On Monday, the Seattle Storm announced their signing of eight-time All Star and former WNBA MVP Nneka Ogwumike — thus producing another WNBA super team.
News of the Storm's seismic signing of Ogwumike comes just days after Seattle announced the unexpected addition of Skylar Diggins-Smith.
Leader. Veteran. Champion. MVP. 8x All-Star. 6x All-WNBA.
Welcome to the Pacific Nnorthwest, @nnekaogwumike! ??
? https://t.co/P10Amoa9Lt pic.twitter.com/gXYxSVOKuO
— Seattle Storm (@seattlestorm) February 5, 2024
Signing Diggins-Smith gave the Storm — who finished with an 11-29 record in 2023 — one of the WNBA's most formidable backcourt duos, as they already have super-scoring sharpshooter Jewell Loyd on their roster.
Yet, if the WNBA's two current super teams — one of which has A'ja Wilson and the other has Breanna Stewart — are any indication, teams need a dominant presence in the paint if they're to compete for championships.
Seattle's signing of Ogwumike means that it has secured one of the league's premiere forwards — completing a big three that instantly makes the Storm a scary team to contend with next season. Ogwumike had finished sixth in 2023 WNBA MVP voting after averaging 19.1 points and 8.8 rebounds per game with the Los Angeles Sparks, where she has played throughout her legendary 12-year career.
Ogwumike decided to sign a one-year deal with the Storm after going on a free agency tour that included her meeting with the Phoenix Mercury, New York Liberty, Chicago Sky and Atlanta Dream.
While she strongly considered joining an already stacked Liberty team, Ogwumike explained in an ESPN interview that she eventually settled on Seattle because she "felt like I just fit best in an organization that has so much history. We're living in a house that was built by legends and continues to be built and coached by legends. It just really resonated with me to be able to build on that legacy with some other key pieces."
Despite last season's poor performance, the Seattle Storm franchise's four WNBA championships — including titles in 2018 and 2020 — have cemented them as one of the league's most successful organizations.
Seattle's loss of Stewart to the New York Liberty via free agency almost exactly a year ago constituted the start of a rebuilding period for the iconic organization.
Yet, with this new big three set to debut in 2024, the rebuild didn't take long. Now Storm fans can expect their team to send shock waves across the league next season.
