Major League Pickleball’s (MLP) Trade Window #2 opened shortly after the Premier Level and Challenger Level drafts concluded.
The official timing for Trade Window #2 is Tuesday, March 4th, and through Wednesday, July 16th, at 10pm ET.
This is going to be the place where The Dink keeps track of all the Trade Window #2 transactions, so bookmark this link to stay up-to-date on all transactions.
Speaking of transactions, if you're in the market for new shoes, use our employee discount code "thedink" on Midwest Racquet Sports to save on everything from paddles to shoes.
March 18th Update
Trade
- Bay Area Breakers (Challenger) acquire Alix Truong
- Utah Black Diamonds (Premier) acquire Allyce Jones
New Rosters:
- Bay Area Breakers (Challenger): Alix Truong, Danna Funaro, Eric Roddy, DJ Young
- Utah Black Diamonds (Premier): Connor Garnett, Tyler Loong, Allyce Jones, Mehvish Safdar, Genie Erokhina, and Yates Johnson
Analysis: Both Truong and Jones live in Utah. I think Truong has made some real progress this past year, emphasized by her semi-final run in the recent PPA Texas Open with Eric Oncins. This may be a situation where Connor Garnett and Alix haven't played together in several months and needed a new change of scenery. Allyce has been playing well recently, including some deep runs with Hurricane Tyra Black. This one feels about even for me, with maybe a slight edge going to Bay Area.
March 13th Update
Trade
- Bay Area Breakers (Challenger) acquire DJ Young
- Dallas Flash (Premier) acquire Wyatt Stone and cash considerations
New Rosters:
- Bay Area Breakers (Challenger): Allyce Jones, Danna Funaro, Eric Roddy, DJ Young
- Dallas Flash (Premier): JW Johnson, Jorja Johnson, Hurricane Tyra Black, Augie Ge, Tatiana Ruhl, and Wyatt Stone
Analysis: This was probably another agreed upon pre-draft/during draft trade by the Breakers. Dallas probably drafted DJ Young for Bay Area and then Bay Area drafted Wyatt for Dallas. This one doesn’t move the needle in either direction for me.
March 11th Update
Trade
- Bay Area Breakers (Challenger) acquire Danna Funaro
- NY Hustlers (Premier) acquire Lingwei Kong and cash considerations
New Rosters:
- Bay Area Breakers (Challenger): Allyce Jones, Danna Funaro, Eric Roddy, Wyatt Stone
- NY Hustlers (Premier): Zane Ford, Donald Young, Helena Spiridis, Dominique Schaefer, Stephen Madonia, and Lingwei Kong
Analysis: This was almost certainly one of two pre-arranged draft day trades for the New York Hustlers. Danna will get a good chance to play for Bay Area, while Lingwei is going to have to fight for playing time in Premier.
Trade
- California Black Bears (Challenger) acquire Juan Benitez
- NY Hustlers (Premier) acquire Stephen Madonia and cash considerations
New Rosters:
- California Black Bears (Challenger): Rafa Hewett, Lina Padegimaite, Layne Sleeth, and Juan Benitez
- NY Hustlers (Premier): Zane Ford, Donald Young, Helena Spiridis, Dominique Schaefer, Stephen Madonia, and Lingwei Kong
Analysis: This was almost certainly one of two pre-arranged draft day trades for the New York Hustlers. Juan recently signed with UPA and will get to play at the Challenger Level, while Stephen is going to sit the bench for the foreseeable future with NY.
March 5th Update
Trade
- Miami Pickleball Club (Premier) acquires Noe Khlif and cash considerations
- Texas Ranchers (Premier) acquires Eric Oncins
New Rosters:
- Miami Pickleball Club (Premier): Noe Khlif, Jay Devilliers, Milan Rane, Mya Bui, Ava Ignatowich, and Yuta Funemizu
- Texas Ranchers (Premier): Christian Alshon, Etta Tuionetoa, Tina Pisnik, Eric Oncins, Michael Loyd, and Helena Jansen
Analysis: This was a trade of two former Miami Pickleball Club teammates, Oncins and Khlif. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was a draft day deal between the two clubs. Both players have a ton of upside, we will see in the results, which team made a better trade deal.
Trade
- Phoenix Flames (Premier) acquire Genie Bouchard and cash considerations
- New Jersey 5s (Premier) acquire Meghan Dizon
New Rosters:
- Phoenix Flames (Premier): Tyson McGuffin, Jack Sock, Genie Bouchard, Jessie Irvine, Alex Walker, and Pesa Teoni
- New Jersey 5s (Premier): Anna Leigh Waters, Meghan Dizon, Zane Navratil, Will Howells, Christa Gecheva, and Craig Johnson
Analysis: This was definitely a draft day trade, meaning Phoenix told New Jersey that they wanted Genie, and New Jersey drafted Genie for anything at $100k or less. If New Jersey didn’t like any of the available women enough to play alongside Anna Leigh, then this trade makes sense for them as well. Genie does not make Phoenix better.
Injured Reserve
- Los Angeles Mad Drops (Premier) place Thomas Wilson on IR (out for season) and add Wes Burrows
New Roster:
- Los Angeles Mad Drops (Premier): Catherine Parenteau, Quang Duong, Jade Kawamoto, Hunter Johnson, Angie Walker, Wes Burrows, and Thomas Wilson (IR)
Analysis: This was bound to happen, and Burrows is a local SoCal guy who can activate in the community - good move all around.
