by David Berding/Getty Images
Alyssa Thomas
2024 team: Connecticut Sun
Her entire career, Alyssa Thomas has seen herself in a Connecticut Sun uniform while solidifying herself as one of the top players at her position in the WNBA. At the current moment, as she prepares to enter her 12th season at the age of 32 in 2025, Thomas is still a member of the Sun after being cored by the team this offseason.
But if she does decide she wants out of Connecticut, Thomas could be an intriguing trade option for the Lynx, and ESPN believes Minnesota would be one of the best options outside of Connecticut for Thomas to play.
Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve, meanwhile, was the one who convinced Thomas several years ago to join the USA Basketball national team pool, which resulted in Thomas’ strong run throughout the 2022 World Cup and 2024 Olympics. Could Reeve see Thomas as a key piece to winning another championship? The chemistry Kayla McBride and Thomas have demonstrated at Unrivaled as Laces teammates could also be a tantalizing prospect to translate to the WNBA.
In 2024, Thomas was once again a walking triple-double on what seemed like a nightly basis, finishing the year averaging 10.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, 7.9 assists and 1.6 steals over 32.4 minutes in all 40 games.
Thomas is an intriguing option to add to the post in Minnesota. It would be interesting to see what the Lynx would trade away in exchange for her, but if Minnesota was the final destination, Thomas’ addition would make this team into one of the best in the WNBA.
Courtney Vandersloot
2024 team: New York Liberty
The last time we saw Courtney Vandersloot, she was battling against Minnesota in the WNBA Finals as a member of the New York Liberty. This offseason, however, she could find herself with a different team, perhaps the last team she faced before being crowned a WNBA champion in 2024.
ESPN lists the Lynx as the best fit for Vandersloot, noting that she would provide Minnesota with a nice backup guard behind Courtney Williams like the role Natisha Hiedeman played last summer. At the age of 35 and entering her 15th year in the WNBA, Vandersloot’s starting days could be nearing an end or at least her minutes would be managed wherever she landed.
There’s mutual respect between Vandersloot and coach Cheryl Reeve. Before Vandersloot signed with New York in 2023, she also met with Minnesota. Vandersloot might not break into the starting five that lost in the WNBA Finals against her Liberty last fall, but she’d give the Lynx a true point guard and could also play alongside starter Courtney Williams in the league’s premier all-Courtney backcourt. In that scenario, Minnesota would be betting on Vandersloot bouncing back from 3-point range after shooting just 28.5% during two seasons in New York.
Over 31 games with the Liberty in 2024, Vandersloot averaged 6.4 points, 4.8 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 0.8 steals over 22.3 minutes per contest. With the backup guard spot currently open in Minnesota, Vandersloot could be an intriguing option to fill that void and provide another veteran presence in the Lynx locker room.
Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images
Emma Meesseman
2024 team: N/A
Most people remember Emma Meesseman for her time with the Washington Mystics to begin her WNBA career, but the last we saw of her on a WNBA court was in 2022 with the Chicago Sky. Since then, the forward has remained overseas while sitting out the WNBA season.
In 2025, however, Meesseman could likely entertain the idea of returning to the league if the right opportunity presents itself, and ESPN believes one of the best fits outside of the Connecticut Sun for Meesseman to land is in Minnesota.
Given how well Meesseman fits in a system predicated on ball movement, the Lynx are an interesting fit. That would reunite Meesseman with assistant Eric Thibault, who served in the same role during Meesseman’s time with the Washington Mystics.
Meesseman and her ability to stretch the floor is a valuable trait for any of the 13 teams in the league, as well as her skillset on both ends of the floor. In her most recent season with Chicago in 2022, Meesseman averaged 12.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.8 blocks over 28.6 minutes in 36 games.
Meesseman still has plenty left in the tank, turning 32 in May. And that could end in a return to the WNBA (and maybe the Lynx?) in 2025.
These rumors and ideas are just that — rumors and ideas. But over the next few weeks, we will see if anything materializes with this players or other free agents across the league.
Stay tuned.