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Good morning! Coming today:
- 🏀 The culture wars continue
- 👋 Exercise says goodbye
- 🎉 Party mascot
Let’s go.
Confrontation: The Culture Wars Bring Judgment
On Sunday night in Chicago, the culture war against trans inclusion in women’s sports hit the field in the middle of the Sky’s final regular season game against the Indiana Fever.
Former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom sat courtside wearing a T-shirt that read: “WOMAN noun adult female.” Late in the third quarter after Sky guard Natasha Cloud finished a drive at the rim, she turned and headed towards Freedompointedly pointing at him as he shouts. In response, Freedom stood up with outstretched arms and walked towards Cloud as he exchanged words with her. He had to step over a line of photographers blocking his way to the field.
Fever’s security reached Cloud before she could make her way off the field and close in on Freedom, who was later removed Wintrust Arena protection. However, the damage has already been done.
Another great basketball game turned into political fodder.
The entire WNBA becomes embroiled in the comments of one of its players, and the league office has largely ceded the field to outside actors. The questions facing the WNBA right now range from how to deal with the explosive discourse that continues to engulf the league to whether there is a need to clarify the rules of the competition.
Earlier this month, Freedom and Royce White, who appeared in just three NBA games, announced their intentions to declare for the 2027 WNBA Draft as a means of pushing against the inclusion of trans women in women’s sports. Both are ineligible to compete in the WNBA, as set forth in applicable CBA rules and confirmed by the league The Athletic.
The topic of trans women competing in the WNBA made headlines when Fever guard Sophie Cunningham shared her opposition to the inclusion of trans women in women’s sports. Since then, small gatherings have been a fixture on the Fever’s schedule, appearing at road games in cities across the country. Recently, there were two small rallies outside the Barclays Center in New York before the Fever’s game against the Liberty, one for and one against the inclusion of transgender women in sports.
The Fever host the Suns on Friday in their final game before the FIBA World Cup break. But the divisiveness surrounding the WNBA doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon.
Final Chapter: Ogwumike retires after 15 seasons
When Nneka Ogwumike announced her retirement last weektwo sentiments dominated the conversation.
The first was gratitude for all that Ogwumike has given on and off the field during her 15 seasons. Most notable, of course, was her influence on the historic CBA negotiations that lasted approximately 17 months but resulted in an approximately 367 percent increase in player salaries.
Another feeling from fans, coaches and peers was… why now? Ogwumike is still playing some of the best basketball of his career. As recently as August 13th, she was asking fun questions about free agency. She took to social media after announcing her retirement plans and joked that she was talking to the media about her future after 2026, despite knowing this season would be her last.
Ogwumike is averaging 16.6 points and 8.7 rebounds for the Sparks this season. In July, she received her 12th All-Star honor. Still, she said, “There is power in knowing when to walk away.
Ogwumike’s final season will be remembered for the 3-pointer she hit to seal a comeback against the Liberty in the WNBA’s 30th season celebratory game. It’s the only buzzer-beater Ogwumike remembers hitting in his career.
The closest she’d been before that the game-winning bucket in Game 5 2016 WNBA Finals With two seconds left, Ogwumike collected an offensive rebound and turned a one-point deficit into a one-point lead on a short jumper, securing the win and the only WNBA title of her career. It’s hard to imagine a more leveraged situation than the deciding game of a championship series, and Ogwumike pulled through.
Madame President and Madame Clutch, too.
Fast Breaks
🏀 Angel Reese added new titles to her rebounding resume: most rebounds in a single game (26) and most rebounds in a season (458).
🏀 A the sex toy was thrown to court during the Dream-Sparks gameemulating the trend that started last season. The person who threw it was arrested and banned indefinitely from all WNBA and NBA events.
🏀 Then it happened again, when more sex toys were thrown in the game Sky-Valkyries. “Fucking as hell,” Neba guard Natasha Cloud said of the spectators who threw objects.
🏀 “It’s not a secret, but it’s private.” Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd talked about their romantic relationship in an Apple TV documentary filmed during UConn’s championship game and released last week.
📉 Second place Valkyries are trending down this week’s power rankings. Theirs loss for Lynx it didn’t help.
📝 Mercury reached a buyout agreement with DeWanna Bonner in a move intended to give the six-time All-Star a chance to play in the postseason in what could be her final year at the W.
🏀 New York Got much needed answer from his missing part — Leonie Fiebich — to give up the late rally Indiana on Saturday.
🏟️ One hundred thousand square meters. Two basketball courts. Two football fields. More than 150 million dollars. Look inside Portland Fire and the NWSL’s Portland Thorns joint practice facility.
💲 It’s Marc Lore sells its controlling interest in Minnesota Timberwolves and Minnesota Lynx do Marc City at a Estimated $4.5 billion. Get to know each other tech investor taking future control of NBA and WNBA teams.
🎙️ Na “No off-season” under, Zena and Annie dive into the conflict between Cloud and Freedom, one of the growing distractions and controversies in the league. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.
MVP race: What will it focus on?
Every day, the 2026 WNBA MVP race adds another layer.
Last week when we discussed this on the podcast, Sabreena and I were split on who had the upper hand. I felt like Caitlin ClarkPlaying gave her an edge in discussions, while Sabreena had Olivia Miles at the top of the ballot for its role in lynx dominance.
But in the week since, the debate has taken another turn, and you all have shamelessly participated.
Kelsey Mitchell extended her record 20-plus point streak to 23 games after dropping 25 against the Liberty and then 30 against the Sky in back-to-back games. Meanwhile, Clark had 21 points and seven assists against Liberty, and then turned it around and had a double-double with 37 points and 10 assists against Sky. Paige Bueckers and Breanna Stewart both have their teams on the rise again after changing their lineups.
While Clark and Mitchell are both putting together MVP-caliber seasons on the offensive end, no one is more complete on both ends of the floor than the ace forward Aja Wilson. This award is probably still Wilson’s to lose, even with all the running backs competing for the top spot.
Unlike the past few years, this season’s MVP will be hotly debated until the last possible day. So let’s enjoy the debate, shall we! Tell us who you think won the MVP title this season and why at NoOffseason@theathletic.com.
Mascots, again! Three mascots join the league
Not one, not two, but three WNBA mascots debuted last week: Des and Dot for the Toronto Tempo, i Rose for the Portland fire.
Tempo’s mascots are an interesting play on the tortoise and the hare. According to the team’s statement: “A reminder that knowing when to change pace can be just as important as the pace itself.”
Rose, the glitter-breathing dragon, is reminiscent of some of the more feminine mascots that have appeared in recent seasons, including Ellie (Liberty), Violet (Valkyries), and Skye (Sky).
Personally, I (Sabreena) love that WNBA teams embrace storytelling on a deeper level and give their fans more ways to connect with each franchise’s brand. Sports should be fun; let’s celebrate stupidity as much as we can.
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