Dallas Wings Make No Trade At 2026 WNBA Deadline

DSJ Quick Take: Dallas Wings Stand Pat At The 2026 WNBA Trade Deadline

The Dallas Wings made no trade before the deadline passed Sunday at 2 p.m. CT, leaving the roster unchanged for the final 15 games. General manager Curt Miller said Monday that the salary cap and a compressed post-All-Star schedule limited what any front office could do.

• What did Dallas do? They didn’t make a trade. The same 12 players carry into the stretch run.
• Why not? Miller pointed to the $7 million hard cap and six games in the first 12 days out of the break, which left almost no practice time to work in a new player.
• Was the rest of the league busy? No. Two trades were completed across the WNBA, sending Aneesah Morrow to Toronto and Kelsey Plum to Phoenix.
• What’s next? Dallas hosts the Connecticut Sun on Sunday, August 2, at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN.

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Wings did not make a trade before the WNBA deadline passed Sunday at 2 p.m. CT, four hours before they host the Connecticut Sun at College Park Center. The roster that finishes the season is the roster that was in the building Sunday morning.

General manager Curt Miller met with reporters Monday, the day the team returned to practice.

“The deadline is right around the corner, and there’s constant dialogue between general managers across the league,” Miller said on Monday. “Ultimately, what happens over the next week remains to be seen.”

Dallas is 18-11 with 15 games left. The Atlanta Dream won 82-81 at College Park Center on Wednesday, and the Washington Mystics followed with an 81-76 win Friday night. In Washington, Paige Bueckers scored 23 points and Arike Ogunbowale added 20. Alanna Smith came off the bench for 11 points and 5 rebounds, matching her season high in scoring.

What Curt Miller Said About the Obstacles

The Wings carry the 12 players required under the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement. The league salary cap sits at $7 million this season, and teams cannot exceed it outside of a hardship exception.

“It’s much harder to make trades than people realize because of the salary cap,” he said. “Then you also have to consider our schedule. We play six games in the first 12 days after the All-Star break, so practice time is extremely limited. Every general manager has to think about how to integrate new players when there’s almost no opportunity to practice.”

Sunday is the third of those six games.

Miller said eight of the team’s first 10 games out of the break come against teams currently in playoff position. He has said since the offseason that the roster needs size.

“It’s a very difficult stretch,” he said. “You’re always balancing the short-term vision with the long-term vision. That’s part of what makes being a general manager fun, having all these conversations leading up to the trade deadline.”

Dallas signed guard Sug Sutton to a rest-of-season contract on June 14 and waived guard JJ Quinerly in the corresponding move. That remains the franchise’s only roster change of the season. Its most recent in-season trade sent forward NaLyssa Smith to the Las Vegas Aces during the 2025 season.

Two WNBA Trades

Connecticut moved first. The Sun sent forward Aneesah Morrow to the Toronto Tempo on Friday for the rights to Maria Kliundikova and a 2028 second-round pick. Morrow averaged 11.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 1.7 assists across 20 games with the Sun, with nine double-doubles.

The Los Angeles Sparks followed late Saturday night, trading guard Kelsey Plum to the Phoenix Mercury for guard Monique Akoa Makani, Phoenix’s 2027 first-round pick, and Phoenix’s 2028 second-round pick. The deal was first reported by ESPN‘s Shams Charania and Kendra Andrews. Plum has not played since June 21 because of a lower left leg injury. She was averaging 23.9 points and 6.4 assists over 12 games.

Those were the only two trades completed in the WNBA before the deadline.

When Curt Miller Said He Would Move

Miller spent his previous WNBA tenure with Connecticut.

“One of the biggest lessons I learned early in my career, especially during my time in Connecticut, is that you can’t be afraid to make bold moves when you have a championship opportunity,” Miller said. “It’s easy to become comfortable with sustained success, but championship windows don’t stay open forever. If there’s an opportunity to make a move that truly elevates your team into championship contention, you have to be willing to consider it.”

He reached for a deal from his Connecticut years as the template. On April 14, 2016, the Sun sent Chelsea Gray, the 15th and 23rd picks in the 2016 WNBA Draft, and a 2017 first-round pick to Los Angeles for Jonquel Jones and the 17th pick in 2016.

“Moving Chelsea Gray wasn’t easy, but acquiring Jonquel Jones became a win for Connecticut while Chelsea thrived in Los Angeles,” Miller said. “Those are the kinds of deals you’re looking for.”

“Trades require willing partners. Throughout my career, my best trades have been ones where both teams benefited,” he said. “The difficult negotiations are with teams that are only focused on trying to ‘win’ the trade. Those conversations are much harder to finish.”

What’s Next for the Dallas Wings

Trades are finished for the season, though rosters are not locked. The league has set Aug. 24 as the last date a player claimed off waivers can be added and remain playoff eligible.

Dallas won the first meeting 86-83 on July 2 in Connecticut and has taken three of the last four regular season matchups. Its last home win over the Sun came on Aug. 12, 2023. Connecticut leads the all-time series 46-36.

The Wings listed no injuries on their game status report.