Minnesota Lynx fans got to witness not only a win but also the team retiring WNBA legend Maya Moore’s jersey on Saturday.
Despite Caitlin Clark’s 23 points, the Lynx held off the Indiana Fever 90-80 to win their sixth straight game. The win also clinches a playoff spot for the team.
After the game, the Lynx lifted Moore’s No. 23 jersey to the Target Center rafters in Minneapolis to applauding fans.
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Moore was drafted with the first overall pick in the 2011 WNBA Draft by the Lynx and played eight seasons in the WNBA – all with Minnesota – leading the team to four championships and was named league MVP in 2014.
Moore’s off-the-court career is even more impressive than her nearly untouchable basketball career.
She worked on the release of Jonathan Irons, a man she helped exonerate after he served 22 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. The two married in 2020 and later announced the birth of their son, Jonathan Jr.
Moore officially announced her retirement from the WNBA in 2023.
With her family, friends, former teammates and coaches in attendance, the 35-year-old said on Saturday that she was “so incredibly grateful” for everyone who came to honor her.
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“My life is an example of what it looks like when we love a little girl well,” an emotional Moore said of watching her banner being raised. “There’s no way we are watching that without love. So many people having a hand in my life to show me what life is about. That’s what I try to bring every day was life and joy because I’ve been a recipient of life and joy. And so, don’t think all the little ways behind the scenes that you love people and pour into people that it’s in vain because it’s not in vain.”
Moore added that it was a “miracle” that Irons was at the ceremony.
“So many years you watched me through your 13-inch TV with little opportunity to connect,” Moore said. “Now you’re front row, enjoying it the most.”
Moore then pointed up to the banner, and said, “Look at that. What an honor. Love you guys so much,” to a standing ovation from the crowd on hand.
Clark, 22, achieved a milestone of her own in the first quarter.
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With her hero Moore looking on, Clark reached 500 career points in just 29 games.
Ahead of the game Saturday, Clark expressed her gratitude to Moore, calling her “the person” in her life when talking about the impact she has had on her basketball career.
“She was the person for me growing up,” Clark told reporters. “Those are the type of people you want your young daughter to idolize. And it’s crazy that I get to play in this building. I played in this building in college and then playing here now, as a pro. It kind of comes full circle. But Maya (Moore) was definitely that person for me and she was obviously tremendous.”
Kevin Seifert, ESPN Staff WriterAug 24, 2024, 04:09 PM ET
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Kevin Seifert is a staff writer who covers the Minnesota Vikings and the NFL at ESPN. Kevin has covered the NFL for over 20 years, joining ESPN in 2008. He was previously a beat reporter for the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Washington Times. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia. You can follow him via Twitter @SeifertESPN.
The Minnesota Vikings open the 2024 NFL regular season at the New York Giants on Sept. 8 at MetLife Stadium.
At some positions, their core roster looks much different than it did when training camp began. The Vikings have overhauled the cornerback position, most notably by signing veteran Stephon Gilmore. Rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy, meanwhile, was lost for the season after just one preseason appearance because of a torn meniscus in his right knee.
The roster will be cut to 53 players by 4 p.m. ET Tuesday. Here is a projection for the Vikings:
QUARTERBACKS (3): Sam Darnold, Nick Mullens, Jaren Hall
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Teams no longer need to keep a third quarterback on the 53-man roster to use them as the emergency quarterback on game day. And while there might not be a high risk in losing Hall on the waiver wire, should the Vikings try get him onto the practice squad, the Vikings probably won’t take that chance after having already lost McCarthy to injury. Last season’s quarterback carousel remains fresh on their minds. With McCarthy out for the season, Mullens moves from insurance policy to likely No. 2 behind Darnold.
RUNNING BACKS (3): Aaron Jones, Ty Chandler, Kene Nwangwu
Jones and Chandler are expected to shoulder most of the load at the position. The Vikings could probably get both Myles Gaskin and DeWayne McBride on the practice squad to maintain depth. Nwangwu is expected to be the primary kickoff returner.
FULLBACK (1): C.J. Ham
Vikings coaches have once again spoken glowingly this summer about Ham and their hope to find more ways to use him on offense. He played 19.4% of offensive snaps in 2023 after getting on the field for 14.7% of them in 2022.
