The Seattle Storm have already had an exciting offseason. Seattle was part of a blockbuster trade in January, sending Jewell Loyd to Las Vegas and acquiring the second overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft in the process. Now the Storm reunite with a former player in free agency.
Katie Lou Samuelson is signing a one-year contract with the Seattle Storm, according to her agent Lindsay Kagawa Colas per ESPN.
Samuelson is currently playing in Unrivaled, the 3-on-3 women's basketball league founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart.
Samuelson was the fourth overall pick in the 2019 WNBA Draft by the Los Angeles Sparks.
Samuelson played for the Storm in 2021, appearing in 24 games. She averaged 7 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game in 2021.
Samuelson missed the 2023 WNBA season while she was on maternity leave after giving birth to her daughter Aliya. She returned to the WNBA in 2024 with the Fever. Samuelson played in 37 games for Indiana last season but only averaged 4.3 points per game.
Samuelson played for the Fever during the 2024 WNBA season. She signed a two-year, $355,000 contract with the Fever before the 2024 season and earned $175,000 last year. The Fever and Samuelson agreed on a buyout of her contract, allowing Indiana to release Samuelson to free agency. The terms of that buyout are not publicly available.
The Fever parted ways with Samuelson because of her large salary and reduced role in 2024. It did not help matters that Indiana brought in several talented players, including DeWanna Bonner and Natasha Howard. Indiana also brought in depth players like Sophie Cunningham and Sydney Colson.
Now Samuelson joins Alysha Clark and Lexie Brown as new additions to the Storm this offseason.
Seattle will also be able to add a talented player with the second overall pick in the 2025 WNBA