LOS ANGELES -- Another era has ended in the Sparks organization.
Kelsey Plum is moving on as she has been traded to the Phoenix Mercury. From Shams Charania and Kendra Andrews of ESPN:
BREAKING: The Los Angeles Sparks are trading five-time All-Star Kelsey Plum to the Phoenix Mercury for Monique Akoa Makani, a 2027 first round pick and a 2028 second-rounder, sources tell me and @kendra__andrews. pic.twitter.com/0HvWAsrPGJ
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 2, 2026
Plum has not played since the 30th season Anniversary Game on June 21st when the Sparks defeated the Liberty. The Sparks have gone 2-9 since that game and have fallen to 10-17. They are currently on a six-game losing streak.
The five-time all-star is also a free agent after this season. With rumblings of her possibly leaving, the Sparks decided to make a move and not risk losing her for nothing. So they made that deal with Phoenix.
Monique Akoa Makani signed a training camp deal with the Mercury at the beginning of last year before making the team and becoming the starting point guard. She helped the Merc make the Finals last season. Now she is coming into a Sparks team that has been struggling as she shares the PG duties with Erica Wheeler.
The Sparks also get a first round pick from Phoenix, which means they'll have two first round picks for the upcoming draft. At the very least, it'll help them rebuild a little faster. They also acquired a second round pick for 2028.
The Sparks took a risk and it ended up not paying off. Now they'll see what they can do for the rest of the season and do another reset for the offseason.
Plum was second in the league in scoring (23.9 points) and in the top five in assists (6.4) before sitting out after playing 12 games this season. Akoa Makani has played 18 games this season and is averaging 9.7 points and 2.5 assists.