Satou Sabally has agreed to re-sign with the Dallas Wings, she confirmed to ESPN Tuesday. The WNBA's reigning Most Improved Player will take a bit of a discount to do so, signing a one-year, $195,000 deal that is slightly below the $208,000 max she could have commanded, according to Alexa Philippou.
"Just engaging in those basketball conversations really made us realize that we want to work together and we want to bring a championship to Dallas," Sabally said. "It could really be termed as unfinished business."
Sabally, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 draft, showed flashes of her potential in her first three seasons, but was limited to a combined 44 games due to injuries. Last season, she finally put it all together in a breakout campaign that saw her start the All-Star Game, earn a spot on the All-WNBA First Team and finish fifth in MVP voting.
She played in 38 out of 40 games and averaged career-highs across the board with 18.6 points, 8.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.8 steals per game, while also shooting 36.1% from 3-point land. In the process, Sabally joined future Hall of Famer Candace Parker as the only players in league history to averaged at least 18 points, eight rebounds and four assists for a season.
With Sabally leading the way, the Wings had their best season in over a decade. They finished 22-18 to earn the No. 4 seed in the playoffs, and achieved feats the franchise hadn't been able to celebrate since they played in Detroit as the Shock -- a 20-win season (first since 2008) and a playoff series win (first since 2009).
Though the Wings were swept by the eventual champion Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals, last season confirmed they're a team on the rise. With Sabally back, they have a chance to build on that success.
"The most important thing for me next year is really finishing the mission of actually being the greatest team in the league and being a leader, developing as a leader, and really paving the way for the future," Sabally said. "I think the WNBA is at such an amazing point right now in women's sports and history, so being one of the faces that can be part of that is such an honor to me. ... I'm grateful to be able to come back to a place that I call home. That is also super special and something I've worked hard for, so I'm just really excited and happy."
Sabally's first order of business with her new contract will be helping the German national team qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics. To do so, they'll have to finish in the top-three of a qualifying tournament in Brazil in February. If they do, they'll reach the Olympics for the first time in program history, which would be yet another accomplishment for Sabally.
Then, she'll be able to turn her attention to the Wings, who start training camp in April and tip-off their season on May 15 against the Chicago Sky.
