Sabreena Merchant

Los Angeles

Staff Writer at The Athletic

Podcast Host at No Offseason: The Athletic Women's Basketball Show

L.A. lifer | @DukeU alum | ✍🏽🎙️🏀 @TheAthleticWBB

Articles

Without Caitlin Clark, the Fever must avoid spiraling. Here are 3 pieces of advice

1 week ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

The Indiana Fever entered the 2025 season with championship hopes but measured expectations to start, given the significant personnel turnover from 2024. The process of integrating all of those moving parts (six new players and a new coaching staff) was further complicated with Caitlin Clark's injury just four games into the season.
Kelsey Plum shines for L.A. Sparks, Fever move up after strong start

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

For all of the surprises and new players that emerge during opening weekend, the best part of the WNBA's 2025 debut was that the best teams and players accepted expectations and set a high standard for the new campaign. The 2025 championship contenders looked the part early, with returning MVP candidates bolstered by new additions in New York, Minnesota and Indiana. The Liberty dominated with their size, protecting the paint with their length and taking advantage of switches against smalls.
Mercury lose Kahleah Copper for 4-6 weeks, adding to roster shakeups before opener

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

A new era in Phoenix is off to a bumpy start. The Mercury open the 2025 season Saturday night without Diana Taurasi or Brittney Griner for the first time in more than two decades, and they will now be without Kahleah Copper for the foreseeable future. The four-time All-Star and 2024 Olympian was the only returning starter from last year's roster after a massive offseason overhaul, but Phoenix announced Saturday that she had a left knee arthroscopy and will be out for four to six weeks.
What did Paige Bueckers reveal in her WNBA rookie debut?

2 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

DALLAS - Napheesa Collier texted Paige Bueckers Friday morning. From one UConn champion to another, Collier wished the rookie well. "Good luck tonight!" Collier wrote. "Don't do too much against us, wait till your next game."Waiting isn't in Bueckers' DNA. As someone who has suffered through major injuries and been forced to sit out a full season of her college career, she never takes a single game for granted.
Paige Bueckers shows promise in WNBA debut as Wings fall to Napheesa Collier's Lynx

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

DALLAS - The energy was a little different at College Park Center on Friday. Paige Bueckers made her WNBA debut for the Dallas Wings against the Minnesota Lynx, and the home team sold out the building. Ron Thulin, who has been the Wings' play-by-play broadcaster for 10 years, said this was the most excited he'd ever felt for opening night.
Can the Chicago Sky build a winner around Angel Reese?

3 weeks ago | dailyherald.com | Sabreena Merchant

Chicago Sky's Angel Reese poses for a portrait during the WNBA basketball team's media day at Intentional Sports on the West Side, Monday, May 12, 2025, in Chicago. (Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times via AP) AP On the first possession of the Chicago Sky’s preseason, Courtney Vandersloot pitched the ball to Angel Reese on the left wing. The second-year All-Star turned, drove to the right side of the basket and earned a shooting foul.
Can the Chicago Sky build a winner around Angel Reese?

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

CHICAGO - On the first possession of the Chicago Sky's preseason, Courtney Vandersloot pitched the ball to Angel Reese on the left wing. The second-year All-Star turned, drove to the right side of the basket and earned a shooting foul. However you choose to classify the play - a handoff, a drive right or something miscellaneous - it would have been a rarity last season.
Napheesa Collier

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant |Ben Pickman

The 2025 WNBA season is setting up to be one of the most competitive in recent memory. Not only are multiple teams fully capable of winning this year's championship, but individual award races could be as tight as ever, considering the league's substantial talent. The season kicks off Friday, and The Athletic 's women's basketball team got together to take stock of what we expect to witness this season. Wednesday, we unveiled our awards and championship predictions.
Who will win MVP?

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

The 2025 WNBA season will feature 13 teams for the first time since 2009 as the league makes its latest attempt at expansion, this time coming off a record-breaking season that saw an explosion into the national consciousness. During the offseason, multiple teams loaded up to contend this season, with the league's future in flux due to the expiration of the current collective bargaining agreement after this season and two more expansion teams arriving in 2026.
Indiana Fever land outside top three ... for now

3 weeks ago | nytimes.com | Sabreena Merchant

The 2025 WNBA season tips off this week, and all 13 teams will take the floor on the opening weekend. With the league expanding for the first time since 2008, a historic 2024 rookie class taking its next steps, and multiple franchises in position to challenge for a title, this figures to be one of the WNBA's most exciting seasons. Every week during the regular season, The Athletic 's power rankings will provide a deep dive into noteworthy players' performances and team trends.