As we have mentioned in nearly all of these offseason articles, at some point, the WNBA will have a new collective bargaining agreement and nearly every veteran will become a free agent. Just because most of the league can change teams before next season, doesn’t mean that they will. I have been surprised to see how many players and teams appear to be planning/hoping to reunite, and based on the early odds I have seen for next season, sportsbooks are expecting most of the big names to stay where they are.

Of course, just because players and teams want to stay where they are, that doesn’t mean that they should. Every year, some players could benefit from playing in a new city, with a new coach, or surrounded by different teammates. Here are five players I would like to see change teams this offseason.

Arike Ogunbowale, G, Dallas Wings

Arike was the inspiration behind this list. It sounds like bringing her back is a priority for the Wings, but it feels like it would be better for everyone if she moves on. In the seven seasons since Dallas drafted Arike Ogunbowale, they have just one winning season. They have three playoff appearances and just one series win, in 2023. I blamed a lot of Dallas’s woes on their inability to find a quality point guard to play next to Ogunbowale, but we can’t say that anymore. Even with Paige Bueckers playing at an All-WNBA level, Dallas managed just 10 wins, tied with Chicago for last in the league.

I really thought Arike would benefit from spending more time off the ball, but she had arguably the worst season of her entire career. Her 36.4 field goal percentage and 30.4 three-point percentage were both the worst of her career. She shot a career-best 93.1 percent from the free-throw line but generated just 4.3 free throw attempts per 36 minutes, the second-lowest of her career. You would think she would be more efficient in light of the lowest usage of her career, but instead, the opposite was true. Add it all up, and Ogunbowale averaged 16.8 points per 36 minutes, down from her previous career-low of 20.5 in 2023.

The Wings have a lot of young players under contract, plus a lottery pick next year and a ton of cap space. I think they will probably take a young guard in the draft but even if they don’t, I think they can use that cap space to find a secondary creator and off-ball scorer who fits better with Paige Bueckers.

I am extremely interested to see what kind of deal Arike Ogunbowale commands in free agency, especially if it is not with the Wings. She will have a market. The Chicago Sky are desperate for an on-ball creator, especially if they stick to their plan of bringing back Ariel Atkins, Courtney Vandersloot and Rachel Banham. Everyone on Chicago’s roster was asked to do too much offensively, which is how they wound up with the second-worst offensive rating in the league. Adding Ogunbowale as the offensive fulcrum would make everyone’s lives easier on offense and allow them to expend more energy trying to improve the league’s worst defense.

I think Ogunbowale could also make sense as a Tiffany Hayes replacement in Golden State. The Valkyries are loaded with players who space the floor on offense and fight like hell on defense. They would be the perfect team to hide Ogunbowale on defense and give her spacing she’s never enjoyed on offense. Hayes is 36 years old and played just 26 games last season. Even if the Valkyries bring her back, it would be a good idea to get somebody who can share the offensive load.

Similarly, Arike Ogunbowale could make a ton of sense with the expansion Toronto Tempo and head coach Sandy Brondello. Brondello has had good offenses wherever she has gone, and while Ogunbowale might not be a Hall-of-Fame player like Diana Taurasi and Breanna Stewart, I would love to see what kind of offense Brondello could build with Ogunbowale as a key cog. Ogubowale would immediately give the Tempo star power and, most likely, at least an average offense. An expansion team could do a lot worse.

Angel Reese, F, Chicago Sky

Through two seasons, we really have no idea if Angel Reese can contribute to winning basketball, and it is unlikely we will ever get an answer to that question while she plays in Chicago. The Sky are almost certainly heading for the lottery again next season, at which time they will part ways with Reese, General Manager Jeff Pagliocca, or both. I don’t think its in anyone’s best interests to wait until next season when a breakup seems inevitable.

The other expansion team, the Portland Fire, could be a perfect fit for Reese. Head coach Alex Sarama is known for player development, and Reese famously criticized Sky head coach Tyler Marsh for not coaching his players hard enough. Portland is presumably going to assemble a team with young talent and Reese would fit that timeline while also giving this new market one of the league’s biggest stars. I have been encouraged by Reese’s willingness to expand her game outside of just rebounds and post play, but I would trust that development a lot more in Portland than in Chicago. Reese could also fit with the rebuilding Mystics or even the Sun.

Brittney Griner, C, Atlanta Dream

I’m really not sure why, but Griner never really fit with Atlanta. They had a 1.2 net rating with Griner on the court and a 15.7 net rating with Griner off the court. She propped up Atlanta’s defense as you would expect, but unfortunately, she dragged down their offense. I thought maybe the issue was that Griner couldn’t keep up with Atlanta’s offensive pace, but they actually played slightly faster when Griner was on the court. Griner was never going to shoot a bunch of threes like head coach Karl Smesko wants, but I thought they could have used her more as a screener to get her teammates open looks.

Griner is 35 years old, so it is possible she is just a 20-minute-per-game player at this point in her career, but considering she averaged 28.7 minutes, 17.8 points and 6.6 rebounds on 57.9 percent shooting with Phoenix in 2024, I suspect she is going to want to go someplace she can start in 2026. She could be the Tina Charles replacement in Connecticut, or they could be part of the big rotation together.

If I had to guess, I would bet on Griner reuniting with Sandy Brondello in Toronto. She could be a short-term solution if most of the free-agent centers stay with their current teams, which seems at least plausible, if not likely. If Griner isn’t just washed, I trust Brondello to get the best out of her. I could also see a team like Los Angeles or Dallas bringing Griner in to fix their defense, though that could be in more of a bench role like she had in Atlanta. For as bad as it looked at times in Atlanta, the Dream still finished second in the league in defensive rating and net rating. If they don’t want Brittney Griner back, some team will take a chance on her.

Julie Vanloo, G, Los Angeles Sparks

I has happy to see Vanloo catch on with the Sparks after she got a raw deal with Golden State, though she averaged just 10.3 minutes per game in Los Angeles. Vanloo has shot just 33.3 percent from the field and 30.9 percent on threes in her career, and she has to shoot better than that, especially from outside, if she’s going to stay in the league. That being said, just about everyone needs ball handlers, and she is currently shooting 43.8 percent on threes in the Euroleague. Los Angeles doesn’t really need another point guard who isn’t a great defender if they bring back Kelsey Plum and Julie Allemand, but I think she could fill a role on any number of teams, including possibly the expansion teams.

Carla Leite, G, Golden State Valkyries

I needed at least one young player on this list, and Leite made the most sense. Her playing time fell off down the stretch and she played just 16 minutes total in the playoffs. Leite struggled as most rookie guards do, with 3.2 turnovers compared to 4.2 assists per 36 minutes. She shot 28.7 percent from the field and just 17.3 percent on threes. She didn’t really fit Golden State’s three-point-heavy style, and while I do think she can shoot it better, I think the Valkyries are too good to give her the playing time she needs to develop. I could see either of the expansion teams taking a chance on Leite, or perhaps one of the rebuilding teams like Connecticut or Chicago.