Explaining WNBA Expansion Draft Rules: Could Sophie Cunningham, Arike Ogunbowale go UNPROTECTED?

About the episode

Alicia Jay and Erica L. Ayala break down the 2026 WNBA Expansion Draft PLUS get into 6 teams that have some intriguing player protection problems to solve. (0:00) Intro (0:39) Breaking down key dates in the WNBA Offseason (2:27) How the 2026 Expansion Draft will work (8:56) The most confusing part of the Expansion Draft rules (11:49) Chess Not Checkers: How this Expansion Draft will separate the GMs who have a mastery of the game (15:28) Six teams that have protection problems (17:47) Las Vegas Aces: Who do you protect beyond the Core Three? (21:05) New York Liberty: Could Marine Johannes go unprotected? (26:25) Indiana Fever: Should they protect Sophie Cunningham? (34:57) Seattle Storm: Would Ezi Magbegor be better off in a place like Toronto? (42:34) Dallas Wings: What will they do about Arike Ogunbowale? (48:45) Minnesota Lynx: DiJonai Carrington key to team’s chemistry? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices