Sparks acquire Derekah Hamby from Aces for rights to Amanda Zahhoe B.

the Las Vegas Aces trade Derekah Hamby to me Los Angeles Sparks On Saturday, it was a somewhat surprising move that removes a starter from the WNBA Aces Championship team who recently signed a contract extension through 2024.

The Sparks also get the 2024 first-round Aces in exchange for negotiating rights Amanda Zahoe b.and the Sparks’ second-round selection for 2024.

Hamby has spent her entire career with the Las Vegas Aces/San Antonio Stars organization since being drafted from Wake Forest in 2015 and has been an All-Star the past two seasons. She was named her sixth WNBA Woman of the Year in 2019 and 2020.

She has career averages of 9.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 85 starts.

“Derica has dedicated eight years of her career to this organization, and has played a huge role in our success since the team moved to Las Vegas,” Aces general manager Natalie Williams said in a statement. “We will miss her as a teammate, and are grateful for all her contributions to the Aces over the years.”

Sparks general manager Karen Bryant said, “Adding Derekah to our roster as well as a future first-round pick was a solid move for us. We’re excited to have another major piece in place as we begin free agency.”

In June, the Aces announced that Hamby had signed a two-year contract extension. But there were signs that something might not be right this week when Hamby — who announced during an ace win parade that she was pregnant — tweeted, “Imagine expressing your concerns as a woman while you are pregnant in this profession/world….then rest assured you were propped up…and your back ‘was’….only to be used against you.”

The Sparks — who have a new coach in Kurt Miller and a GM in Bryant — made huge strides by trading in this offseason, bringing in a veteran guard Jasmine Thomas This week from Connecticut.