Los Angeles Sparks newcomer Kelsey Plum got honest about her motivation for moving from Las Vegas to LA. For her, the move to a new city is a “turning of a new leaf.”
In a recent interview with The Los Angeles Times, Kelsey Plum talked about her motivation in moving from the Las Vegas Aces to the Sparks.
“With all due respect, we finished last last year, so everything that we did last year was thrown out the window,” Plum said during the Sparks training camp. “I was brought here for a reason.”
“It’s the turn of a new leaf in a lot of different ways, in leadership and investment in the franchise. That’s why I decided to come here.”
Kelsey Plum’s move from the Las Vegas Aces to the Los Angeles Sparks was one of the biggest trades of the 2025 WNBA offseason. The deal was part of a three-team trade involving the Seattle Storm, which sent Jewell Loyd to the Aces and the No. 2 overall pick to Seattle. Plum had spent her entire career with the Aces before the trade, making her departure a significant shift in the league’s landscape.
She will reunite with Dearica Hamby, her former Aces teammate, and play alongside young stars like Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson. Plum has also been working on her physical transformation, bulking up in the offseason to prepare for a more demanding role with the Sparks.
“Changing the culture, that’s a day-to-day process,” Plum added. “That’s not something that you can rush. There’s a lot of young talent…I’m excited about the opportunity, and I’m excited about the potential this team has.”

Sparks HC Talks About Kelsey Plum
In the same interview, Los Angeles Sparks head coach Lynne Roberts talked about Kelsey Plum taking a leadership role for the team.
“Kelsey is different, and I mean that in the biggest compliment,” Roberts said. “Just everyone being around her, it’s going to elevate them in terms of how they prepare themselves, how they work, and how they handle it.”
“The players are eager to get this franchise back where it belongs, and so there’s a definite commitment,” Roberts added. “In conversation I’ve had, and even today, for them to just play their tails off and compete.”

Throughout her career, Kelsey Plum became a two-time WNBA champion (2022, 2023) and a three-time WNBA All-Star (2022–2024), with her standout performance in the 2022 All-Star Game earning her the MVP award. Plum was also named the WNBA Sixth Player of the Year in 2021.

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