Seattle Storm

Star free-agent forward Breanna Stewart reportedly is staying put for the 2022 season.

Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports that Stewart has agreed to a one-year supermax deal to remain with the Seattle Storm this year. A two-time WNBA champion, Stewart has been with the Storm since they drafted her No. 1 overall in 2016.

Stewart was an unrestricted free agent this year, and she was expected to command interest from teams across the league. She only took one in-person meeting with the New York Liberty before making the decision to return to Seattle.

In just five career seasons, the 27-year-old Stewart is already regarded as one of the best WNBA players of all time. In September, she was the youngest player to be named to The W25 as one of the top 25 players in the league's first 25 seasons. She's one of just 10 active players to be included on the list.

Stewart is a three-time All-Star, three-time All-WNBA first-team selection and three-time All-Defensive team member. She earned WNBA MVP honors in 2018 after recording career highs of 21.8 points, 52.9 percent shooting from the field and 41.5 percent three-point shooting. She missed the entire 2019 season because of a torn Achilles.

The Storm won the WNBA championship in 2020 but were unable to defend their title last year. Seattle went 21-11 in 2021 and earned the fourth seed in the playoffs, but it fell to the Phoenix Mercury in the second round. Stewart was forced to sit the game out because of a foot injury.

With Stewart back in the fold and veteran point guard Sue Bird returning for a 19th season, the Storm are expected to be among the top contenders in the WNBA in 2022.

Longtime Seattle Storm star Breanna Stewart reportedly met with the New York Liberty in free agency this week.

According to Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, Liberty owners Joe and Clara Tsai, head coach Sandy Brondello and the full front office staff all went to Los Angeles for the meeting with Stewart.

In five seasons with the Storm, Stewart is a three-time All-Star, two-time WNBA champion, two-time WNBA Finals MVP and one-time WNBA MVP.

The 27-year-old Stewart is undoubtedly one of the WNBA's best players when healthy, but she has been plagued by injuries in recent years.

She missed the entire 2019 WNBA season after suffering a torn Achilles while playing for Russian club Dynamo Kursk during the WNBA offseason.

Stewart returned to action in 2020 and was named WNBA Finals MVP after leading the Storm to a championship, and while she was productive in 2021 as well, a foot injury kept her out for the playoffs.

Overall, the 6'4" forward owns career averages of 20.0 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.6 blocks, 1.6 three-pointers made and 1.3 steals in 149 WNBA regular-season games.

The former UConn standout has also averaged 24.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.2 three-pointers made, 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocks in 16 playoff contests.

While Stewart became a free agent at the conclusion of the 2021 season, she made it clear that her main desire was to re-sign with the Storm.

According to Forbes' Michael LoRe, Stewart said the following about her future in December: "My heart is in Seattle, and I plan to be back playing in the new arena, playing in Climate Pledge. Overall, I think the offseason is going really well—obviously taking some time away from basketball and making sure I'm rehabbing and recovering well."

If Stewart leaves the Storm for the Liberty, it could represent a seismic shift in the WNBA's power structure.

Despite being an original WNBA franchise, the Liberty have never won a championship, and they have reached the playoffs just once in the past four seasons.

There is reason for optimism in New York, though, as 2020 No. 1 overall draft pick Sabrina Ionescu largely stayed healthy in 2021 after an injury-riddled rookie campaign and helped lead the Liberty to the postseason.

Adding Stewart to a core that includes Ionescu, Betnijah Laney, Natasha Howard and Sami Whitcomb would make the Liberty legitimate championship threats, and it would put one of the league's top stars in one of its top markets as well.

Sue Bird isn't ready for retirement yet.

The 12-time WNBA All-Star announced she plans to return for her 19th season with the Seattle Storm in an Instagram post Friday.

The Storm posted a tweet welcoming Bird back, but it was later deleted. While it is a virtual certainty that Bird will stay in Seattle, her WNBA home since being drafted in 2002, she cannot technically re-sign until the free-agency period begins next Saturday.

Bird thought about retirement after the Storm were eliminated in the second round of the 2021 WNBA playoffs. She said it was the first time she seriously contemplated leaving the game. 

