Commissioner's Cup heats up | NWSL teams stay busy | Hayes rests European stars

The Clark Effect knows no bounds.

Seattle takes hold of Commissioner’s Cup

The Seattle Storm shot to the top of the Western Commissioner’s Cup standings on Wednesday, handing Minnesota their first loss of the season to pull level with the Lynx at 3-1.

• New signing Erica Wheeler led Seattle with 20 points and nine assists, blanking a 25-point performance by Minnesota star Napheesa Collier.

• “It’s probably a good message,” said Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve after last night’s 94-84 loss. “If you want to win on the road, especially a place like Seattle and a team like Seattle, you’ve got to play a hell of a lot better.”

Ups and downs: The New York Liberty now stand alone as the league’s only undefeated team in both regular-season and Commissioner’s Cup play, holding a 3-0 Cup record alongside a steep +75 point differential.

• Wednesday’s action also featured the return of Dallas rookie Paige Bueckers, whose career-high 35 points failed to lift the Wings over Phoenix as last-place Dallas fell to 1-10 in regular-season and 0-4 in Cup play.

• Bueckers is set to go toe-to-toe with Aces guard Jackie Young tomorrow, as she comes off her own 34-point performance against the Sparks — despite Las Vegas dropping their second straight game and skidding to a 4-4 regular-season and 1-2 Cup record.

Bottom line: With a a $500,000 prize pool — including $5,000 for each finalist — on the line, the annual 36-game competition ups the early-season stakes, with plenty of runway remaining for teams to climb the ranks before play winds down on June 17th.

NWSL clubs make summer plans

The NWSL is setting its summer calendar, as teams across the league announce special July programming ahead of the regular-season break for major global tournaments.

• Without a planned league-wide tournament like 2024’s Summer Cup, its up to individual clubs to fill their schedules until NWSL play resumes in August.

Big picture: While there might not be a trophy at the end, the gap does provide an opportunity for some fresh friendly competition beyond the confines of the league.

• North Carolina will welcome Liga MX titans and Concacaf W Champions Cup contenders Tigres UANL back to the States for a one-off exhibition match on July 9th.

• Kansas City’s Teal Rising Cup kicks off on July 12th, with the four-team friendly tournament pitting NWSL sides Chicago Stars and the Current against Brazilian Serie A1 clubs Corinthians SC and Palmeiras.

• Seattle and Bay FC are both set to square off against Japanese WE League champions the Urawa Red Diamonds in late July, with Bay tacking on an additional July 19th friendly against Angel City.

• Angel City will then face USL Super League team Carolina Ascent on July 26th while Racing Louisville hosts crosstown squad Lexington SC on July 13th, as the interleague matchups give fans a glimpse at how the two US systems stack up against one another.

Takeaway: As teams juggle lineups in the wake of international departures, these matchups might not look the same — though NWSL-hungry fans likely won’t mind.

Hayes lays the groundwork

USWNT action returns later this month, with coach Emma Hayes filling ESPN in on her roster strategy earlier this week as the team preps for the next set of summer friendlies.

• Hayes will rest all Europe-based USWNT players excluding Naomi Girma during the upcoming international window, instead relying on domestic talent after a jam-packed year for the team’s European stars.

• “We don’t necessarily decide the international calendar, but this is one where we think it’s in the best interest of the players,” Hayes said, noting both past demands and the increasingly busy road to the 2027 World Cup.

Availability report: Hayes also revealed some key injury updates, with fans eager to see midfielder Rose Lavelle and forward Trinity Rodman return to the USWNT fold.

• Lavelle could return to the USWNT this window, after making her first NWSL appearance of 2025 last weekend in Gotham’s loss to Kansas City.

• Rodman remains slightly further out from international play, though Hayes expects the Spirit forward to get club minutes next month.

Bottom line: The USWNT core is coming together, with Stateside players looking to seize the chance to prove their worth as club soccer approaches its summer hiatus.

PRESENTED BY JWS & MICROSOFT COPILOT
Don’t miss “Between the Lines” with Lisa Leslie

There’s a new WNBA show in town, as the second episode of JWS digital series Between the Lines with Lisa Leslie presented by Microsoft Copilot brings another helping of unfiltered commentary, insider perspective, and cultural critique to basketball fans everywhere.

• In the debut episode of Between the Lines, two-time WNBA All-Star Chiney Ogwumike joined Leslie to hash out the league’s biggest storylines so far.

• Dropping today, episode two features Phoenix Mercury star Satou Sabally discussing her offseason trade, what makes her a WNBA unicorn, how she’s gelling with her new teammates, and more.

Tune in: Catch episode two of Between the Lines with Lisa Leslie today on YouTube.

NCAA settlement faces Title IX appeal

Last week’s landmark $2.8 billion NCAA settlement is back in the headlines, as eight women’s NCAA athletes filed an appeal on Wednesday claiming that the approved NIL back-payment plan violates Title IX, the federal law banning gender discrimination in schools.

• On June 6th, a federal judge approved a settlement between the NCAA and former student-athletes, with the college sports governing body agreeing to directly distribute billions of dollars in back pay to players barred from financially benefitting off their name, image, and likeness since 2016.

• This new challenge calls out payment inequities written into the ruling, which could see up to 90% of the back payments distributed among men’s sports athletes.

The appeal: “The calculation of past damages is based on an error that ignores Title IX and deprives female athletes of $1.1 billion,” said Ashlyn Hare, one of the lawyer representing the appellants. “Paying out the money as proposed would be a massive error that would cause irreparable harm to women’s sports.”

• “If Nike wants to do that, that is their choice. If the school, or a conference acting on the school’s behalf tries to do that, they are violating the law,” John Clune, another lawyer on the team, clarified.

WTA freezes rankings for fertility treatments

Women’s tennis got a boost on Wednesday, as the WTA announced it would institute rankings protections for players undergoing fertility treatments like egg or embryo freezing.

• Players returning from a procedure can opt to receive a Special Entry Ranking, calculated using their 12-week average ranking up to eight weeks before taking leave.

• The protection extends to any player ranked among the world’s top 750 who spends more than 10 weeks out of competition.

Big picture: The move comes three months after the WTA agreed to grant players paid maternity leave for the very first time.

• “I’m incredibly proud of our sport in recognizing the importance of fertility treatments for female athletes,” said US Open champ and longtime reproductive health support advocate Sloane Stephens. “For any woman, the conversation of family life versus a career is nuanced and complex.”

Quote of the day

Retired Chicago Sky star Allie Quigley
after the Sky announced plans to retire her No. 14 jersey on July 9th, marking the team’s first-ever jersey retirement.