The Vikings hope that Addison’s ankle injury, suffered Aug. 14 in joint practices with the Browns, has healed in time to pair him with Jefferson for Week 1. Nailor and Jackson had two of the most impressive camps among Vikings players this summer, locking them into the third and, possibly fourth receiver roles, respectively. Powell has special teams value, and Sherfield has $1 million fully guaranteed coming his way, whether he makes the team or not.
TIGHT ENDS (3): Johnny Mundt, Josh Oliver, Nick Muse
This is the group the Vikings will move forward with until T.J. Hockenson is ready to return from a torn ACL and MCL in his right knee. Mundt got the vast majority of targets with the first team during training camp, as he did at the end of last season after Hockenson’s injury. Veteran Robert Tonyan was slowed by a back injury during camp.
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN (10): Christian Darrisaw, Blake Brandel, Garrett Bradbury, Ed Ingram, Brian O’Neill, Dalton Risner, David Quessenberry, Walter Rouse, Dan Feeney, Michael Jurgens
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An expected three-way competition at guard between Brandel, Ingram and Risner never materialized, largely due to an undisclosed injury that limited Risner’s availability. Brandel and Ingram took essentially all of the first team-reps, but it’s hard to imagine the Vikings parting ways with Risner altogether, assuming he is healthy. Jurgens struggled during preseason games and could probably make it to the practice squad if the Vikings need his roster spot elsewhere.
DEFENSIVE LINEMEN (5): Harrison Phillips, Jonathan Bullard, Jerry Tillery, Jonah Williams, Levi Drake Rodriguez
Five might ultimately be too low a number for this group. That would be especially true if defensive coordinator Brian Flores finds himself in more base situations than he did in 2023, when the Vikings used historically high rates of one- and two-man defensive lines. Rodriguez had a strong preseason, demonstrating good quickness at the snap, and has a chance to be part of the rotation.
LINEBACKERS (9): Jonathan Greenard, Blake Cashman, Andrew Van Ginkel, Dallas Turner, Pat Jones II, Ivan Pacie Jr., Kamu Grugier-Hill, Jihad Ward, Gabriel Murphy
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This group would seem to be the key to Flores’ ability to mix and match personnel based on matchups; most of these players can hold their own inside or outside or in other combinations. It might be tough for the Vikings to keep Grugier-Hill, Ward and Murphy, as well as 2022 third-round pick Brian Asamoah II. Murphy has missed extended time during camp due to injuries, making him a little more difficult to project.
It’s pretty wild that two of these five players — Gilmore and Moreau — were signed during training camp as the Vikings have worked to overhaul the position in real time. It’s assumed that Gilmore and Murphy will be the top two corners. Griffin missed most of camp because of a hamstring injury but will likely work on the outside, with Murphy in the slot for nickel formations. Moreau beats out rookie Dwight McGlothern, who would be a prime candidate for the practice squad.
SAFETIES (5): Harrison Smith, Camryn Bynum, Josh Metellus, Theo Jackson, Jay Ward
Smith, Bynum and Metellus will likely be part of the Vikings’ top 11 defenders, with Metellus resuming his multi-positional role. Jackson got off to a tremendous start in training camp and could force his way onto the field in some packages, while Ward moved between safety and cornerback and has value in that flexibility.
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SPECIALISTS (3): Will Reichard, Ryan Wright, Andrew DePaola
Reichard and Wright each won training camp competitions, although Reichard — a sixth-round draft pick — was always a heavy favorite to be the kicker. Coverage specialist NaJee Thompson has dealt with a knee injury all summer and might not be ready for the regular season.
Years ago, I hopped into a pickup truck — I’d never been in a pickup truck before — with two friends on a trip to Walmart in Mankato shortly after I’d started my freshman year at Minnesota State Mankato. I wanted a DVD, “Along Came a Spider,” but I needed cash, so I asked an employee to point me toward the nearest time machine.
I’d only been in Minnesota for a few weeks, and I had not realized that some of the lingo from my hometown might not make sense here. In Milwaukee, we called the ATMs “time machines” because they were actually made by a company named “TYME.”