"I've been really trying to push away those thoughts," Bird told reporters in September. "The minute I even let myself think about it, it makes me want to cry. This is the first offseason where I feel like I need to weigh it. Usually, I'm like, 'Nope, one more year if I feel good, I'll be there.'

"This is the first time where I'm really going to have to sit back, see how I feel, weigh some things."

Bird later said she was tempted to come back for at least one more year to get a chance to play in Seattle's redeveloped Climate Pledge Arena. She didn't miss a step during the 2021 campaign, averaging 10.0 points and 5.3 assists while making another All-Star appearance.

The Seattle Storm may have closed the chapter on a defining era for the franchise Sunday.

The Storm fell 85-80 in overtime to the Phoenix Mercury in the second round of the 2021 WNBA playoffs. Beyond just ending Seattle's season, it might be the final game in the career of Sue Bird.

Bird didn't provide any insight as to her immediate future, but her postgame interview with ESPN's Holly Rowe felt a bit like a farewell:

In March 2020, Bird signaled her desire to represent Team USA in Tokyo at the Summer Olympics. That effectively committed her to the Storm in 2021 as they looked to defend their WNBA title.

After having captured her fifth gold medal, there's little in the way of clear benchmarks for the 40-year-old to achieve in 2022. She's a four-time champion, 12-time All-Star and the greatest point guard in WNBA history. Bird is also a free agent this offseason, allowing her to make a clean break with the Storm.

If this was the end, then it's fitting Bird went out against Taurasi, her longtime friend and on-court rival.

The Mercury had an opportunity to win the game in regulation, but Mercedes Russell denied Skylar Diggins-Smith at the buzzer.

To some extent, the Storm were fortunate just to be tied at the end of four quarters. They were without their best player, Breanna Stewart, and Jewell Loyd didn't have her shooting touch as she finished 5-of-24.

Seattle's flat offense was its undoing in overtime as the team missed 10 of its 13 field goals.

The Mercury weren't much better on balance but found a way to score when they needed to the most. 

All five of Phoenix's starters scored in double figures, with Diggins-Smith and Brittney Griner combining for 43 points. Taurasi returned after missing the first round to hit a pair of big shots in overtime. Her three-pointer tied the score at the 3:39 mark, and she gave the Mercury the lead for what proved to be the final time on a fadeaway with 2:14 left.

Phoenix now awaits the results of Sunday's other contest between the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx to learn its opponent in the semifinals.

The Seattle Storm will be without Breanna Stewart when they play the Phoenix Mercury in the second round of the 2021 WNBA playoffs Sunday.

The team announced Saturday the 2018 MVP will be absent because of the left foot injury that ended her regular season.

Stewart hasn't stepped on the court since Seattle's 105-71 victory over the Washington Mystics on Sept. 7. Head coach Noelle Quinn said she wanted the 27-year-old to shake off the rust in practice before she rejoins the lineup.

"I just think you have to get some time on the court in a team setting to get bumped around and make sure everything is good," Quinn said, per Percy Allen of the Seattle Times. "When you've been out as long as she has, I don't know if you can just flip a switch and jump back in it."

Losing Natasha Howard, Alysha Clark and Sami Whitcomb this offseason has seemed to catch up to the Storm. The defending champions went 5-6 following the Commissioner's Cup final.

Heading into the Olympic break, Seattle owned the second-best net rating (8.2) in the league, per WNBA.com. The team was fifth in net rating (minus-0.4) after the season resumed.

Quinn's squad did, however, close out the regular season with a 94-85 win over the Mercury. Replicating the recipe that led to that victory will be difficult, though. Ezi Magbegor and Mercedes Russell combined for 29 points, while Jewell Loyd dropped a career-high 37 points.

Stewart led the team in scoring (20.3 points per game), but her absence is likely to be felt most on the boards and at the defensive end (team highs of 9.5 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game).

The Storm will be asking a lot of Magbegor and Russell to contain Brittney Griner inside.

The Seattle Storm were honored Monday at the White House by President Joe Biden to commemorate their 2020 WNBA championship.

They were the first WNBA team since the Minnesota Lynx in June 2016 to travel to the nation's capital for a celebratory visit.

