FILE – Minnesota Lynx forward Bridget Carleton (6) brings the ball down court against the Golden State Valkyries during the WNBA basketball playoffs Sept. 14, 2025, in Minneapolis. The Portland Fire drafted Carleton with the first pick of the WNBA expansion draft.
Craig Lassig / AP
The Portland Fire chose 11 players from across the WNBA in the league’s expansion draft Friday.
Here’s who the Portland Fire drafted in the first round:
Bridget Carleton, Minnesota LynxCarla Leite, Golden State ValkyriesLuisa Geiselsöder, Dallas WingsEmily Engstler, Washington MysticsMaya Caldwell, Atlanta DreamChloe Bibby, Indiana FeverHaley Jones, Dallas WingsNyadiew Puoch, Atlanta DreamSarah Ashley Barker, Los Angeles SparksSug Sutton, Washington MysticsNika Mühl, Seattle Storm
It’s the first official roster-building move the Fire have been able to make. In a normal year, expansion teams would have had five to six months to build a roster. However, lengthy and tense labor negotiations pushed back the process for the Portland Fire and Toronto Tempo leading up to the 2026 season, condensing their team-building timelines to about five weeks.
Although talks for the new labor agreement pushed back the expansion draft, the terms of the agreement add to the historic nature of the WNBA’s 30th season.
Women’s sports already enjoy strong support in Oregon, and the rekindled Portland Fire are entering the league as women’s basketball is exploding in popularity. The recently negotiated agreement between the league and union will create the first $1 million-plus earner in the WNBA. It will also set up a revenue-sharing arrangement that will share a portion of total revenue with the players.
Players chosen in the expansion draft aren’t guaranteed a spot on the Fire or Tempo’s rosters. But it’s likely many of these players will be on the team when the season starts in May.
This story will be updated.