The young staffer working at Walmart that night stared at me for a moment before he lowered his head, shrugged and said, ‘No … No, we don’t have any time machines.’” That may have been his last shift.
More than 20 summers later, I no longer call them time machines. But I still haven’t had a hot dish and the only Jucy Lucy I ever tried did not convince me that I should order another one. I’ve enjoyed a lot of great food on a stick at the State Fair, where I’ll gladly wait in a line for an hour or longer to get a bucket of Sweet Martha’s cookies this weekend. And — at age 41 — I’m known in my household for a weekly rant about disruptive construction projects in the Twin Cities. I won’t call myself a full-fledged Minnesotan, but this is my home.
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This state we all call home will undergo another examination in the months ahead as Gov. Tim Walz continues his tour of America as the Democratic Party’s vice presidential nominee. Walz resembles the image of what America believes represents Minnesota: a lot of folksy white people.
That notion, which denies the presence of this state’s immaculate Black and brown movers and shakers, is only partly true. But with a national spotlight on Minnesota yet again, I hope the full story of the state and the experiences of its diverse communities receive the attention they deserve.
Four years ago, the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder showcased the significant hurdles faced by marginalized communities in Minnesota, a state with a problematic history it had to confront before it could begin to move forward. It’s a place that often secures multiple spots on those “Best Places to Live” lists, but in that moment, the country learned that Minnesota ain’t always the best place to live for everybody.
Yet, the politicized national narrative about Minnesota — embraced by opportunists who’d hoped to falsely cast Minneapolis in particular as a dangerous cesspool that people should avoid — also stripped those diverse communities of their chance to tell the world that we should be acknowledged and heard, too.
A little slow to catch on to trends in music, the Minnesota State Fair grandstand finally discovered the popularity of hip-hop in 2012 with Wiz Khalifa.
Since then, hip-hop has become something of a staple as reliable as country and classic rock. Pitbull and G-Eazy drew sellout crowds and vociferous responses. This year, Ludacris, who grandstands on Tuesday, has sold more tickets than any other act.
On Friday, Chance the Rapper, a household name from his recent stint as a coach on NBC’s “The Voice,” became the first hip-hop artist to make a second grandstand appearance, after he opened for a sold-out Macklemore & Ryan Lewis in 2013.
The scene: Where was everybody? Chance, the pride of Chicago who sold out Xcel Energy Center in 2017, wondered about ticket sales this week when he dropped a new track, “3,333″ (3 is his favorite number; it’s emblazoned on his familiar ball cap). He questioned with 3,333 tickets sold in a place that holds nearly 14,000, if should he cancel. Heck, no.
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For the record, he drew 4,110 fans. And they stood for all 75 minutes, taking over a few choruses such as on “Cocoa Butter Kisses” and waving their arms like windshield wipers when prompted. Many of the guys at the grandstand sported ball caps emblazoned with Chance’s signature “3.” The star, however, wore a multicolored bucket hat and a Bob Marley T-shirt.
The music: Chance the Rapper, 31, who famously won the Grammys for best new artist and best rap album for a streaming mixtape (“Coloring Book”) in 2017, has not released a full-length album since his 2019 debut, “The Big Day.” Since last year, he’s been promising the new “Star Line,” and on Friday night, he played a handful of new songs. Some, such as “Stars Out” and “Bad Boys 2,” have been released, but he offered the unreleased “The Negro Problem,” which details problems associated with Black people, and he concludes anybody’s problems are everybody’s problems.
The music: Backed by three musicians and three singers, Chance delivered a performance rich in musicality. He covered a range of his catalog, from 2013′s “Everybody’s Something” to his smash hit pop collabs, 2020′s “Holy” with Justin Bieber (a disembodied voice) and 2017′s “I’m the One” with DJ Khaled and others.
Biggest takeaways: With a welcomed helping of new material as well as crowd-pleasing favorites, Chance bolstered his reputation as a deft wordsmith with a fast flow and vibrant stage presence. While his ego was sincerely bruised that he didn’t sell more tickets, he seemed genuine in his commitment to give it his all no matter how many people showed up. But he wasn’t completely familiar with his five-day-old “3,333″ because he began one bar a couple of beats too early and then caught himself.