As part of their trip, the Storm said they would meet with the White House Gender Policy Council to help advocate for social justice causes and raise awareness of the COVID-19 vaccine.

The WNBA has set the standard for major sports leagues in terms of social advocacy.

Throughout the 2020 season, members of the Storm and every other WNBA player wore Breonna Taylor's name on the back of their jerseys. Taylor was shot and killed by police in her home in Louisville, Kentucky, in March 2020.

Players across the league also began supporting Raphael Warnock's candidacy for the United States Senate after then-Atlanta Dream co-governor Kelly Loeffler criticized the Black Lives Matter movement. Warnock beat Loeffler in a runoff election in January.

While speaking about the franchise, Biden highlighted Seattle's achievements away from the court, per ESPN's Kelly Cohen:

And what makes this team remarkable is they don't just win games. They change lives. Encouraging people to get vaccinated so we can beat this pandemic. Speaking out and standing up for racial justice and voting rights. Supporting education and mentorship programs for young people. And fighting to protect trans youth from an epidemic of violence and discrimination. That's what winners do: They shine the light, they lift people up, they're a force for change.

Biden is an alumnus of Syracuse University and couldn't help but press Breanna Stewart on why the 2018 WNBA MVP spurned her hometown school for UConn:

Before too long, the Storm might be seeing the Oval Office once again. 

Seattle is 18-7 through 25 games and won the inaugural Commissioner's Cup earlier this month. The team is the second betting favorite (+220; bet $100 to win $220) behind the Las Vegas Aces (+210) to win the 2021 WNBA Finals, per FanDuel.

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The Seattle Storm will visit the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday to celebrate their 2020 WNBA championship.

According to the team, the trip will encompass more than honoring last season's triumph: "Before the ceremony, Storm players will participate in a conversation with members of the White House Gender Policy Council and work with the White House to record messages of support for gender, racial and LGBTQ+ equality, voting rights, and pro-vaccination."

Seattle swept the Las Vegas Aces in the 2020 Finals for its second championship in three seasons. The Storm didn't make the trip to the nation's capital after their 2018 WNBA title.

They were among multiple major sports champions who declined to partake in or simply weren't invited for the traditional event during Donald Trump's presidency. The Minnesota Lynx in June 2016 are the last WNBA team to make the trek; President Barack Obama left office the following January.

The issue was especially personal for Storm legend Sue Bird given Trump's particular animus toward now-fiancee Megan Rapinoe. She penned a 2019 essay for The Players' Tribune titled, "So the President F--king Hates My Girlfriend."

Bird told the Associated Press' Doug Feinberg the arrival of Joe Biden in the Oval Office made a White House visit more palatable:

Now that it’s back in a place where it’s considered an honor and you’re recognized by the highest office in the country is exciting, it’s fun. It’s not just about meeting the president or hopefully the vice president is there. It’s about the whole experience of being in the White House. Having a day that’s about your team and celebrating what you’ve accomplished.

The timing of Monday's celebration lines up with the 16-7 Storm's road game against the Washington Mystics (8-13) on Sunday. They'll then head west to play the Lynx (13-9) in Minneapolis on Tuesday.

Seattle Storm head coach Dan Hughes is retiring with immediate effect.

"The Seattle Storm is in amazing shape, after two championships and a terrific playoff run in 2019, I would like to announce my retirement from the WNBA," Hughes said in Sunday's announcement. "I believe now is the right time because the team is performing well, but the rigors of being a head coach in the WNBA have taken their toll on me."

Storm co-governor Lisa Brummel praised Hughes' work on the sideline:

Associate head coach Noelle Quinn will take over as Seattle's head coach.

Hughes referenced his health as playing a role in his decision.

The 66-year-old announced ahead of the 2019 season he had been diagnosed with cancer, which forced him out for a spell that year. He then chose to sit out the 2020 campaign because of COVID-19-related reasons when the WNBA staged an abbreviated regular season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.

As a result, Gary Kloppenburg is officially recognized as Seattle's head coach during its championship run, though Hughes did his best to provide input from his home in Ohio.

