The Seattle Storm traded their 6-foot-7 center Li Yueru to the Dallas Wings on Saturday, shortly after she requested a move to secure more playing time. This trade included the Storm receiving second- and third-round draft picks for 2026 and 2027 in return.
Performance and Playing Time Details for Li Yueru
Li Yueru played in nine games with the Seattle Storm this season, averaging 2.8 points and 1.6 rebounds per game while receiving only 8.7 minutes on the court per game. Although she played 22 minutes in the season opener against the Phoenix Mercury on May 17, her minutes dropped sharply afterwards, with six of her last seven appearances seeing eight minutes or fewer of playing time.
Background and Context Surrounding the Trade
Li originally arrived in Seattle as part of a significant three-team trade on February 1, which involved Jewell Loyd moving to the Las Vegas Aces and Kelsey Plum transferring from Las Vegas to the Los Angeles Sparks. This came after Loyd had also asked for a trade from the Storm. Li Yueru, a 26-year-old native of China, drew attention from the Chinese basketball federation, which reportedly urged that she should have increased court time in the WNBA to maintain her international standing. At the Paris Olympics last year, she led the Chinese team by averaging 17.7 points and 11 rebounds per game.
Li’s trade request was first reported by Khristina Williams of iHeart Women’s Sports on June 4. Her WNBA journey began when she was drafted in the third round by the Atlanta Dream in 2019, debuted with the Chicago Sky in 2022, and then missed the 2023 season due to injury before joining the Sparks. While with Los Angeles last year, she averaged 5.1 points and 3.7 rebounds over 38 games, spending about 14.4 minutes per contest on the court.
Seattle Storm’s Current Season and Upcoming Game
The Storm currently hold a 6-4 record and are riding a three-game winning streak as they prepare to face the expansion Golden State Valkyries on Saturday night. Seattle’s recent 94-84 victory ended the Minnesota Lynx’s nine-game win streak, highlighting the team’s competitive form.