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 Hawks (15-12, eighth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Charlotte Hornets (8-18, 12th in the Eastern Conference)
Charlotte, North Carolina; Thursday, 7 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Charlotte hosts the Atlanta Hawks after the Hornets took down the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-111 in overtime.
The Hornets have gone 7-12 against Eastern Conference teams. Charlotte is 7-11 against opponents over .500.
The Hawks have gone 9-8 against Eastern Conference opponents. Atlanta ranks ninth in the league averaging 14.0 made 3-pointers per game while shooting 37.2% from deep. Nickeil Alexander-Walker leads the team averaging 2.9 makes while shooting 39.1% from 3-point range.
The Hornets average 114.8 points per game, 2.6 fewer points than the 117.4 the Hawks allow. The Hawks average 14.0 made 3-pointers per game this season, 0.7 more makes per game than the Hornets give up.
The teams play for the second time this season. The Hawks won the last meeting 113-110 on Nov. 23. Jalen Johnson scored 28 points to help lead the Hawks to the victory.
TOP PERFORMERS: LaMelo Ball is scoring 19.4 points per game and averaging 6.0 rebounds for the Hornets. Kon Knueppel is averaging 29.0 points and 4.0 rebounds over the last 10 games.
Onyeka Okongwu is averaging 16.1 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists for the Hawks. Dyson Daniels is averaging 27.0 points and 10.0 rebounds while shooting 68.4% over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Hornets: 4-6, averaging 112.1 points, 42.8 rebounds, 24.6 assists, 6.9 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 45.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.5 points per game.
Hawks: 5-5, averaging 118.7 points, 43.3 rebounds, 31.6 assists, 9.3 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 47.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 122.2 points.
INJURIES: Hornets: Grant Williams: day to day (acl), Pat Connaughton: day to day (calf), Josh Green: out (shoulder), LaMelo Ball: day to day (ankle), Collin Sexton: day to day (thigh), Tre Mann: day to day (ankle).
Hawks: Kristaps Porzingis: out (reconditioning), N’Faly Dante: day to day (concussion), Jacob Toppin: day to day (shoulder), Trae Young: out (knee).
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
A longtime Atlanta Hawks executive has pleaded guilty in a federal fraud case, after prosecutors alleged that he stole more than $3.8 million from the NBA team over several years.
Lester T. Jones Jr., the Hawks’ former Senior Vice President of Finance, changed his plea to guilty in federal court. A sentencing date has been set for March 24, 2026, according to court records.
Federal prosecutors charged Jones with one count of wire fraud, alleging he carried out the scheme from at least May 2017 through June 2025 while working in the team’s accounting and finance department.
Jones joined the Hawks organization in 2016 and eventually became the most senior accounting executive under the team’s chief financial officer. Prosecutors say he used his position and access to the team’s bank accounts, expense reimbursement system, and corporate American Express cards to divert team funds for personal use.
According to court documents, Jones submitted — or directed others to submit — fraudulent expense reports, often using fake or altered invoices to seek reimbursement for expenses that never occurred. Prosecutors also allege he charged millions of dollars in personal expenses to company credit cards.
Those charges allegedly included luxury travel to destinations such as the Bahamas, Costa Rica, Switzerland, and Thailand, along with purchases from Louis Vuitton, Porsche-related expenses, jewelry, and sports and concert tickets.
Federal filings say Jones attempted to conceal the scheme by manipulating financial reports, altering emails, and falsely attributing large credit card balances to legitimate team operations.
Prosecutors also allege Jones exploited a weakness in the Hawks’ expense reimbursement system that, prior to July 2024, did not display actual corporate credit card transactions to employees responsible for processing reimbursements.
One example cited in court records involves a January 2025 incident in which Jones allegedly submitted a fake invoice totaling $229,968 for a team event at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. Prosecutors say no such event or charge ever occurred. They allege Jones forwarded an altered American Express email to colleagues, approved the reimbursement himself, and then used the funds to pay off personal credit card charges.
As part of the case, Jones will be required to forfeit any money or property connected to the fraud, according to prosecutors.
The case is being handled in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.
CBS News Atlanta reached out to the Atlanta Hawks organization for comment. The team declined to comment.
She’s cheer captain, and he’s in the bleachers.
Bill Belichick was in Atlanta over the weekend to cheer on his 24-year-old girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, during a cheerleading competition, TMZ reported.
Hudson was competing for Code Black, which she cheered for in a Cheer Extreme All-Stars event in Raleigh, North Carolina, in November.
Belichick sported a button-down shirt, jeans and a Navy submarine cap, while Hudson donned the Code Black uniform, as did the rest of her teammates.
Photos published by the outlet showed the two all smiles as they stood next to one another.
Hudson had also posted a video of part of the routine Code Black performed during the first day of the competition.
Belichick has not been shy about supporting his younger paramour since their relationship became public over the summer of 2024.
The University of North Carolina football coach, and six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach, attended the cheer competition in November and was there to support Hudson at the Miss Maine USA pageant earlier this year.
Hudson has been there to support Belichick throughout his first season at the helm at UNC, which drew plenty of headlines off the field.
The relationship between the 73-year-old and Hudson has generated plenty of interest and drama, aside from Belichick going 4-8 in his first season at UNC and repeated questions about whether he would leave the football program. Belichick ended up making major staff changes after the season.
Hudson created waves earlier this year when she stepped in during a “CBS Sunday Morning” interview when Belichick was asked how the pair met, creating weeks of headlines.
More recently, she has been in a back-and-forth with investigative sports journalist Pablo Torre – at one point claiming she would sue him – and last month The Post reported that Jen Belichick, the daughter-in-law of Bill – went on a nearly hour-long rant in the coach’s office about Hudson and how she was “f–king twisting” Belichick’s brain.
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