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☆ 2024 WNBA season: How to watch as a new era of women’s basketball dawns
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-14 | by ( Ben Morse | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Never before has there been such anticipation ahead of a WNBA season. It’ll be a busy opening day of action, with four games on the slate – including Caitlin Clark’s Indiana Fever debut at 7.30 p.m. 1 pick in April’s 2024 WNBA draft. But now Clark will lace up her shoes for her WNBA debut when she and her Indiana teammates travel to Connecticut to face the Sun. Angel Reese will look to impress in her debut season for the Chicago Sky.

Persons: Caitlin Clark’s Indiana, Clark, TickPick, Caleb Williams, ” Clark, “, Gregory Shamus, Lin Dunn, Los Angeles Sparks –, –, Cameron Brink, Rickea Jackson, Sparks, Jackson, Angel Reese, Melissa Tamez, Kamilla Cardoso, Reese, Cardoso, A’ja Wilson, Kelsey Plum, Alysha Clark, Candance Parker, Sabrina Ionescu, Breanna Stewart, Courtney Vandersloot, Jonquel Jones, Sandy Brondello, Alyssa Thomas, DeWanna Bonner, Leila Lacan Organizations: CNN, WNBA, Washington Mystics, New York Liberty, Entertainment, Sports Arena, Mystics, Liberty, ESPN3, ESPN, Amazon Prime, ION, NBA, ABC, CBS Sports Network, CBS, Paramount, NCAA, Iowa Hawkeyes, Chicago Bears, Sun, Mohegan Sun, Aliyah, Los Angeles Sparks, Los, Chicago Sky, LSU, Aces, Las Vegas Aces, Las, Barclays Center . The Liberty, Vegas, Connecticut Sun Locations: Washington , DC, Indiana, Connecticut, Aliyah Boston, Boston, Clark, Boston , Indiana, Brink, Los Angeles, Chicago, Illinois, South Carolina, Las Vegas, New York, Angers, France

NEW YORK (AP) — Breanna Stewart and the New York Liberty fell just short of winning the franchise's first WNBA championship, losing to the Las Vegas Aces in the Finals. The league's MVP won the two Finals series she played with Seattle and won four NCAA championships at UConn. “Making sure that I don’t feel that again, I think that’s really my mindset and mentality going forward,” Stewart said Friday. Stewart could be an unrestricted free agent but Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb said that he would give her the franchise tag so that she can't sign a contract directly with another team. Jones, who came to New York in a trade in the offseason, is also an unrestricted free agent.

Persons: — Breanna Stewart, Stewart, ” Stewart, Jonathan Kolb, “, …, ”, Jonquel Jones, Jones, ” Kolb, Betnijah Laney, Courtney Vandersloot, Sabrina Ionescu, Ionescu Organizations: New York Liberty, WNBA, Las Vegas Aces, Seattle, NCAA, UConn, Big East, Liberty, Connecticut Locations: York, New York

Las Vegas did it without starters Chelsea Gray and Kiah Stokes, who were both sidelined with foot injuries suffered in Game 3. Las Vegas was also still missing veteran Candace Parker, who had foot surgery in late July. The Aces got the ball to Wilson on a lob, but Breanna Stewart blocked the shot, giving New York one last chance. After a timeout with 8.8 seconds left, the Liberty got the ball to Stewart, who was double-teamed. The first three games of the WNBA Finals were also routs, with New York winning Game 3 87-73 to stave off elimination.

Persons: A'ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray, Kiah Stokes, Gray, Candace Parker, “ We’ve, Alysha Clark, ” Wilson, Jackie Young, Courtney Vandersloot, York's, Kelsey Plum, Sabrina Ionescu's, Becky Hammon, Wilson, Breanna Stewart, Stewart, “, we’ve, Sandy Brondello, ” Vandersloot, Betnijah Laney, Hammon, ”, ” Stewart, ” Hammon, Clark, Cayla George, Stokes, George, Ionescu, Sue Bird, Dawn Staley, Wilson —, Vickie Johnson, Sue Wicks, Jennifer Connelly, Issa Rae, Jason Sudeikis, ___ Organizations: Las Vegas Aces, New York Liberty, The Aces, Los Angeles Sparks, Houston Comets, Las Vegas, Aces, New York, Liberty, ”, Seattle Storm, New, WNBA Locations: Vegas, New, midcourt, New York, South Carolina

A look at the best-of-3 first-round series in the WNBA playoffs, which starts Wednesday:No. Season series: Sun, 3-1Game 1: WednesdayConnecticut: The Sun start on offense and defense with Alyssa Thomas, who led the league in rebounding and assists. Connecticut, which made the WNBA Finals last season, had a change in coaches with Stephanie White taking over. New York won the Commissioner's Cup championship beating Las Vegas and is now hoping to win its first WNBA title. Add to that Brittney Sykes, who is one of the top defenders in the WNBA, and Washington could cause problems for New York.

