The Seattle Storm crashed WNBA draft night on Monday with a surprise trade to grab LSU guard Flau'jae Johnson right after she went eighth overall. Johnson, an athletic scoring wing with a rising profile on and off the court, was briefly announced as a Golden State pick before her rights were rerouted to Seattle. The move hands the Storm an instant young scorer to plug into a roster that had already added international center Awa Fam and guard Taina Mair earlier in the night.
According to The Seattle Times, Golden State used the No. 8 pick on Johnson and then traded her draft rights to Seattle in exchange for Marta Suárez, whom the Storm had selected at No. 16, plus Seattle's 2028 second-round pick. The swap was announced live at the draft at The Shed in New York and completed during the draft broadcast.
Draft-night swaps and Seattle's picks
Seattle did not wait around on the board, taking 19-year-old center Awa Fam with the No. 3 pick and adding Duke guard Taina Mair at No. 14. Those moves give the team more size and backcourt shooting to develop alongside the rest of the rookie class. Taken together with the Flau'jae trade, the flurry of activity reshapes the Storm's incoming group and the immediate depth chart heading into training camp. ESPN recorded the night's pick activity and early reaction.
What Flau'jae brings
Johnson arrives as one of college basketball's most talked-about scorers, averaging roughly 18 to 19 points per game at LSU while boosting her three-point accuracy in her final season and drawing national attention for her music career. Scouts have highlighted her downhill scoring, quickness and on-ball defensive energy as traits that should help her transition to the WNBA. Sports Illustrated rounds up her profile and recent production.
What Seattle gave up
The price, Marta Suárez plus a 2028 second-rounder, looks modest on paper for an early first-round talent and will likely be debated around the league as teams weigh upside against draft assets. Suárez, a 6-3 forward out of TCU, offers rotation size and shooting, but Seattle's move signals a willingness to prioritize a pro-ready scorer over a future pick. The Seattle Times has the round-by-round accounting of the swap.
Outlook
For Storm fans, the near-term storyline is how Johnson's scoring will fit alongside the team's defensive pieces and the newly drafted rookies as camp approaches. The draft haul gives Seattle a deeper, younger core to evaluate in preseason and sets an early expectation that the front office is chasing more immediate offensive options for 2026. ESPN captured the broader draft context that helps explain the Storm's moves.
