Sparks Continue Roster Shakeup With Shocking Cut Prior to Season Opener

After an impressive showing in the preseason, the Los Angeles Sparks will open up the 2024 regular season at home against the Atlanta Dream on Wednesday night.

In preparation for the regular season, the Sparks have had to make a few tough roster moves throughout the last 24 hours. On Sunday, Los Angeles waived three players, including rookie McKenzie Forbes, who was drafted in the third round of the 2024 WNBA Draft.

Then on Monday, it was reported on the WNBA transactions page that guard Julie Allemand would be out for the 2024 season due to personal reasons. If the news about Allemand and Forbes wasn’t enough, the Sparks made one more move that shocked the fanbase.

The Sparks announced that they waived veteran forward Monique Billings, which should put them at the 12-player limit for the regular season.

As expected, fans were surprised by the news after Billings signed a two-year, $238K deal with Los Angeles this offseason.

Billings, a Corona, California native, went to UCLA and spent her entire WNBA career with the Atlanta Dream, where she became a solid role player. The former second-round pick averaged 5.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in her six-year career with the Dream.

Based on what she did with the Dream, Billings seemed like a perfect addition to the Sparks’ roster as they look to rebuild with Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson. However, the vet didn’t get a lot of time in preseason, only playing 17 total minutes across two games.

With Billings on the open market, it will be interesting to see if any other team will pick her up as she can provide some frontcourt depth and quality minutes off the bench.

With their roster now set, the Sparks head into Wednesday's home-opener as significant underdogs against the Atlanta Dream (+194 moneyline odds on FanDuel Sportsbook). That underdog status is expected to become familiar territory for L.A., as they also boast the worst odds (+10000) to win the WNBA Championship in 2024. They're also heavy +500 underdogs to even make the playoffs.

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