Raegan Pebley was making calls and exploring trade possibilities right up until the Los Angeles Sparks let her go. According to a report from The Athletic, the now-former general manager had been working the phones ahead of the WNBA’s August 2 trade deadline, including conversations about Kelsey Plum.
Plum is on an expiring contract and hasn’t played in weeks because of an injury. The All-Star guard was acquired in a three-team blockbuster during the 2025 offseason, one of the bigger moves of Pebley’s tenure. If the Sparks don’t plan to re-sign her in free agency, she becomes a valuable trade chip. That logic was apparently part of the discussion before Pebley was dismissed.
The timing raises some questions
The Sparks announced the firing Sunday, with assistant GMs Zach Knowlton and Nate Nielson stepping in as interim replacements. The team didn’t offer much explanation beyond a polite statement from managing partner Eric Holoman thanking Pebley for her work. But the timing is interesting. The Sparks are sitting at 10-11, just half a game out of the eighth and final playoff spot, and they’d just won two straight games.
Pebley took over before the 2024 season and made some notable moves. She drafted Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson with the No. 2 and No. 4 picks. She brought back franchise icon Nneka Ogwumike in free agency. She also traded Jackson to the Chicago Sky for veteran guard Ariel Atkins. That deal raised some eyebrows at the time, but it was part of a bigger roster reshuffle.
Her background is mostly college coaching. She was an assistant at George Mason and Colorado State before head coaching stints at Utah State, Fresno State and TCU. She also played two seasons in the WNBA after getting drafted 21st overall in 1997.
It’s not clear yet what the Sparks were trying to get done before the deadline, or if Knowlton and Nielson will push forward with the same trade talks. But the report makes it pretty clear Pebley was actively trying to reshape the roster right before she got the axe.
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