The Seattle Storm finalized their roster for the 2018 WNBA season Thursday by waiving rookie forward Aleksandra Crvendakic.
The move left Seattle with 12 players heading into Sunday’s regular-season opener against the Phoenix Mercury at KeyArena.
Under first-year head coach Dan Hughes, the Storm is seeking their third straight playoff appearance and first winning season since 2011.
Headlining the 2018 roster are forward Breanna Stewart, and guards Sue Bird and Jewell Loyd.
Stewart, a 2017 All-Star, finished second in the league in scoring last season at 19.9 points per game and became the fastest player in league history to reach 1,000 points and 500 rebounds (55 games).
Bird, a 10-time All-Star, is the WNBA’s all-time assist leader and averaged a career-best 6.6 assists per game last season.
Loyd, the first pick in the 2015 WNBA draft, enjoyed a breakout year offensively in 2017, averaging 17.7 points per game.
Veterans Noelle Quinn, Alysha Clar, Crystal Langhorne, Sami Whitcomb and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis are set to return from a Seattle team that was 15-19 last season and reached the postseason for the 13th time.
Seattle strengthened its frontcourt in the offseason, signing 6-foot-4 center Courtney Paris, and acquiring 6-2 forward Natasha Howard from the 2017 WNBA champion Minnesota Lynx . In the preseason, Howard averaged nine points, 4.5 boards and 1.5 blocks per game.
The two rookies on the roster are guard Jordin Canada, the fifth overall pick in this year’s WNBA draft, and forward Teana Muldrow, the No. 29 overall pick.
Canada, a former UCLA standout who is the the Pac-12 Conference’s all-time assists leader, recorded 32 points, six steals and six assists in the Storm’s two preseason wins over Phoenix.
Seattle is ranked seventh in the 12-team Associated Press preseason WNBA poll released Thursday
Defending champion Minnesota begins the season atop the poll. The Lynx received nine first-place votes from the 14-person national media panel. It’s the second time in the three seasons AP has been doing the poll that the Lynx were the preseason No. 1.
Los Angeles was second, garnering the other five first-place ballots. Connecticut was third, followed by Phoenix, New York, Dallas and Seattle. Washington was eighth. Atlanta, Chicago, Las Vegas and Indiana rounded out the 12 teams.
The WNBA tips off its 22nd season Friday.
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