Women's Fastbreak On SI

Fever Veteran Makes Cryptic Implication About WNBA Free Agency Future

One Indiana Fever guard appears eager to begin free agency negotiations with other WNBA teams.
Grant Young|
Sep 22, 2024; Uncasville, Connecticut, USA; Indiana Fever guard Erica Wheeler (17) dribbles the ball defended by Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey (4) during game one of the first round of the 2024 WNBA Playoffs at Mohegan Sun Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images
Sep 22, 2024; Uncasville, Connecticut, USA; Indiana Fever guard Erica Wheeler (17) dribbles the ball defended by Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey (4) during game one of the first round of the 2024 WNBA Playoffs at Mohegan Sun Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images | Mark Smith-Imagn Images

Starting on January 21, WNBA teams can begin negotiating with free agents. While deals can't be signed until February 1, the next ten days should be extremely exciting as news and rumors swirl about which elite players are talking to which teams.

Of course, one of the most compelling teams to watch will be the Indiana Fever, who has quickly become the league's most popular team after adding generational talent and superstar Caitlin Clark to their roster last year.

Out of the Fever's three primary guards last season, Clark is the only one who isn't set to become a free agent. The other two are Kelsey Mitchell and Erica Wheeler. The Fever have already extended a Core qualifying offer to Mitchell, which makes it seem likely she'll be returning to the team for next season.

That leaves Wheeler; who, somewhat surprisingly, has the third-highest annual salary ($222,154) of all free agents this offseason, due to her having been in the league since 2015.

Wheeler's future in Indiana seems uncertain right now. Through several recent posts on Threads, the 33-year-old guard implied that free agency negotiations with other teams are about to arrive.

"My agent sent me a list for free agency

"Tuhhhhh 😮‍💨😎," Wheeler wrote in one post.

Soon after that, she added, "I am letting yall know now!

"Ima drop some hints but ima be real petty about it! 🤣

"It’s all fun and games tho! Don’t curse me out 😂".

It's unclear what exactly Wheeler is implying. But it seems certain that she's at least entertaining offers from other WNBA franchises and appears eager for the free agency negotiation and signing periods to arrive.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.

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