Because of that, Hughes is credited with one WNBA title as a head coach, guiding the Storm to a Finals victory over the Washington Mystics in 2018. He's also a two-time Coach of the Year, first with the Cleveland Rockers in 2001 and then the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2007. His 286 wins are tied for third-most in WNBA history.

Quinn will now have the difficult task of maintaining the success Hughes delivered in the Pacific Northwest.

Despite losing Natasha Howard, Alysha Clark and Sami Whitcomb in the offseason, the Storm sit second in the WNBA at 5-1. Breanna Stewart is averaging a double-double (22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds), while Jewell Loyd is herself building an MVP campaign, putting 19.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 2.0 steals per game.

A third WNBA title in four years seems a plausible aim.

Quinn has plenty of continuity with this roster, having been a part of the championship-winning squad in 2018 before taking over as an assistant in February 2019. Given her age, the 36-year-old could be leading the franchise for many seasons to come.

Seattle Storm star Breanna Stewart announced Wednesday that she has signed a multiyear endorsement deal with Puma.

The deal includes a signature shoe for the 2018 WNBA MVP, which will make Stewart the 10th WNBA player to have her own shoe.

"Any time you hear signature, I think that's jaw-dropping, eye-opening, especially on the women's side," Stewart said to ESPN's Nick DePaula. "There haven't been many. ... For Puma to be able to put the signature element out there, [and] respect me enough where they think that I deserve a signature shoe, is something that's super exciting."

The Ringer's Mirin Fader reported Stewart, who has previously been with Nike since entering the WNBA in 2016 will have input on the design, branding and colorways.

Stewart explained to DePaula she is planning for the shoe to be a low top with cushion for the Achilles tendon. The 26-year-old two-time All-Star missed the entire 2019 WNBA season after rupturing her Achilles while playing overseas in EuroLeague Women.

She returned in 2020 to average 19.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.6 assists as the Storm swept the Las Vegas Aces for their second title in three seasons. The 6'4" forward was the Finals MVP for a second time.

The success of Stewart's shoe could open the door for more WNBA players to get their own signature brand.

"Where others saw a risk, Puma took advantage of it," Stewart told Fader. "Women's basketball players deserve to have signature shoes.

"We're going to be helping move the needle forward for women in sports and women's basketball."

New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu was the most hyped rookie to enter the league since Stewart. While DePaula wrote in March how Ionescu was going to play a prominent role in Nike's new Greater Than sneaker line, he clarified it wasn't a design unique to the former Oregon star.

Much like second-year New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson already having his own shoe, Ionescu would be a natural candidate from the WNBA because of her early stardom. Other stars such as A'ja Wilson, Elena Delle Donne and Arike Ogunbowale could also have strong cases.

The Seattle Storm have added another weapon to their lineup after announcing the signing of free-agent forward Candice Dupree.

The seven-time WNBA All-Star finished last season averaging 12.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game for the Indiana Fever.

Dupree discussed joining a team that already won the championship last year in the team's official release:

"I can't tell you how excited I am to have to have an opportunity to play for the Seattle Storm. To be 15 years in and have an opportunity to play for a contender and compete for a back to back championship is awesome. I look forward to playing alongside some of the best in the game and bringing another championship back to the great city of Seattle."

Dupree has one career championship in 15 WNBA seasons, coming in 2014 with the Phoenix Mercury.

The 36-year-old has accomplished even more individually, averaging 14.4 points and 6.6 rebounds over her career. She currently ranks fifth in WNBA history with 6,728 points, seventh all-time with 3,066 rebounds and has more two-point field goals than anyone else in league history.

By averaging double-digit points for the 15th straight year in 2020, Dupree showed she isn't slowing down either.

She joins a team that swept the Minnesota Lynx on the way to a title last season after tying for the best record in the league at 18-4.

Seattle re-signed Sue Bird and return key players like Breanna Stewart and Jewell Lloyd, while Natasha Howard was designated a core player. Even with this group, the squad still needed reinforcements after losing Alysha Clark to free agency, while Crystal Langhorne announced her retirement Monday.

Dupree fills a need in the post while giving the Storm another veteran presence to make this a tough team to beat in 2021.