With the LA Sparks reeling at an uninspired 10-12 record, the team decided to make a change not many saw coming. On July 12, they fired general manager Raegan Pebley after two-plus seasons in charge and announced her responsibilities would be shared by assistant GMs Zach Knowlton and Nate Nielsen in the interim. However, the decision surprised many because of the timing, and now a WNBA insider has revealed what she has heard.

“What I’d been hearing was that after a season and a half, this being Lynne’s second season, they should be doing better than this. The expectation around the league was that a change would be made at the end of the season,” Annie Costabile said on the latest episode of No Offseason: The Athletic Women’s Basketball Show.

However, Costabile revealed that she has learned the GM was reportedly planning a move himself. “What I was told by multiple sources is that Reagan had already been on the phone in anticipation of the trade deadline. It’s curious why they wouldn’t let her execute through the end of the year. I think that’s a testament to the emphasis the franchise placed on making a change now.“

However, the Sparks have been disappointing beyond just Pebley’s tenure. They have not made the playoffs since 2020. It is the longest postseason slump in franchise history and the longest active one in the league.

The LA Sparks have been underperforming but still theoretically have a chance to turn things around. However, Kelsey Plum’s injury could’ve been the final blow to Pebley’s tenure with the Sparks.

Pebley had traded away the 2025 No. 2 pick in the blockbuster Kelsey Plum deal, who signed a one-year contract with the Sparks for $999,999. However, the injury has sidelined the player Pebley had banked on.

The former GM also traded the Sparks’ 2026 first-round pick (which became Awa Fam) for Kia Nurse and traded Rickea Jackson for Ariel Atkins. Now, Sabreena Merchant has suggested that maybe the Sparks wanted to step away from this approach.

“I wonder if this move was made now because they wanted to stop that process, to stop the selling off of future assets in the interest of trying to contend now when that’s not happening. Maybe it was just, ‘This is one more transaction cycle that we can’t afford to approach with the same mindset.”

“If they were to bottom out and trade some of their veteran contracts, they would be in a good position in the lottery. That could mean players like Madison Booker, JuJu Watkins, or Hannah Hidalgo,” Merchant suggested. “Those are big college names. To me, that’s why you make this decision now.”

With Plum’s fitness in question and the team’s defensive struggles, few expect them to make a run in the playoffs. So the Sparks may be aiming for a rebuild via the 2027 draft. They also have a new facility coming in 2027, which might also help them recruit better talent.