Atlanta, GA
New-look Sparks fall to Atlanta in season opener
LONG BEACH — The new-look Sparks could not overcome an 11-0 run by the Atlanta Dream to start the fourth quarter and dropped their season opener, 92-81, in front of celebrities like Kim Kardashian and team owner Magic Johnson on Wednesday night at Long Beach State’s Walter Pyramid.
The score was tied at 66 through three quarters, but Atlanta seized control with its pivotal 11-0 run for a 77-66 lead with 6:29 left.
The Sparks cut Atlanta’s lead to 87-81 on rookie forward Cameron Brink’s 3-pointer with 1:34 remaining, but they missed their last four shots and had a critical turnover while Atlanta went 5 for 6 from the foul line to ice the win.
“I take it as my responsibility that a lot of the starters got tired at the end of the third quarter all at one time,” Sparks coach Curt Miller said. “I have to substitute more players at one time at the start of the fourth quarter. That 9-0 run to start the fourth quarter, ultimately, was a hard situation to dig out of but we never quit. We really battled and showed our scrappiness that we’re going to be defined by this year. It’s a great learning lesson for our young post players in Cam and Rickea to go against one of the best ever in Tina Charles.”
The Sparks made significant changes to their roster after missing the WNBA playoffs for the third consecutive season, saying goodbye to several veterans and bringing in some fresh faces in addition to their pair of first-round draft picks. Newly acquired guard Kia Nurse scored a team-high 23 points, going 5 for 11 from 3-point range in her Sparks debut after being acquired in a trade with the Seattle Storm.
“I do think for me personally it’s been a long road and a long journey coming back from the ACL (injury) and last year mentality I just didn’t feel like myself,” Nurse said. “This is a nice place to start. I think I said to my partner before the game I was like I just want to make all my family and everyone that was around me proud and he was like you need to make yourself proud. The loss is not as exciting, but it’s a proud moment to be able to play and feel more like myself out there.”
Sparks forward Dearica Hamby had a double-double (20 points, 14 rebounds), while guard Layshia Clarendon had her first career triple-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Both players said they are looking to make a major impact this season.
“I just came into camp very clear-minded and had very clear intentions on what I wanted this season to look like for me personally and what I wanted to help this team do,” Hamby said.
Clarendon said she sensed she was playing a strong all-around game but was unaware of her triple-double.
“I think it’s cool. Every game stats don’t always reflect how good you play or how hard you played, so I think it’s cool to actually see that come out,” Clarendon said. “I didn’t realize I had that many rebounds, never know assists because I don’t count them. I knew I was playing well, sometimes you make the right pass and people don’t make the shot. They told me afterward and I was a little surprised but I was like ‘oh yeah, I was ballin’ so it’s pretty cool to get that, not a lot of people do it.”
Brink, the No. 2 overall pick in last month’s WNBA draft, finished with 11 points (two 3-pointers), four assists, two rebounds, two blocked shots and five personal fouls in 20 minutes.
“Cam has to find a way to stay out of foul trouble because she’s so important to what we’re doing,” Miller explained. “She helps spread the floor offensively. She’s a really good distributor of the ball as a 6-5 person, so she can create opportunities for her teammates. Defensively, she’s great rim protection but when you play three minutes in the first stretch and have to sit down, that’s a big blow.”
Sparks rookie forward Rickea Jackson – the No. 4 overall pick last month – added seven points and three rebounds in 18 minutes off the bench.
“(Jackson) can find her own offense, that’s what’s special about her. When plays break down and people take you out of your system, she can go make plays,” Miller said. “That’s not common with everybody in the league.”
The Sparks began the game with a 24-second shot clock violation on their first offensive possession.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a rookie playing in your first ever WNBA game like Cam and Rickea will be or you’re a seasoned veteran, everybody is going to have nerves tonight,” Miller said before the game.
However, the Sparks recovered and began the game on a 9-2 run, with five early points from Clarendon, which forced Atlanta coach Tanisha Wright to call timeout less than three minutes into the game.
The Sparks’ starting lineup was Clarendon, Lexie Brown, Nurse, Hamby and Brink, who had three points and one assist early but only played 3:21 in the first quarter before exiting the game with her second personal foul.
“That starting unit was terrific … that group has had a chemistry, really quickly and we’re going to bring that bench along,” Miller continued. “The bench is better than they played tonight and they know it, we know it. We have confidence in them but really proud of that starting unit, they’ve all been asked to take on a more prominent role with this team and they’re embracing it and I can’t wait to keep working with that starting unit.”
