The Seattle Storm designated Gabby Williams as core on Tuesday, meaning she won't become an unrestricted free agent.

Teams have until Jan. 20, the day before players and teams begin negotiations, to expand the core designation to eligible players. Williams joins Kelsey Plumb (Las Vegas Aces), Satu Sabally (Dallas Wings) and Brianna Stewart (New York Liberty) as the first players to have the designation, which allows them to sign a one-year qualifying contract with the WNBA's highest salary ($249,244). But prevents them from signing with another team in free agency.

Williams' situation is noteworthy because she reportedly told the team last summer that her commitment not to use the core title after leading France to a silver medal at the Olympics would be a factor in her decision on where to sign.

Sources told ESPN that Williams and her representatives are not surprised by Seattle's decision to use the core title on her and have been working closely with the Storm to determine her next move.

Due to Williams' late arrival, she only played 12 games for the Storm last season, while other core players played the entire season for the team. Her international commitments also prevent her from going through the typical unrestricted free agency process. She re-signed with Seattle as a restricted free agent in July 2023 after recovering from a concussion she suffered while playing professionally in France, and considered offers from multiple teams last year.

Although the Storm's season ended when they were swept by the Aces in the first round of the playoffs, Williams said after the game that she believed re-signing with Seattle was the right move.

Williams' 12 games with Seattle in 2024 represented the best stretch of her WNBA career. She averaged a career-high 10.3 points per game, in addition to 4.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.7 steals. Williams was named to the All-Defensive Second Team in 2022, her last full season in the WNBA, and she also averaged 15.5 points and 2.8 steals per game for host France and was named to the Olympic All-Star Five. Group.

Williams had 19 points, seven rebounds and three steals in the gold-medal game, but France lost 67-66 and the United States won its eighth consecutive Olympic title.

Under the current WNBA collective bargaining agreement, which expires after this season, players can be designated core players up to two times or have a single contract lasting at least two years. Teams can use the core designation on one free agent each offseason unless the position is occupied by a player who remains under a multi-year contract with the team after receiving the designation.

This is the first time Williams has been awarded the core title.

Players who receive core qualifying offers can still be traded. Sabally told reporters last week that she had played her final game in Dallas and was looking for a new home with the Wings.

ESPN's Alexa Philippou contributed to this report.