Farhan Zaidi is back in the deadline business, only this time the stakes are coming from the WNBA.
The former Giants president of baseball operations, who was dismissed by San Francisco less than two years ago, is now helping steer the Los Angeles Sparks as they head toward Sunday’s trade deadline. Zaidi’s role is tied to Dodgers owner Mark Walter’s broader sports portfolio, and in recent months he has become one of the more visible figures around Walter’s basketball interests.
Zaidi’s path back to Los Angeles didn’t stop with the Dodgers. After his return was announced in February 2025, he was brought in as a special advisor to Walter, with responsibilities that extend beyond baseball and into Walter’s other holdings, including a partial stake in Chelsea and a Formula 1 team. Walter also controls the Lakers and the Sparks.
Last summer, Zaidi told the San Francisco Chronicle that his time was split evenly between the Dodgers and Walter’s other sports properties. In the year since, the basketball side has been the one drawing the most attention.
When Walter became the Lakers’ majority owner at a $10 billion valuation, Zaidi and Andrew Friedman were added as advisors to the organization. ESPN reported that Zaidi was “Walter’s representative in helping with the transition” between ownership groups.
A Yahoo Sports report in May said Zaidi has been heavily involved in shaping the new ownership group’s plans for the Lakers, including getting to know basketball agents and sitting in on interviews for assistant general manager jobs.
Now that same influence has landed in the middle of a tense stretch for the Sparks. Los Angeles moved on from general manager Raegan Pebley earlier this month after its push to contend this season stalled out. The Sparks are 10-17, and the deadline is right in front of them.
On Wednesday, Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke argued the Sparks should cut bait and sell off their stars, including Kelsey Plum. Plaschke mainly spoke with Zaidi, identified as a Sparks advisor, about the team’s direction, a sign that he is directly involved in the decisions being made this week.
“Now we have to be open for anything,” Zaidi told Plaschke. “Everything has to be on the table for us. We have to take a long-term perspective rather than focusing on the rest of the season.”
He went even further when discussing the possibility of a deadline sell-off.
“Our dedicated fans will understand if we have to take a step back to get to that championship level. I can step back if I feel like we’re building something.”
It’s a far cry from the days when Zaidi was in San Francisco weighing moves like a possible Blake Snell trade. And while the Giants are now operating on one side of the Bay, it would be a notable twist if their Mission Bay neighbors, the Valkyries, ended up benefiting from Zaidi’s latest deadline role by landing a difference-making star from the Sparks.
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