Looking at the last four title winners, each team relied heavily on their starters but still got impactful minutes from at least one substitute. In 2021, the Chicago Sky brought Diamond DeShields, Stefanie Dolson and Dana Evans off the bench. In 2022, Las Vegas’ first championship of a back-to-back was buoyed by two-time Sixth Player of the Year Dearica Hamby and Riquana Williams. The next year, the Aces got such important contributions from Alysha Clark that she was named 6POY in 2023. In 2024, the Liberty had Kayla Thornton (an All-Star for Golden State this season), Nyara Sabally and either Courtney Vandersloot or Leonie Fiebich subbing in.
That is part of the reason that the Storm traded for veteran guard Brittney Sykes on August 5 by sending Alysha Clark and Zia Cooke to the Washington Mystics, making a big change to their bench, a group whose net rating, -2.4, ranks ninth among WNBA teams so far this season.
How often the Seattle bench plays will matter, too. To date, Seattle has logged just 325 bench minutes this season, 12th in the league, and the team has admitted to fatigue being a factor for their starters in multiple games.
“I have to rely on my bench more,” head coach Noelle Quinn said before a July 26 matchup in Washington D.C. “I think there’s some fatigue that’s setting in in the fourth quarter and our bench needs to come in and be ready and have solid execution in those minutes.”
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Extended minutes from the bench mean rests for starters like Nneka Ogwumike, Skylar Diggins, Gabby Williams and Ezi Magbegor, allowing them “to stay sharp and ready for that latter part of the game.”
After an August 8 loss to Las Vegas in which Seattle got their most bench points all season (36), Quinn spoke about how important reserve contributions are.
“It gives us a variety to what we want to do offensively, an opportunity to not over tax in minutes, and just the reps that they’re getting is going to be important for now and down the stretch,” Quinn said. “So going to continue to lean into the bench, and our starters as well.”
So with 12 games remaining, let’s examine: what is Seattle getting from their non-starters Dominique Malonga, one of Sykes or Erica Wheeler, Tiffany Mitchell, Lexie Brown and Mackenzie Holmes?
Since the All-Star break, a couple members of Seattle’s second unit have found their on-court comfort and had breakout performances of sorts while others have stayed consistent in their contributions.
Dominique Malonga’s slow intro pays off
The second pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft is the star of Seattle’s second unit. In just 12.1 minutes per game, the 19-year-old is averaging 6.5 points on 5.3 field goal attempts, 4.2 rebounds, 0.7 assists and 0.5 blocks. Her 53.9% shooting from the floor showcasing her remarkable efficiency, appearing in all but one game.
Malonga had shown impressive flashes throughout her rookie season, but the Storm purposefully took their time with her introduction to the WNBA to allow her to learn and limit pressure.
The training wheels came off on July 24 in a 95-57 win over Chicago: 14 points and 10 rebounds, the youngest player in WNBA history to record a double-double. She also became the youngest player to score 100 career points.
While Malonga gave all the credit to her teammates for her good game, Diggins praised her young center.
“It just shows the potential of what she can do in this league, but it also shows what she can do right now,” Diggins said. “Going against a tough veteran in Elizabeth Williams, a veteran in Kamilla Cardoso, I thought she did a great job. And she rolled her ankle and got hit in the face 99 times, you know?”
Seattle Storm center Dominique Malonga shoots during the WNBA game between the Seattle Storm and the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, on July 28, 2025. (Photo Credit: Chris Poss | The Next)
As Malonga continued to have impressive scoring performances, currently on a double-digit scoring streak of four games, teammates have taken notice.
“Dom is someone who you witness her growth and progression in the game. You know, it’s not even just game by game, it’s literally with every minute that she plays, you are seeing her develop,” Ogwumike said after a July 28 victory in Connecticut. “In these last few games, we noticed her coming in with that strength, her understanding her body in space, and taking contact and utilizing the wisdom that she has in the game to be effective on both ends. It is truly just the beginning for her, but we want her to know that she’s an incredible asset, as young as she is and as early as it’s been in her career. And we just want to continue to have her play with that type of confidence.”
