WNBA Expansion: Toronto & Portland Grab Stars

0:00The WNBA is growing fast with two new teams hitting the court in 2026, the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire. In Friday's expansion draft, the Tempo snag two players from the Connecticut Sun, including star guard Marina Mabre, their second leading score. Last year, Mabre put up 14.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 4 assists per game across 35 outings despite amidst season knee. Tweak, she's a free agent, so Toronto angle a super max deal no one else can match, but she could still shop around. They also grab center, Nicolina Millick, whose son got in a trade but never suited up for them. Portland skipped the sun, but to point guard Nika Maul off the Seattle Storm roster. Mules dealing with back-to-back ACL tears left knee last year overseas, right one recently with Croatia, a she'll sit out 2026 too. Meanwhile, Connecticut holds five rookies under contract, heading into next season. This marks the

1:00second straight expansion draft after the Golden State Balkyries join last year and poached sons Veronica Burton, who exploded with, career highs snagged most improved player and made all defensive second team. League bosses have three more franchises lined up by 2030, Cleveland in 2027, Detroit in 2028, and Philly in 2029, pumping fresh energy into the pro women's game. Local news powered by AI, this is Hartford News today.