LA Sparks Player Announces Change Before Indiana Fever Game
The LA Sparks are amid another poor season. With the WNBA’s worst record in 2024 (8-32), Los Angeles made a big swing in the offseason to acquire three-time All-Star Kelsey Plum from the Las Vegas Aces.
While Plum is amid another strong season, averaging 20.1 points and 5.7 assists, her production has not been enough to catapult LA up the standings. Entering the weekend, the Sparks own the worst record in the Western Conference at 5-13. Only the 2-15 Connecticut Sun have been worse across the entire league.
As they look to turn things around, the Sparks picked up second-year guard Julie Vanloo following her release from the Golden State Valkyries.
Sparks Sign Guard Julie Vanloo.
— Los Angeles Sparks (@LASparks) July 3, 2025
Welcome to LA, Julie!
📝 https://t.co/Bf0mvTzeKl pic.twitter.com/KIi7xjzRkV
Vanloo was fresh off a championship-winning run with Belgium in EuroBasket when Golden State let her go. She was quickly picked up by LA, making her debut on Thursday against the New York Liberty.
Wearing No. 6 for her new team, Vanloo transitioned from No. 35 which she wore for both Golden State and the Washington Mystics. This is also her number with Belgium.
While Vanloo was sporting a new number in her Sparks debut, the 32-year-old guard announced via her Instagram story she will be changing back to No. 35 once a jersey can be made. Perhaps that will be done in time for Saturday’s showdown against the Indiana Fever.
Indiana will be a tough test for LA. Reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark has missed the last three games with a groin injury, but did go through some shooting drills on Friday (via Tony East of Forbes). That said, she did not fully practice, and has been ruled out against LA.
The Fever have remained formidable without Clark, so the Sparks will still have their hands full.
Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA and WNBA for On SI. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined On SI to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts and in the classroom earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time, primarily serving as a Clippers beat writer.