On August 8, Malonga had the first 20+ point scoring game of her career, scoring 22 and adding 12 rebounds. Two days later she scored 20 points and added 11 rebounds. Both times she shot over 70% from the floor. For Quinn and the Storm it was only a matter of time before Malonga had these type of breakout offensive performances.
“It was a process, and she understood that process, we did as a group as well,” Quinn said postgame. “Learning the league, learning how she can find ways to play well, play within herself, within our system, and what we want to do defensively, defending multiple positions, from posts to guards, that just takes some time. And I think she’s put the work in on court, film sessions, to really understand what we need from her, and she’s growing up right before our eyes and going to continue to get better.”
“Dom has been trending upwards for a while now, and just playing above and beyond her age and experience,” Williams said postgame after the 86-90 loss in Las Vegas. “And she’s a huge reason that we’re able to stay in these kinds of games. … I think her having these kinds of games during close games are going to be huge for us going into this last part of the season.”
Malonga’s growth this season has been rewarded as of late with big minutes at crucial points in close games. Even as Malonga put up big scoring numbers, she didn’t feel the expectations of the team in a way that put pressure on her. She has felt her confidence grow as she played in more tight games.
“They’re not asking much from me. They’re just asking me to bring the energy, go out there be 100% so that’s what I try to do,” Malonga said. “When it’s a game like this, when it’s tough games, I love the fact that they start trusting me more and more and keep me on the court in difficult minutes. So, I really love it. I really love the support from … everybody. They’re always behind me and cheer and cheer for me. It’s just a great environment here to grow.”
Some of Malonga’s confidence comes from reps, some of it comes from feeling the trust that her coach and teammates have in her, she said. Williams however wanted to make sure to recognize the work that Malonga has put in.
“She’s also putting in more work than anybody right now,” Williams said after her first 20+ point game. “She’s the first one in the gym, last one to leave. She’s here on the off days, and it’s really starting to show. I think she needs credit with that — having this kind of discipline that a vet player has, but having it at 19 years old is also why she’s trending this way.”
“She’s out there because the focus is there,” Ogwumike said after the August 3 loss to Indiana. “We communicated to each other what we needed in that moment, and she came in and delivered immediately. She’s not just a spark coming off of the bench, she is artillery. And so, we have to continue to flow with her when she’s out there. And I’m glad that I can be out there, hopefully helping her be great.”
Quinn said those kinds of minutes speak volumes to the work that she has put in to get ready and her growth throughout the season.
“She’s going to continue to get these reps,” Quinn said after the August 10 loss in Los Angeles. “They’re going to be important now and for the future for her. She is the future. She’s showing game by game, her ability to do a multitude of things on the floor. Having these late game situations where she’s in there is going to pay dividends for her as well. And her energy matters, her efficiency and rebounding, it matters for us. We need all of that. And we’re going to continue to kind of rely on that heavily with the minutes that she’s going to continue to get.”
Seattle Storm center Dominique Malonga shoots during the WNBA game between the Seattle Storm and the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut on July 28, 2025. (Photo Credit: Chris Poss | The Next)
Malonga will continue to be Seattle’s main post-player sub for Ogwumike and Magbegor, providing a defensive boost alongside her offensive surge. She will also continue to have a primary role of, as Quinn put it, “bringing the sauce, or the energy.” If Malonga continues to perform as she has over the last several games, the Storm have their primary offensive contributor off the bench locked down.
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Brittney Sykes or Erica Wheeler: who comes off the bench?
The addition of Sykes introduces an interesting question for the Storm: will Wheeler continue to start, or will Sykes take over?
In the first eight games of the season, Wheeler only started once. After getting the start on June 7 in Phoenix she held onto the spot since, until Seattle’s most recent game, when Sykes got the start. Wheeler thrived as a spark off the bench early in the season and it is part of what earned her the consistent start.
