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WNBA Seattle Storm

Storm Celebrates 25th Anniversary with Franchise's Third 25-Win Season

October 10, 2024 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Seattle Storm News Release


After winning just 11 games in 2023, it might have been reasonable to expect that some rebuilding would be in order for the Seattle Storm.

Instead, they took a somewhat different approach. Rather than a rebuild ...

... it was more of a renewal.

New players through free agency. Some new mindsets and thought processes to meld it all together. Even a new place - a brand-new place - to practice and train and heal and bond.

In short ... a new Storm.

The outcome in their just-completed 25th anniversary season was something not so new: a spot in the playoffs, something that has become a way of doing things in Seattle, now with 19 appearances in the franchise's first 25 seasons.

"Usually, when you're told of the idea of probably going to rebuild, maybe in two or three years you'll have a chance and you can build on that," said All-Star Jewell Loyd, who averaged a team-high 19.7 points. "We're fortunate that it only took us a couple months. To have a different roster, a different feel, a different building - all these things kind of add up.

"I'm so proud of how this team came together," she added. "It's not easy to put teams together and then compete and still elevate."

The result was a 25-15 record, a Comeback Player of the Year, one All-WNBA selection and two members of the All-Defensive team.

"I think it was a successful season, a turnaround season, a season that normally doesn't happen in this league right away," head coach Noelle Quinn said after completing her third full summer at the helm. "I'm very proud about that, having 25 wins after only winning 11 and finishing the year strong winning four of our last five."

While the players will say they fell short of their goals by not reaching the WNBA Finals, which begin this week, the Storm were typically a part of any conversation about who had what it would take to play deep into October.

"We put this roster together and everyone's goal was to win a championship - that's not a secret. That's why we play the game," Loyd said. "But it's the first year together, and there's a lot of positives we can take away from this season."

MAKING FREE-AGENCY WAVES

Becoming part of that winning-it-all conversation started in February when team made what most anyone would say was its biggest-ever free agency splash by signing forward Nneka Ogwumike and point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith.

Ogwumike had spent her entire 12-year career with Los Angeles, being named the Finals MVP and winning a Championship with the Sparks in 2016. Diggins-Smith was returning to action after having played previously with Tulsa / Dallas and then the 2020-22 seasons with Phoenix before taking last year off for the birth of her second child.

"The process last year in signing big free agents in Sky and Nneka was a huge step after the previous season," Quinn said. "It's difficult sometimes in free agency because you don't have a lot of time to get to know players. Seattle has a standard of excellence, not just winning championships, but how you approach your craft, how you show up to work, who you are as an individual, being a great teammate and really being disciplined. Those are the type of players we want here."

Both delivered in a big way. Diggins-Smith was named Comeback Player of the Year after averaging 15.1 points, 6.4 assists, and breaking Storm legend Sue Bird's franchise single-season assist record by racking up 257. She brought a strong personality and leadership style to the point guard position.

"I do consider myself a natural leader," Diggins-Smith said. "To me, leadership is not just about position. It's about action, it's about how you conduct yourself, it's about the work you put in. I played 42 games this year. That's the most games I've played, and 40 in the regular season after coming back off maternity leave. That was a big accomplishment for me and for the people who work with me every day, starting with Noey. I came to play for Noey and with Nneka."

Ogwumike averaged 15.7 points and 7.6 rebounds, both second-highest on the team. She shot 51.1 percent from the floor, including a team-high 40.5 percent from 3-point range, and 87.6 percent from the foul line, the only player in the WNBA to rank in the Top 10 in all three categories and ninth player in WNBA history to shoot at least 50% / 40% / 85% in a season. Ogwumike had nine double-doubles and became the 15th player in league history to score 6,000 career points. She was named to the Associated Press All-WNBA 2nd team and a second-team WNBA All-Defensive selection.

She not only did all of that while being surrounded by newness everywhere she turned, but she enthusiastically embraced that newness.

"I would say the challenges were perhaps being the new kid on the block - not that it was necessarily challenging, but it was a space I hadn't occupied in so long," Ogwumike said. "So it was kind of navigating being the new kid and leaning into the vulnerabilities that offers - or I guess that it welcomes - and knowing when not to do to much and knowing when to step in and assert myself."

The addition of Diggins-Smith and Ogwumike, and the return of Loyd and Ezi Magbegor gave the Storm a solid core, each of them with All-WNBA and All-Star credentials.

Loyd was coming off WNBA single-season scoring record season of 2023, when she tallied 939 points, an average of 24.7 per game. This summer, she had others with whom to share the scoring load, and share it she did with a single-season career-high 135 assists. Loyd also maintained her presence on the boards with 166, and at the free throw line, where she scored 222 of her 729 points on 88.1 percent accuracy.

Still, even at 19.7 points per game, she's already focused on improving for 2025.

"Going into the offseason, it's different for me. This is the first time in my career I haven't hit my benchmarks," Loyd said. "So that's a new experience for me. My job is to get better every year. For me, it's go home and rest, being around an amazing environment of people - and then get back to work."

Magbegor continued her rise as a defensive force in the league. Her 82 blocks were both a single-season personal best and a Storm single-season record, breaking Lauren Jackson's mark of 81 set in 2002. She had a career-high eight blocks at home against Chicago on July 5, and had an eight-game stretch with at least three blocks, the second-longest streak in league history.

"My No. 1 role was to be the defensive anchor for this team, and I feel like I was able to do that," Magbegor said. "Sometimes, offense isn't going your way. Or sometimes, you're not going to be able to get into rhythm. (Defense) was something I could always fall back on, whether it was blocking a shot or just helping out my teammates on the defensive end."

