Hamilton’s Kia Nurse set to join the Storm

Canadian basketball star Kia Nurse is reportedly set to join the Seattle Storm.

Nurse was a free agent after spending the past two seasons with the Phoenix Mercury. Her deal with the Storm was first reported Friday morning by ESPN’s Alexa Philippou. The length and salary of her new contract have not yet been disclosed.

The 26-year-old Hamilton native will be expected to fill the void left by star Breanna Stewart, who just left the Storm in free agency to join the New York Liberty.

The Storm have been one of the WNBA powerhouses over the past several years, having won the league championship in 2018 and 2020. Last season, the team was eliminated by the Las Vegas Aces in the semifinals.

In a post shared on her social media accounts, Nurse thanked the Mercury for having given her the opportunity to play there since the 2021 season, and for the support she received on and off the court.

Nurse missed the entire 2022 WNBA season after suffering a right knee injury during a playoff game in 2021. She had averaged nearly 10 points and 3.5 rebounds in 32 games that season.

On top of her career in the WNBA, Nurse is also a basketball analyst for TSN and a member of the Canadian women’s national team who’s helping to lead the country to Paris for the 2024 Olympics.

Nurse was picked 10th overall by the New York Liberty in the 2018 draft. She also played for the Canberra Capitals of the Women’s National Basketball League in Australia, where she won the 2020 MVP and helped her team win back-toback titles in 2019 and 2020.