Right now, Wheeler is averaging 27.5 minutes (second-highest of her career), 11.2 points (third-highest of her career), 2.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and a career-high 1.4 steals, 0.3 blocks, and 3.5 plus-minus per game. The Rutgers alum in her tenth season is also shooting 41.7% from the floor and 35.2% from three even as her efficiency has slightly cooled off as the season has gone on.
Wheeler was heavily praised early in the season for the energy she brought off the bench, she could potentially go back to that.
Seattle Storm guards Brittney Sykes and Erica Wheeler high-five in a game against the Las Vegas Aces on August 8, 2025 at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Paradise, Nevada. Photo courtesy of Seattle Storm
In her first appearance for Seattle, Sykes came off the bench and made an immediate impact. In that game she recorded 14 points, two rebounds, six assists and two blocks in 29 minutes. In her second appearance, Sykes started and played 35 minutes, scoring a team-high 27 points while shooting 52.4% from the field and 42.9% from three, adding one rebound, three assists, four steals and one block.
Was starting on the bench in her first game simply to allow time for Sykes to acclimate to the way her brand new team was playing, or could she be used as a scoring punch from the bench consistently? Her quick move into the starting lineup leans towards that being her role the rest of the season but that is no guarantee.
Whichever guard comes off the bench, Seattle is guaranteed to get strong scoring, individual and team playmaking, and stifling defense from them.
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Tiffany Mitchell’s veteran basketball brain
Veteran guard Tiffany Mitchell signed with the Storm back on July 10, before the All-Star break. She immediately began playing heavy minutes. In her first two appearances, on July 11 and 13, she played over 20 minutes each game, the most of any bench player in either game.
After her Storm debut, Quinn said the 5’9 veteran’s knowledge is what allowed her to fit in with the team so quickly.
“She’s been in a lot of games herself,” Quinn said after her debut in a victory over Connecticut. “What I like most is her physicality defensively, she can defend on-ball, off-ball. You guys saw she could get downhill. She can create for others. And also, she’s very cerebral. Though she’s been here a short time, she’s she picked up our things immediately.…
“It’s a seamless transition, A, because she plays hard, B, because the physical nature of how she can play. We need that, especially on the defensive end.”
Perhaps no one was as excited about Mitchell’s addition as Erica Wheeler. The pair have known each other since 2016, Mitchell’s rookie season. Wheeler considers Mitchell not just a friend but a sister, family, someone that would probably be in her wedding, she told The Next shortly after her signing.
As someone who knows Mitchell particularly well, Wheeler feels that Mitchell’s hard-working nature means she aligns perfectly with the team’s culture. She also thinks that signing with Seattle presented a great opportunity for Mitchell because the South Carolina product likes to play how Seattle plays, thriving off of defense and in an open offense.
“The only thing that’s new to her is just plays, but the game of basketball is not new to her,” Wheeler said. “She’s one of those players that’s not going to do too much. She’s going to do what she needs to do and make the right reads. And like our offense is open, so it’s not too much of thinking about plays. So it honestly just flowed, and we saw she was super impactful for us.”
Seattle Storm guard Tiffany Mitchell drives at Washington Mystics guard Jade Melbourne in a game on July 13 at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Wash. Photo courtesy of Seattle Storm
Mitchell also benefits from reconnecting with another former teammate, center Ezi Magbegor. The Australian center previously played with Mitchell in Melbourne for the Boomers during the 2021-2022 in which they won their second WNBL championship. After Mitchell’s second appearance, a July 13 loss to the Mystics, Magbegor expressed her comfort in building her chemistry with Mitchell back up again.
“I know what Tiff can bring,” Magbegor said. “I know whether it’s two minutes, 30 minutes, she’s going to bring the best that she can offensively and defensively as well. And I think that’s something that we need.”
Mitchell continued to play double-digit minutes up until the last two games when she only played six and three minutes against Los Angeles and Las Vegas respectively, corresponding with the arrival of Brittney Sykes.