After the Olympic break, the quartet transformed into something akin to a 'Fab Five' when Gabby Williams rejoined the team. She had played with the Storm in 2022 and 2023, but was with the French national team through the first half of the 2024 campaign to focus on the Olympics, eventually helping them take the silver medal.

Williams, who was in Seattle's backcourt, but can play multiple positions with her all-around skillset, came off the bench in her season debut on Aug. 20 in Washington, then became a starter the rest of the way. In just 12 games, she averaged 10.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

"We talked about the French army knife comparison. It was pretty obvious I was here for, 'What does the team need?'", Williams said. "Do we need someone who can get the offense flowing better, help move the ball, be a group player, connect some of our group scorers on the court. It evolved into me taking on more offensive responsibilities. ... As the season went on, I found myself having to score more, being more aggressive, taking on a bit more of that responsibility. I think it kind of grew in that way."

Second-year guard Jordan Horston continued elevating her level of play, whether starting 14 games or coming off the bench in 24 others. She added nearly 13 points to her field goal accuracy, going from 36.8 percent as a rookie (103-of-280) to 49.3 percent (111-of-225). In addition, Horston had nine more assists, six more steals and five fewer turnovers while playing 54 more minutes than she did in 2023.

"(Last year), I allowed the game to speed me up. This year, I was able to slow down a lot more," Horston said. "A lot of the shots I was missing (in 2023) were easy shots that I know I can make. It was about taking my time to knock them in, just being patient. This year, I think I was a lot more focused because I need to be."

When Loyd was asked which player on the team had grown the most, she replied, "The person that keeps coming to mind obviously is Jordan and her growth from a rookie to how she played this season. She played in a playoff game, her first playoff series ever. She's locked in and focused."

Seattle also got meaningful contributions from its depth players, sometimes as starters, other times as reserves.

Mercedes Russell came up with some clutch performances at center down the stretch when she took over the starting spot while Magbegor was injured. She started the last three games of the regular season, contributing 27 points on 12-of-17 shooting and pulled down 14 rebounds. She then grabbed 12 boards in the playoff opener against Las Vegas.

Ditto for guard Sami Whitcomb. When Loyd missed the last three games of the regular season with a knee injury, Whitcomb took that starting spot and had 15 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists. She had six double-digit scoring games and a 1.6 assist / turnover ratio with 64 of the former and 40 of the latter.

Victoria Vivians, who came over to the Storm from Indiana last winter, was an early-season starter, then provided a boost off the bench, often providing some spark with a timely 3-pointer. Joyner Holmes saw action as a reserve and finished the regular season with a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double at Phoenix. Rookie guard Nika Mühl made the most of her limited playing time, and scored her first points as a pro in the regular-season finale at Phoenix.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE (A NEW) HOME

It was just two years ago when the Storm got to start playing their game games in the newly renovated Climate Pledge Arena as it opened its doors on the grounds of the Seattle Center.

This year, they got a new place to practice and prepare for those games when the Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance opened in the Interbay neighborhood.

The facility, which was in large part designed by women architects and built in large part by women's construction crews, was ready to go just in time for training camp at the end of April.

"Something I don't think we realized was how much this would affect women in the construction industry to get to work on a project that was being directed by women and where we were interested in creating opportunities for women, and how much that would impact the construction industry locally," Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder said. "It ended up being this whole ancillary benefit, more of "see it, do it," which was very powerful."

Serving as both a dedicated practice facility and team headquarters, it spans 50,000 square feet. It has two indoor professional-sized courts, two outdoor 3-on-3 courts, and an executive suite that includes a locker room, nutrition center, and player lounge. It also has state-of-the-art equipment for strength and conditioning, along with health and wellness suites, and even an aquatic center.

"You come into the practice facility, and it's very thoughtful in how it's built," Diggins-Smith said. "It's a one-stop shop where you don't have to share it with an NBA or G-League affiliate team. You come in and it really does feel like yours."

BY THE NUMBERS

The Storm finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in the league for blocks per game (5.2) and steals (9.3).

Their 372 steals was just one shy of the single-season record of 373 set by Indiana in 2009. They had 10-plus steals in 20 games, with a team-record 20 on May 17 at Minnesota.

They allowed just 78.8 points per game, the fourth-lowest in the league.

Seattle kept opponents below 80 points in 20 games, going 17-3.

The Storm attracted a franchise-record 223,684 fans in their 20 home games, an average of 11,184. That also was a franchise record.

Seattle's 14-win improvement from 11 last year to 25 this year was the best in team history, beating the 11-game turnaround from 2017 (15 victories) to 2018 (26). The 25 wins was team's third-highest total.

When hitting from downtown at a clip of 25 percent or higher, the Storm went 18-4.

In 40 games, the Storm had 20-plus assists in 24 of them, with a 19-5 record in those games. From June 19-July 7, they had a stretch of seven straight game with 20-plus.

For the season, there were 828 assists on 1,242 made baskets, a 66.7 percent mark.

In addition to passing the ball, Seattle players also took care of it. It had 523 turnovers for the season, an average of 13.1 per game. That was close to the team record of 12.9.

From May 30-Aug. 18, the Storm had 20 straight games of 15 or fewer turnovers, the fifth-longest such streak in league history. They had a 13-7 record in those games. For the season, they had 32 games of 15 or fewer (20-12 record).

That included nine games in single digits, with a season-low five at home against New York on Aug. 30.

Seattle was the league's most accurate team at the free throw line, hitting a team-record 83.98 percent (603 of 718). The old mark was 83.95.

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