On Monday, Julie Vanloo landed in San Francisco after winning the EuroBasket championship with Belgium, only to learn that she’d been waived by the Golden State Valkyries.
The 32-year-old guard turned to social media to express her disappointment that she missed Belgium’s championship parade, only to learn she was no longer a part of the Valkyries’ future.
Three days later, however, Vanloo received great news: the Los Angeles Sparks were signing her.
Vanloo made her WNBA debut in 2024, averaging 7.4 points and 4.3 assists per game for the Washington Mystics.
In December, the Valkyries selected Vanloo in their expansion draft, and she appeared in 9 games before heading overseas for EuroBasket.
While she was gone, the Valkyries re-signed rookie Kaitlyn Chen, whom they drafted 30th overall in April. Chen, who currently remains on the roster, averaged 4.3 points in 19.3 minutes per game, shooting 60% from the field and 50% from three.
The Sparks will benefit from Vanloo’s shooting, playmaking
The Sparks, who currently have a 5-12 record, have been led by Kelsey Plum and Odyssey Sims in the backcourt. Sims, however, was waived earlier this week after averaging 9.8 points per game across 12 games. Plum is averaging 20.6 points, 5.6 assists, and 1.5 steals.
Vanloo will provide Lynne Roberts with another guard who can handle the ball, and space the floor. Vanloo has shot 30.8% from three in her WNBA career. She also averaged the second-most assists (4.3) per game among rookies last year.
“We’re excited to get her,” Roberts said ahead of Thursday’s game between the Sparks and the New York Liberty, per Winsidr’s Myles Ehrlich. “One thing we need is consistent three-point shooting. She brings that. She’s super feisty, she’s a winner. When we played Golden State, she hit about four threes in 70 seconds.”
Vanloo is poised to make her WNBA debut Thursday night.