Despite averaging 16.7 minutes played per game in her 12 appearances for Seattle, Mitchell has averaged just 3.4 points, 0.8 rebounds, 0.5 steals and 0.3 assists per game. Mitchell is shooting 32.6% from the floor and 30.8% from three in a Storm uniform.
However, it seems the team can rely on her for at least a few points off the bench as she has only been held scoreless in three of her 12 games. And Quinn is right that Mitchell can create for herself as 59.1% of her made two-point shots are unassisted.
So, although Mitchell’s statistical contributions don’t stand out, she brings experience, hard work and physicality off the bench that can help buoy her team.
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Lexie Brown finds her role
Eighth-year guard Lexie Brown joined Seattle in the offseason via a trade with the Los Angeles Sparks that moved second and third-round draft picks. At first, she struggled to find a way to impact the Storm. Brown, known as a 3-point shooter, didn’t make her first of the 2025 season until her eighth appearance. The 5’9 guard’s shooting has generally been off this season as she has shot 33.3% from the field and 27.3% from three when she has shot above 38% from distance in three seasons (2019, 2022 and 2023).
On July 16, Brown began a streak of six games where she seemed to find her place in the Storm roster. From July 16 to August 1, Brown averaged 16.5 minutes, 5.3 points and 1.8 assists per game. On the season she is averaging 9.7 minutes, 2.1 points and 0.8 assists.
“I thought that she’s played well against the Valkyries before and given us an opportunity to put a shooter on the floor, especially when they go zone, and especially because they show a heavy nail and are in gaps and their defense is very compact,” Quinn said after Brown’s performance on July 16. “For me, with Lexie, it’s always defensively — though she can shoot it at a high clip we have to make sure the defense is on point. And I thought she was sharp in that area today too.”
Seattle Storm guard Lexie Brown shoots a three-pointer in a game against the Minnesota Lynx at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn., on May 27, 2025. (Photo credit: John McClellan | The Next)
The Duke product’s best performance of the season so far came against Chicago on July 24, when she scored 12 points off the bench shooting a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor and 2-for-2 from three.
“I think Lexie is finding some rhythm,” Quinn told media after the victory in Chicago. “I think it’s important for her to see a couple go through. I talk about what I need to see from her on the defensive end but today, she even initiated a lot of offense and was able to play some point. We’ve been getting reps with her at the point in practice. You have to honor her three-point shooting, no matter where she is on the floor she’s a threat there. That’s going to be important moving forward as we find some variety to our offense.”
After another strong performance on July 26, former MVP and WNBA Champion Ogwumike praised her teammate.
“I think Lexie is definitely someone who works hard every day,” Ogwumike said postgame. “She’s very disciplined in being a pro, and finding her way in the rotation has kind of been the name of the game for her this year. I played with Lexie for a few years [in Los Angeles], and I’m very aware of what she’s capable of. … So, it’s really great, especially this deep into the season, to find space for her in the rotation, and she’s ready every single time.”
Part of Brown’s inconsistency could be chalked up to having only appeared in 21 games of a possible 32 this season. Some of those were because the coach simply chose not to play her, but several were because she was unavailable through illness. Brown has fought through battles with Crohn’s Disease during her career.
While Brown is probably more disappointed than anyone when she has to miss games, she has a healthy mentality about it as she has learned to prioritize her health.
Connecticut Sun guard Leila Lacan (47) drives to the basket as Seattle Storm guard Lexie Brown (8) defends during the WNBA game between the Seattle Storm and the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut, USA on July 28, 2025. (Photo Credit: Chris Poss | The Next)
“I think the hardest part is staying present,” Brown said. “But also, I feel like in this process I’ve had more empathy for people’s lack of understanding than people actually understanding what I deal with every day. And I think switching my mind to that is understanding that people don’t really know much about this, and you know, visibly, they can’t tell that you have a chronic illness.
