The WNBA announced the rules and date for the upcoming expansion draft on Monday, leaving up to half of the existing rosters available for the Golden State Valkyries to choose from.
The WNBA previously announced in May the creation of the Valkyries, who will make their debut next season as the league’s 13th team and its first expansion franchise since 2008. Fielding a team obviously requires the acquisition of players. These players will largely be drawn from the rosters of the current twelve WNBA teams in a draft scheduled for December 6.
Under WNBA rules, teams are allowed to designate six players as protected from the expansion draft. The rest of their selections will be shown for the Valkyries to choose.
In a league with 12-woman rosters, this means teams are leaving half of their rosters exposed, which can lead to tough decisions. Every team is in danger of losing a rotation player to the Valkyries.
This is less protection than the NBA has traditionally allowed during its expansion drafts. In the NBA’s most recent expansions, including the Charlotte Bobcats (2004), Vancouver Grizzlies (1995), Toronto Raptors (1995), Minnesota Timberwolves (1989), Orlando Magic (1989), Miami Heat (1988) and Charlotte Hornets ( 1988), existing teams were allowed to protect eight players from the expansion draft.
The good news for existing WNBA teams is that there won’t be a double dip. The Valkyries are limited to selecting one player from each team.
“Golden State will have the opportunity to acquire the player contract of, or negotiation rights to, one available player from each of the current twelve teams,” the WNBA announcement read.
The Valkyries will also be allowed to make deals once the protected lists are submitted. That means Valkyries can agree to pre-select a player in the draft and trade that player to another team. They can also make deals with existing teams to draft or not draft a specific player.
The Valkyries will be limited to selecting one player who will become an unrestricted free agent after the 2024 season.
“If a player is selected who has not signed a contract through the 2025 season, Golden State will receive all rights to that player that the existing team would have had had that player not been selected in the expansion draft,” the WNBA announcement reads.
The upcoming expansion draft is the first of two to be held in the coming seasons. The WNBA also recently announced the creation of expansion franchises in Toronto and Portland for a total of 15 teams. The Portland and Toronto franchises won’t start play until the 2026 season. Details for that design have not yet been announced.
