Caitlin Clark speaks out on WNBA leadership concerns

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Caitlin Clark backs Napheesa Collier on leadership concerns

Caitlin Clark is standing with Napheesa Collier, as the Fever star backed up the Lynx forward’s WNBA leadership concerns during her Thursday exit interview.

• “I think what people need to understand, we need great leadership at this time across all levels — this is straight-up the most important moment in this league’s history,” Clark said in her first media availability since July.

• “I have a lot of respect for Phee, and I think she made a lot of very valid points,” she added. (Watch full video)

Context: WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert’s thoughts on Clark have come under fire this week, after Collier quoted Engelbert saying Clark and her fellow rookies “should be on their knees thanking their lucky stars” for the media exposure the league provided.

• The Indiana guard said she wasn’t aware of Engelbert’s comments, nor had the commissioner reached out since Collier’s exit interview went viral.

• “I’d say the most important part of leadership, whether that’s the WNBA, whether that’s corporate America, I think it comes down to relationships and really caring about the people you surround yourself with,” Clark said.

Bottom line: With a new CBA on the line and little response from the front office, big-name players are speaking out — fueling tensions on both sides of the table.

Revamped Phoenix roster gears up for Game 1 in Las Vegas

The No. 4 Mercury land in Las Vegas tonight, leaning into a new-look roster as they take on the No. 2 Aces in Game 1 of the first-ever best-of-seven WNBA finals — their first championship series since 2021.

• “This is what it’s all about,” said Phoenix forward Alyssa Thomas ahead of tonight’s matchup. “We play the whole season for playoffs and moments like this. I want to win. I’ve been chasing a championship for a long time, and I think this is our time.”

Big picture: The Mercury found almost immediate success this year, after picking up top free agents like Thomas and Satou Sabally in a productive offseason.

• “I’m really happy with the strides that we’ve made, how we’re trying to build this team moving forward, because there were some players that took chances on us and you want it to go well,” head coach Nate Tibbetts told JWS last month.

• “It speaks volumes about the team and how we stay composed, how we can go on runs and ride the wave,” Thomas said. “You don’t know what each game is going to bring, but the biggest thing is us staying composed.”

Enemy awaits: They’ll have their work cut out for them tonight, facing a home unit armed with significant postseason experience as Aces mainstays A’ja Wilson, Jackie Young, and Chelsea Gray shoot for their third title in four years.

• “We’ve been here before, we have a team full of vets, but they do too. I don’t think you can take that for granted,” said Young.

Tune in: Phoenix tips off against Las Vegas tonight at 8 PM ET (ESPN), with Game 2 following on Sunday at 3 PM ET, live on ABC.

NWSL Decision Day looms for playoff hopeful Houston

With just four regular-season matchdays remaining, the clock is ticking for teams looking to turn a late playoff push into an NWSL standings boost.

• Currently sitting three points below the postseason cutoff line, a motivated No. 10 Houston will look to make a leap tonight against a No. 5 Orlando side still reeling from a recently snapped a nine-game NWSL winless streak.

• “For us, the next couple of matches are finals,” Dash head coach Fabrice Gautrat said after last weekend’s 4-0 loss to Washington. “We have to keep approaching it one game at a time like we’ve been doing, but we definitely have to have a response against the Orlando Pride.”

Fresh legs: Houston comes into tonight’s matchup with new firepower, with teen phenom Chloe Ricketts joining the team as a short-term signing from the Spirit before departing for 2026 expansion side Boston next season.

• “She is very lively, has great energy, great attitude, is eager and ambitious,” said Gautrat. “She could play anywhere on our front line, to be honest.”

Tune in: Houston kicks off against Orlando tonight at 8 PM ET, live on Prime.

Your favorite WNBA show is back, as an all new episode of JWS digital series Between the Lines with Lisa Leslie presented by State Street Investment Management brings another helping of unfiltered commentary, insider perspective, and cultural critique to basketball fans everywhere.

• In this week’s Between the Lines, sideline reporter Autumn Johnson joined Leslie to hash out this weekend’s blockbuster WNBA finals.

• Dropping this week, the episode tackles the journey to the 2025 WNBA Championship, analyzing who’s in, who’s out, and how this postseason is shaping up to be the most exciting one yet.

Tune in: Catch Between the Lines with Lisa Leslie on YouTube.

Unrivaled 3×3 announces Philadelphia tour stop

Unrivaled 3×3 Basketball is hitting the road, announcing plans to take over Philadelphia’s Xfinity Mobile Arena on January 30th in the offseason league’s first-ever tour stop.

• The regular-season doubleheader will feature four as-yet-unannounced teams, with additional activations and events supporting the competition.

• “Philadelphia is the city of firsts, so it makes perfect sense that the Unrivaled League picked our historical city, with unmatched sports enthusiasts, as its first tour stop,” Philadelphia mayor Cherelle L. Parker said in Thursday’s press release.

Big picture: The upstart league’s first foray outside of Miami will also mark the city’s first pro women’s basketball games since 1998.

• “Advancing women’s pro sports in Philly has been a goal we’ve passionately pursued for years,” said comedian Wanda Sykes, an Unrivaled investor and founding member of women’s sports advocacy group the Philadelphia Sisters. “Unrivaled, this groundbreaking league, is set to elevate the women’s basketball ecosystem as a whole, and we are honored that Philly has been chosen.”

UCLA headlines Big Ten preseason honors

College basketball season is just around the corner, with the Big Ten shouting out the conference’s predicted top performers in this week’s coaches and media preseason polls.

• 2025 Final Four participant UCLA ranked No. 1 in both surveys, followed by No. 2 Maryland, with USC, Michigan, and Ohio State rounding out the Top 5.

• UCLA center Lauren Betts was the polls’ unanimous favorite for Big Ten Player of the Year, with fellow NCAA standouts Iowa’s Hannah Stuelke and Michigan’s Syla Swords picking up All-Big Ten Team honors. (See full list)

Get pumped: The 2025/26 NCAA basketball season tips off on November 3rd.

NFL plans pro women’s flag football league ahead of 2028 Olympics

The NFL is getting in on the women’s game, with commissioner Roger Goodell announcing plans to launch both men’s and women’s professional flag football leagues at this week’s Leaders in Sport conference.

• Looking to get things up and running in “the next couple of years,” the NFL’s goal is to introduce the leagues before the 2028 Summer Games in LA, where flag football is set to make its Olympic debut.

• “The demand is there. We’re seeing colleges in the States and universities internationally also that want to make it a part of their program,” Goodell said. “If you set that structure up where there’s youth leagues, going into high school, into college, and then professional, I think you can develop a system of scale. That’s an important infrastructure that we need to create.”

Quote of the day

Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark
capping her 2025 season exit interview with a reminder to check out fellow Chiefs fan Taylor Swift’s new album today.