Gabby Williams seemingly will be returning to the Seattle Storm after the franchise cored her, though it remains to be seen what the team intends to do with the star this season

Gabby Williams, who averaged a career-high 10.3 points last season, was designated as the Storm's core player and will not become an unrestricted free agent.

Williams, widely considered one of the sport’s elite defenders, signed with the Storm mid-season after spending the first half of the season with the French national team, which culminated in an Olympic silver medal. In 12 games with the Storm, she averaged a career-high 10.3 points, as well as 4 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

The Seattle Storm extended a core qualifying offer to Gabby Williams, sources told ESPN's Kevin Pelton.The designation allows Williams to sign a one-year qualifying offer at the WNBA's highest salary ($249,

Gabby Williams will reportedly not become an unrestricted free agent, and the Storm will use their core designation on the sixth-year forward.

Likely dictated by the decisions of Nneka Ogwumike and Gabby Williams, the Storm's free-agency moves will likely have a long-term impact on the franchise.

Nika Muhl reserved a special 3-word reaction for Gabby Williams on social media. EuroBasket Women's Instagram handle shared a picture of Gabby Williams and congratulated her on becoming 2024's European Player of the Year. Muhl dropped into the post's comments section to applaud her teammate for her latest achievement.

Unrivaled takes the court for the first time on Friday night, with 36 WNBA stars headlining the new offseason 3×3 league.

Oct 16, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (30) shoots against the Minnesota Lynx during the second half of game three of the 2024 WNBA Finals at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Thomas was one of the top free agents on the market this winter — she was named to the First Team All-WNBA in each of the last two seasons, averaging 10.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, 7.9 assists, and 1.6 steals per game last year. She’s also the league’s all-time leader in triple-doubles and one of its most impactful defenders.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Jaloni Cambridge scored 27 points and Chance Gray added 22 to help No. 9 Ohio State beat Wisconsin 80-69 on Thursday night. Cambridge, who entered averaging 14.5 points, shot 11 of 16 from the field and added a career-high eight rebounds.

Lexi Donarski had 15 points, Alyssa Ustby scored 12 and matched her career-high with 18 rebounds and No. 14 North Carolina rolled to a 64-33 victory over SMU.