Author: Michelle Hernandez

Early announcements are made by some rookie classes. That’s precisely what the freshman class of the 2020–21 NBA season accomplished, possessing enough individual talent to fuel debates that haven’t been fully resolved even years later. A 19-year-old Charlotte point guard who had already played professional basketball in Lithuania and Australia before the majority of his peers had graduated from college was at the center of it all. Even though the case wasn’t quite as clear-cut as the outcome indicated, it’s difficult to argue that the voters made a mistake when LaMelo Ball won the 2021 NBA Rookie of the Year…

On paper, there was a version of TyTy Washington’s NBA career that made perfect sense. first-round selection. One flawless Kentucky season. A young guard with strong playmaking instincts, quick hands, and sufficient athleticism to succeed at the next level. He was selected 29th overall on draft nite in 2022, which was not where some scouts had anticipated, but it was still a guarantyd roster spot and a chance to build something. Four seasons that never really settled into anything ensued. Before the summer was even over, he was drafted by Memphis, traded to Minnesota right away, and then rerouted once…

The way the Phoenix Mercury presented the DeWanna Bonner buyout announcement had a subtly poignant quality. Nick U’Ren, general manager, did not portray it as a salary ploy or a roster decision. He described it as an opportunity for a 17-year veteran to pursue a championship “in what could be her final postseason.” When a front desk employee uses such language, it usually sounds staged. It didn’t this time. On August 24, Bonner, 39, consented to the contract buyout, ending her second season with the Mercury and putting her on the waiver wire before the 2026 WNBA playoffs. Phoenix finished…

Five is a number that keeps coming up in discussions about Caitlin Clark these days, and it’s difficult to let go of. At least 30 points and 10 assists in five career games. That may seem insignificant, but over the course of the league’s history, the rest of the WNBA has played exactly four such games. When you first read the math, it doesn’t quite make sense. When you read it again, it doesn’t. On August 23, the Indiana Fever defeated the Chicago Sky 113-90 thanks to 37 points and 10 assists from Clark. On a nite when everything seemed…

This season, Azurá Stevens is a good fit. The Chicago Sky forward, who stands 6 feet 6 inches tall, has spent 2026 recovering from a knee injury that postponed her season debut. Her current stats reveal a tale that began long before the games. In April, Stevens signed a three-year, $3.15 million contract with Chicago, earning an average yearly salary of about $1.05 million. She is rejoining the team that won a championship in 2021. It truly is a homecoming. Before deciding to return to the city she has described as meaningful in interviews since signing, she had spent the…

With 11 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists on Saturday, Alyssa Thomas recorded her third triple-double of the season and her 22nd overall, more than any other player in WNBA history. Nevertheless, the Phoenix Mercury’s 99-89 loss to the Atlanta Dream put an end to their chances of making the playoffs. Something smaller but more difficult to overcome was hidden inside that box score: early in the third quarter, Thomas argued a call that didn’t go her way and was given her sixth technical foul of the season. By WNBA standards, the sequence itself was nearly unremarkable. Thomas was attacking…

For Caitlin Clark, Sunday in Chicago was one of those evenings. The Indiana Fever defeated the Chicago Sky 113-90 at Wintrust Arena thanks to her 37 points, 10 assists, and career-high eight three-pointers. Nor was it a subdued build-up. After losing two straight games and traveling more than 4,000 miles on the road, Indiana entered the game worn out. It was its third game in four nites and fifth in eight days. The team’s starting center, Aliyah Boston, was sidelined due to a leg injury. This appeared to be the kind of game that a weary, understaffed team would lose.…

A public back-and-forth over several weeks, a slow simmer, or an online comment. In front of an enthusiastic Wintrust Arena audience watching the Chicago Sky play the Indiana Fever, this incident took place in real time, courtside. The altercation with Sky guard Natasha Cloud had already been captured on camera, edited, and shared on six different platforms by the time security led Enes Kanter Freedom out of the building on Sunday nite. There is little disagreement over the fundamental order. Former NBA center Kanter was sitting courtside close to the baseline. During the game, Cloud came up to him from…

This summer, Sylvain Francisco’s story revolves around that number, which is both big enough to alter a career’s course and small enough to feel unfair. The NBA was very interested in the French point guard, who had just finished second for EuroLeague MVP. Francisco’s window silently closed as the biggest star in the league made everyone wait. When you align the details, their simplicity almost seems ridiculous. Francisco’s contract with ASVEL contained an out clause that required activation by July 20 in order for him to test the NBA market. Chicago, one of five or six teams expressing serious interest…

When a video game isn’t even what people are waiting for, there’s a certain kind of impatience that develops around its release. In the days preceding NBA 2K27’s early access window, that was the atmosphere surrounding the NBA 2K HQ app. On paper, the app seems straightforward: it’s a companion tool for managing your crew, creating your MyPLAYER, and scanning your face into the game. However, waiting for it became a little drama in and of itself. August 21 was the planned launch date for the app. It didn’t. According to 2K, the final App Store review—a type of bureaucratic…