Atlanta (1-0) was led by All-Star guard Rhyne Howard (25 points) and shook off its slow start behind Allisha Gray’s outside shooting (two 3-pointers in the first quarter) and tied the score at 26 heading into the second quarter.
Atlanta veteran center Tina Charles took over and scored 11 points in the first six minutes of the second quarter, as the Dream opened a 41-32 advantage. Charles finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds, and Gray finished with 12 points.
The Sparks responded with a 14-5 run and tied the score at 46 on a pair of Nurse free throws with 36 seconds left before halftime. Jackson stole the ball at midcourt and made a buzzer-beating layup, which tied the score at 48-all at halftime.
The Sparks shot 17 for 32 from the field in the first half (53.1%), including 7 for 14 from behind the arc. Hamby had 13 points and six rebounds at halftime. The Sparks cooled off in the second half and finished the night at 39% from the field but they had 24 assists on their 28 field goals.
“A couple things bounce our way, a couple runs go our way a little bit differently early in that fourth probably, we win that game and with that energy and that effort and the chemistry we played with today, we’re going to win a lot games in this league,” Nurse said.
Atlanta point guard Haley Jones finished with 14 points and four assists in a start for Jordin Canada, who played the past two seasons with the Sparks but missed the game with a right hand injury.
The Sparks (0-1) next play at the Las Vegas Aces on Saturday at noon in a nationally televised game on ABC.
Atlanta, GA
Conference offers safe space for gay men to unpack the stigmas, challenges of adoption and surrogacy
Dr. Algernon Cargill and Ronaldo Coxson say they were split on whether to have children when they first met. But after they fell in love and got married, they decided that becoming parents was the next step.
“We ultimately chose surrogacy because we wanted to have a biological connection to our kids,” Cargill said. “[A]nd we also heard some horror stories of families being placed with a foster family and then losing on the placement later on…”
The two say it was a rewarding experience. They now have two daughters, Elle, 7, and Grace, 2. They also have great relationships with their egg donor and surrogates. But they say that as a gay couple, the process was challenging and expensive. Cargill says they weren’t able to take advantage of certain forms of support that are more readily available to heterosexual couples and women looking to get pregnant.
“Employers and employer-sponsored health plans do cover some healthcare costs for couples suffering from infertility; that doesn’t necessarily apply to us,” Cargill said. “And so we had to purchase an insurance plan through the market and then use that to cover some of the healthcare costs of surrogacy.”
In an effort to help other men interested in surrogacy, Dr. Cargill and Coxson have opened up about their journey alongside family planning experts at the Men Having Babies Conference in downtown Atlanta. The couple appeared last year, but the conference was held in the city again in June. Organizers say their goal is to create a safe space for gay men to unpack the stigmas and challenges they face while trying to become parents. They are also working to spread awareness about the resources available to community members looking to expand their families.
Tim’m West, the executive director of the Rustin Institute for Leadership Development, was a panelist during this year’s conference and is a friend to Cargill and Coxson.
“We hear it takes a village all the time,” West said. “Well, it also takes a village for gay men that are exploring, bringing families into the world and who don’t want that negative stigma or the pushback…”
West says it’s important for friends, loved ones and allies to show support however they can.
“We use in the LGBTQ community all the time, ‘chosen family,’ ‘found family,’” he said. “Well, I think surrogacy is just something that expands that notion and sort of brings it to bear in terms of – ‘who’s going to be the family to these children that we bring into the world.”
Dr. Lauren Berman, a psychologist specializing in family planning with the Fertile Ground Psychology Group, was also on the panel.
“When people don’t understand that there are rigorous screening processes and very significant education, that there is informed consent, and that there is implications counseling, they misconstrue the idea of surrogacy, that surrogacy is exploitative of women,” Berman said.
She says unpacking misconceptions is important for helping people decide if surrogacy is right for them and their families.
“When standards are used and applied, it is a safe and actually a really loving and exciting process. And I meet a lot of surrogates and a lot of intended parents who end up just adoring each other and feeling very excited about the journey that they’ve been through together,” Berman said.
Coxson says he put effort into fostering good relationships with their daughters’ surrogates.
“It took me really good communication, I’ll tell you that,” Coxson said. “Because you have to talk to someone else and take in their journey as a part of your own, and it becomes a collaborative effort. So if you’re a control freak, surrogacy is not the way to go.”
Cargill says he and his husband will give their daughters more details about how they came into the world as they get older.
Until then, the couple says they tell their daughters they’re special—and were created with love and care.
ATLANTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – General admission tickets to FIFA Fan Festival Atlanta are sold out as temperatures hover in the 90s, with organizers urging attendees to prepare for the heat ahead of a packed Wednesday schedule.
