With collective agreement negotiations are in progress, WNBA front offices are entering the offseason with a lot of unknowns.
This includes the expansion draft, which is scheduled for the Toronto Tempo and Portland Fire ahead of the 2026 season. In a normal offseason, the expansion draft would have already taken place; THE Valkyries of the Golden State made their selections for the 2025 season on December 6, 2024.
Advertisement
But this expansion draft can’t happen until there’s a new collective bargaining agreement, because many of the rules surrounding which players can be selected are collectively negotiated. The rules for the expansion draft have not yet been released by the league and will not be known until a collective bargaining agreement is ratified.
The rules, however, would likely remain similar to the previous multi-team expansion draft, something that hasn’t happened in the league in more than 25 years. This project included the Indiana feverMiami So (now defunct), Portland Fire (folded then returned in 2026 under a new ownership group), and Seattle Storm. In the 2000 expansion draft, existing teams were only able to protect five players from the expansion draft. The four expansion teams were able to select six players each in a snake draft format, meaning a total of 24 players were assigned in this draft.
This expansion draft will only feature two teams, the Toronto Tempo and the Portland Fire, so they will likely be able to select up to 12 players each. Existing teams, including Feverwould likely only have five spots to protect players — one fewer than the six protected spots they had when drafting the Golden State Valkyries last year.
What makes this draft particularly difficult for the Tempo and Fire is that all but two of the veterans in the league are free agents in one form or another. The new CBA could also change several elements of the expansion draft, which includes different rules on free agency and base tag. Players can be retained for up to two years, but this could be reduced to one or even abolished altogether.
Advertisement
Still, teams plan as much as possible.
Here’s who IndyStar projects to be the Fever’s protected players in the 2026 expansion draft:
Player fever likely to protect in WNBA expansion draft
-
Caitlin Clark (under contract until 2027)
-
Aliyah Boston (under contract until 2026)
-
Lexie Hull (restricted free agent)
-
Kelsey Mitchell (unrestricted free agent)
-
Makayla Timpson (under contract until 2028)
The first two on this list, Caitlin Clark And Aliyah Bostonare obvious. The Fever’s No. 1 picks in the 2023 and 2024 drafts are still under contract with the Fever — Boston through the 2026 season and Clark through the 2027 season — and they are Indiana’s cornerstone.
Lexie Hull enters the 2026 offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning she can talk to other teams, but Indiana has the right of first refusal and the ability to match any offer it receives. Hull has played a crucial role for Indiana and she has expressed interest in remaining with the Fever.
Advertisement
Insider: When will the Indiana Fever calendar be released? It’s complicated
Makayla Timpson only got few minutes with the Fever during her rookie season, but she showed a lot of potential as the No. 19 pick in the 2025 draft. She is also one of three players under contract with the Fever in 2026.
Kelsey Mitchell finds itself in a situation where Fever will really have to rely on the new rules. Under the basic designation, the 2025 MVP finalist is eligible to be retained for an additional year. Fever would certainly protect Mitchell and centralize her again if the rules remained in place.
But if the base designation goes down to one year, Mitchell, who was already drafted for the 2025 season, would become a true unrestricted free agent and could not be drafted again, therefore ineligible for the expansion draft itself. If this situation arose, Fever would protect another player.
Advertisement
Players the Fever likely won’t protect in the WNBA Expansion Draft
-
Sophie Cunningham (unrestricted free agent)
-
Sydney Colson (unrestricted)
-
Damiris Dantas (unrestricted)
-
Aari McDonald (unrestricted)
-
Brianna Turner (no restrictions)
-
Kristy Wallace (rights to contract)
Sophie Cunningham This could be another situation where any potential change in the basic structure could alter its status.
If the primary designation drops to one year, that would free up a spot for Fever. They could use it on Cunningham to protect her from being picked and then hollowed out by Tempo or Fire, but she’s probably not a prime candidate for expansion teams as that would require a supermax salary. Cunningham, however, is most likely to be one of the Fever’s unrestricted free agents to be selected and cut, if at all.
None of the other unrestricted free agents would be viable candidates for the Tempo and Fire, and Natasha Howardwho has already been ejected for three years, is not eligible.
Advertisement
Mock Project Predictions: Who will the Indiana Fever choose in the 2026 WNBA Draft?
In the case of a basic structure change, the Fever could also choose to protect one or the other Chloe Bibbywho is a reserved free agent (meaning the Fever can make him a qualifying offer under the minimum contract) or Kristy Wallace, who opted out of the 2025 season for personal reasons.
Regardless, the Fever occupy one of the strongest points among the existing teams. They can easily protect all of their key assets, and the number of unrestricted free agents coming off the Fever roster means Tempo and Fire would likely choose between Bibby and Wallace.
Chloe Peterson is the Indiana Fever reporter for IndyStar. Contact her at [email protected] or follow her on @chloepeterson67. Get IndyStar’s Indiana Fever and Caitlin Clark coverage delivered straight to your inbox with our Caitlin Clark Fever Newsletter. Subscribe to the IndyStar YouTube channel and join Fever Insiders live.
Advertisement
This article was originally published on the Indianapolis Star: Indiana Fever Expansion Draft Protection Projections, WNBA CBA Rules
