South Carolina women’s basketball: Seattle Storm trade Zia Cooke

Former Gamecock Zia Cooke is looking for a new team after a series of transactions on Tuesday.

First, the Seattle Storm traded Cooke, Alysha Clark, and a 2026 first-round draft pick to the Washington Mystics for Brittney Sykes. Then Washington waived Cooke.

Cooke spent her first two seasons with the Los Angeles Sparks. She was waived in the offseason and signed with Seattle, turning a training camp contract into a roster spot. 

Cooke was Seattle’s top reserve early in the season, but the Storm has made a series of moves to improve their depth. They signed another former Gamecock, Tiffany Mitchell, after Mitchell was waived by the Las Vegas Aces. Mitchell effectively took Cooke’s spot in the rotation.

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Cooke did not play in three of Seattle’s last four games, and her last three appearances were due to injuries or blowouts.

For the season, Cooke appeared in 24 games. She averaged 3.3 points, 0.5 assists, and 0.5 rebounds in 10.4 minutes.

In her career, Cooke has played in 92 games and averaged 4.0 points in 11.5 minutes. She is a career 30.8% shooter, although she had improved to 34.6% this season, including a respectable 38.2% from three.

With Cooke not on an active roster, there are nine Gamecocks on WNBA rosters, although Tyasha Harris is out for the season with a knee injury. 

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