Three matches are scheduled for Wednesday, including a U.S. Men’s National Team match in the evening, as the World Cup continues in the knockout stage. The festival at Centennial Olympic Park has welcomed nearly 400,000 visitors since the start of the tournament.
What fans should know before they go
Organizers are advising fans to wear light, loose clothing and bring hats. Neck fans are permitted, as are plastic water bottles without labels. The park opens at 11 a.m. and closes at 11 p.m. Wednesday.
“We are aware of the heat index and we want to make sure people are comfortable and safe within the park,” said Chincie Mouton, Director of Sports Engagement & Community Impact for the Georgia World Congress Center Authority.
Shaded areas, a splash pad at the Fountain of Rings, and water filling stations are available throughout the park. Some of those water stations are supplied by Third Rock Sanitation Solutions, a family-owned company based in Alpharetta.
“We believe we are absolutely life support here, because water is essential for all of us,” said Mark Slade with Third Rock Sanitation Solutions, based in Alpharetta.
The stations provide chilled, filtered water across the park.
“Without the water, let’s face it, there would be people dehydrated, falling out, there would be several problems. So, being part of that, it’s a really good feeling, heartfelt feeling,” Slade said.
Paramedics on standby
Paramedics and safety crews will be on hand should anyone become overwhelmed by the heat, organizers said.
Jason Walker and his son traveled from England to see England play Congo in Atlanta. The match will be held indoors at Atlanta Stadium. Walker said the outdoor heat was already noticeable upon arrival.
“I’m obviously suffering from it at the moment, it’s extremely hot at the moment,” Walker said.
All five remaining days of the Fan Festival are sold out for free tickets. Some paid tickets remain available. Organizers will stop admitting fans once capacity is reached — a threshold that has been hit during U.S. games being played at the park. Early arrival is encouraged.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
Courtesy of Orion Media
A new restaurant at the Forum Peachtree Corners is aiming to reframe what Persian dining in metro Atlanta can look and taste like. Created by Pooya Naraghi, Golestan leans into tradition, drawing heavily from Naraghi’s upbringing and the kind of cooking typically reserved for family tables.
The Naraghi family is best known for their Midtown Mexican restaurant El Valle, created in partnership with chef Luis Damian, but Pooya says Persian cuisine has always been the long-term goal.
“It’s close to my heart,” he says. “Before opening Golestan, the best Persian food I ever ate was my mother’s,” he says. “We want to bring those authentic, home-cooked flavors and traditions to our guests.”
The 5,000-square-foot space pairs homegrown inspiration with a polished, modern setting. Persian rugs suspended overhead, colorful tilework on the floor, florals abound, and arched doorways nod to traditional design, while an open kitchen puts the focus on the chefs at work. The result is what Naraghi describes as elevated but welcoming.
“We don’t want to modernize it too much; it’s what would you experience in Tehran in the ’70s and ’80s in terms of portions, flavors, and plate composition,” Naghari says.
Chef Victor Gonzalez Rodriguez is in the kitchen, bringing more than 20 years of experience in cooking Persian cuisine. The lamb shank, slow-braised until tender in a turmeric and dried lime broth, is a personal favorite of Naraghi, who grew up eating versions of the dish at home. Starters like mirza ghasemi, a smoky eggplant dip with tomato and garlic, are served with house-made flatbread, herbs, feta, and walnuts, nodding to the communal way Persian meals are often shared. Guests can order individual plates or ask for their food served on a shareable platter of rice dishes, kebabs, and sides. It’s a style intentionally reminiscent of dining in Iran decades ago, with an emphasis on generous portions and balance rather than reinvention.
Courtesy of Orion Media
The beverage program weaves Persian ingredients and influences throughout. Cocktails, developed in collaboration with mixologist Daryush Noorbehesht, highlight flavors such as saffron, pistachio, quince, barberry, and sour cherry. Drinks like Leila’s Lips showcase the menu’s balance of tart and aromatic elements. The wine list leans international, with selections from New Zealand, California, France, and Italy alongside lesser-known Lebanese bottles chosen for their compatibility with Persian flavors like cardamom and black tea. Beer spans both local drafts—including SweetWater and Creature Comforts—and a Persian-inspired label, Back Home Beer, brewed by an Iranian-American using family recipes.
For Naraghi, Peachtree Corners was a strategic choice. He saw a gap in the market and an opportunity to introduce something new to the neighborhood. Ultimately, Naraghi’s ambitions extend beyond one location. The name Golestan means “garden of roses,” and reflects a vision of gathering, hospitality, and growth.
“We want guests to feel as though they’ve been welcomed into someone’s home,” he says.
Courtesy of Orion Media
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