“Being at peace with that doesn’t take away from it being frustrating at times. But for me, I’ve just prioritized myself, my mental health. And those days where I’m not having a good day, I’ve found it in myself to be like, ‘you know what? I’m just going to say it’s not a good day for me, and if they have a problem with it, then that’s fine. It’s my body. They have to listen to what I’m telling them.’ And that’s one of the biggest things I’ve done with being so vocal about having Crohn’s is just advocating for yourself. It might not be easy. People might not understand, but at the end of the day, it’s a better thing for yourself.”
Brown’s focus on her health led her to get a minor surgery and miss some games right before she began her strong streak of games. It wasn’t absolutely necessary but “last time this happened I waited too long and then I was out for a year and a half” so she felt it was important to prioritize when she wasn’t playing much anyway. Afterward Brown said she was back and feeling good, and it showed in her performances.
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Mackenzie Holmes remains an option
Every team has that one player who almost never plays except for in blowouts when the outcome is already decided. So far, that’s been Mackenzie Holmes this season with the Storm.
Holmes was with the team for training camp but didn’t make the final roster. The 6’3 forward was brought back mid-June after Li Yeuru’s departure left Seattle with only three bigs in their rotation, not including Clark, who sometimes played the four.
Since her return, Holmes has only appeared in seven games for the Storm averaging five minutes, 0.6 points and 0.9 rebounds while shooting 50% from the field and attempting no three-pointers. However, those scoring stats are somewhat skewed. In three of her appearances, she didn’t even attempt a shot, in two games she attempted one shot and missed, in two other games she took one shot and converted it. Holmes never played more than seven minutes.
Seattle Storm forward Mackenzie Holmes (54) boxes out Connecticut Sun center Olivia Nelson-Ododa (10) during the WNBA game between the Seattle Storm and the Connecticut Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, Connecticut, USA on July 28, 2025. (Photo Credit: Chris Poss | The Next)
Holmes left Indiana University with a stellar resume, finishing her five-year career as the program’s all-time leading scorer (2,530 points), all-time leader in made field goals (1,043), all-time leader in wins (123) and with the highest career field goal percentage in program history (63.9). Her 63.9% conversion rate is the third-highest field goal percentage among players who scored at least 2,500 career points in NCAA history.
Selected by Seattle in the 2024 WNBA Draft, Holmes took the year away from playing to get surgery on her knee in May and then recover. During that year, Holmes returned to her alma mater to coach. She felt that time on the sidelines allowed her to see the game in a different way that would help her as pro.
Quinn liked that Holmes was physical, a good rebounder, able to set good screens, and efficient in the paint, but has not put Holmes in any close games. Part of the issue potentially stems from Holmes having played as a traditional center in college but now needing to adapt to play more as a four because of her size. Seattle needs their four to stretch the floor as they like to predicate their offense on space from three-point shooters, but Holmes shot just 23.8% from distance in college, though it has been a point of emphasis for her pro development.
Quinn will likely continue to find minutes for Holmes in blowouts where she feels there is a beneficial matchup, but Holmes suddenly contributing big minutes or buckets looks highly unlikely. Still, she brings an intriguing skill set if the Storm increase her role.
Where Seattle’s bench needs to do more
The biggest thing Seattle needs from their bench but is not always getting outside of Malonga is efficiency in their minutes. For example, while the top-of-the-league Minnesota Lynx only get a few more total minutes from their bench than Seattle, they get average 21.7 points per game from their bench compared to the Storm’s 16.9. Other top teams, the New York Liberty get 20.7 and the Phoenix Mercury get the second-most in the league at 25.9.
In basically every positive per game stat — points, field goals made, field goals attempted, assists, rebounds, three-pointers made and attempted, three-point percentage, steals, blocks and plus-minus — the Storm bench ranks in the bottom half of the league if not the bottom four. Seattle’s bench also averages the second highest turnovers per game. The Storm bench’s field-goal percentage is 42.8% (fifth best in the league) while the Lynx bench averages 49.1%.
“Right now, we’re having changes in the group, so now is the time for people to get meaningful reps and during meaningful moments,” Williams said postgame on August 8. “And I think it’s something that’s going to be very important for us going into this last part of the season.”