The Dallas Wings are finalizing a deal with the Connecticut Sun to acquire guard DiJonai Carrington and the No. 12 pick in exchange for Jacy Sheldon and the No. 8 pick in this year’s WNBA Draft, per multiple reports.
Dallas also has the rights to swap 2026 second round picks with Connecticut, according to those reports. Carrington, 27, was a restricted free agent and the Sun had the ability to match any offer sheet with another team. She was named WNBA Most Improved Player after her career year in 2024, averaging 12.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game in 39 starts, helping Connecticut to a second-place finish in the Eastern Conference.
Sheldon, 24, is a 3-and-D guard who was picked fifth in the 2024 draft. She averaged 5.4 points, 2.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists while starting 26 games for Dallas.
Sun’s teardown rolls on
After making six consecutive semifinal appearances, Connecticut is in the midst of a full rebuild. Alyssa Thomas, Brionna Jones and Ty Harris have all already left the team via trades or free agency. At this point, veteran forward DeWanna Bonner seems almost guaranteed to depart. And now Carrington is also on the move despite entering this offseason as a restricted free agent.
First-year coach Rachid Meziane and first-year general Morgan Tuck will presumably be looking to continue to accumulate young players and future draft assets as the franchise charts its new path forward. Although many of the league’s top veterans will also be free agents next year, the Sun should look to have this be at least a two-year rebuild. Because they won 28 games last year, their cumulative record this upcoming season might not be enough to net them top lottery odds.
However, 2027 could be one of the best WNBA Drafts in recent memory with JuJu Watkins, Hannah Hidalgo and Madison Booker among the potential top picks. Positioning themselves for that drawing seems advantageous.
As part of Saturday’s agreement, the Sun are receiving the No. 8 pick in this April’s draft, a selection which the Wings obtained from the Indiana Fever as part of the three-team deal that sent Satou Sabally to the Phoenix Mercury. Sheldon was last year’s No. 5 pick, and the Wings’ starting point guard in 26 of their final 27 games last year. She stands to play a significant role on the Mercury in 2025, playing next to Marina Mabrey and Natasha Cloud — though it wouldn’t be shocking to see Cloud, who the Sun acquired earlier this week in the trade involving Thomas, be on the move again. — Ben Pickman, WNBA staff writer
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Wings add key piece
The Wings have been open about wanting the 2025 season to be a foundational year for the franchise. Adding Carrington, last year’s Most Improved Player, is the kind of move that can help shape an organization’s culture.
Carrington is one of the league’s top defenders and led the WNBA in games with at least five steals (three) and ranked ninth in steals per game. In Connecticut, the 2024 All-Defensive First Team guard was often tasked with slowing an opponent’s top wing, and helped the Sun lead in fewest points allowed per game. Her offense also improved last season, as she set career-highs in points (12.7), assists (1.6), and rebounds (5.0).
In Dallas, she will also have a number of reunions. First, she will pair with NaLyssa Smith, her girlfriend and former Baylor teammate, as Smith was acquired on Friday night in the three-team deal involving Sabally. She will rejoin a team with Harris, another Sun teammate from last season. Familiarity with Curt Miller (Dallas’ GM) and Chris Koclanes (Dallas’ first-year coach) will also likely set her up for success going forward. Miller selected Carrington No. 20 in the 2021 WNBA Draft while he was still the coach/GM of the Sun. Koclanes was on Miller’s staff as an assistant coach that season.
Carrington had been a restricted free agent, and so it’s not surprising that she is being moved via sign-and-trade because she will likely be able to hit the open market next year. Had she just signed an offer sheet with Dallas, the deal would have been two years because the CBA stipulates that all offer sheets to restricted free agents must be a minimum of two years. — Pickman
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(Photo: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)