Persons: A'ja Wilson, Wilson, Chelsea Gray, Kelsey Plum, Jackie Young, Candace Parker, Kahleah, Courtney Williams, James Wade, Alyssa Thomas, Thomas, Stephanie White, Brionna Jones, Napheesa Collier, Diamond Miller, Dorka, Teaira McCowan, Natasha Howard, Satou Sabally, Arike Ogunbowale, Rhyne Howard, Cheyenne Parker, Allisha Gray, Monique Billings, Breanna Stewart, Jonquel Jones, Courtney Vandersloot, Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, Shakira Austin, Elena Delle Donne, Natasha Cloud, Ariel Atkins, Brittney Sykes Organizations: WNBA, Vegas, Aces, Connecticut Sun, NBA, Connecticut, Lynx, Dallas, Wings, Atlanta, Washington, Liberty, New York, Commissioner's, Las Vegas, Mystics Locations: Chicago, Angeles, Vegas, Connecticut, Minnesota, Atlanta, Dallas, York, New, Washington

☆ What to Know About the 2023 W.N.B.A. Season
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Sara Ziegler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Griner played no basketball during her imprisonment and is still working to get back into game shape. The off-season was dominated by free-agent signings and trades that established what could be two superteams: the Liberty and the Las Vegas Aces. The Liberty made three key moves: First, they traded with the Connecticut Sun for Jonquel Jones, the league’s most valuable player in 2021. Then they landed one of the top free agents: Breanna Stewart, the 2018 M.V.P., who had won two championships in Seattle. Those three join the returnees Betnijah Laney and Sabrina Ionescu, who have each made an All-Star team.

☆ Griner, 'superteams' in focus as WNBA season kicks off
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Amy Tennery | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW YORK, May 17 (Reuters) - Brittney Griner is back in action for the Phoenix Mercury while the New York Liberty and defending champions Las Vegas Aces are expected to usher in the WNBA's "superteam" era when a new season tips off on Friday. "It was cool, and then at the same time, I was sitting there looking around, zoned out a little bit," said Griner, who will open her season on the road against the Sparks on Friday. I mean, these are some of the best players in the league," head coach Sandy Brondello told reporters this week. She will join reigning MVP A'ja Wilson and All-Star Kelsey Plum, along with two-time champion Alysha Clark, who also signed as a free agent. Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ She’s one of the WNBA’s biggest stars. This is Brittney Griner’s stellar career so far
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Matias Grez | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Brittney Griner’s release from detention in Russia ends a nine-month ordeal and allows her the chance to restart her stellar basketball career. In total, Griner is an seven-time WNBA All-Star – only seven players in WNBA history have made more All-Star appearances. For many years, WNBA players have regularly gone overseas during the WNBA’s offseason to make the most of the higher salaries they can earn in international leagues. According to the New York Times, nearly half of the WNBA’s 144 players traveled to play abroad during the last offseason. “But negatively, there is a factor that you will be tired for the new WNBA season and this can cause injuries and, maybe, you’ll be out of the season.

☆ With Griner in jail, WNBA players skip Russia in offseason
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Brittney Griner’s highly publicized legal woes in Russia and the country’s invasion of Ukraine has the top WNBA players opting to take their talents elsewhere this offseason. For the past few decades, Russia has been the preferred offseason destination for WNBA players to compete because of the high salaries that can exceed $1 million and the resources and amenities teams offered them. Nearly a dozen WNBA players competed in Russia last winter and none of them are heading back this year. Like Stewart, Vandersloot also isn’t headed back to Russia, choosing to play in Hungary where she obtained citizenship in 2016. The Griner situation also is weighing heavily on the minds of young WNBA players.

☆ WNBA players skipping Russia, choosing other places to play
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Brittney Griner's highly publicized legal woes in Russia and the country's invasion of Ukraine has the top WNBA players opting to take their talents elsewhere this offseason. For the past few decades, Russia has been the preferred offseason destination for WNBA players to compete because of the high salaries that can exceed $1 million and the resources and amenities teams offered them. Nearly a dozen WNBA players competed in Russia last winter and none of them are heading back this year. Like Stewart, Vandersloot also isn't headed back to Russia, choosing to play in Hungary where she obtained citizenship in 2016. The Griner situation also is weighing heavily on the minds of young WNBA players.

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