Sports

Anthony Davis, Zion Williamson and 9 other NBA players ready for big years

Published

1 year ago

October 25, 2024

Anthony Davis, Zion Williamson and 9 other NBA players ready for big years

Let me apologize in advance for cheating a bit.

We use the term “breakout” like it’s just spontaneous combustion, but that’s rarely how it happens. Like most reactions, usually they require a catalyst. Thus, the inherent issue about calling a “breakout” in advance is that often the term isn’t quite what we’re describing. Instead, the real breakout is one of opportunity, in the form of minutes and touches, rather than one of rapidly changing levels of play.

For example, check out last season’s Most Improved Player award winner, the Philadelphia 76ers’ Tyrese Maxey. Yes, he has made steady progress since his rookie year in 2020. But the big change for him last season wasn’t about his own game; it was about the departure of James Harden days into the season. That transaction opened the door for Maxey to become Philly’s primary on-ball initiator, increase his usage rate from 24.1 percent to 28.0 percent and up his scoring rate from 20.3 per game to 25.9.

You’ll find similar storylines littering the field when looking at my All-Breakout squad for this season, consisting of 11 players I think have a chance to significantly boost their production from a year ago.

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So, back to the cheating — I’ll also note that I cheated a second time since I already have 1/82 of the answers to the test. It’s a little easier to come up with an All-Breakout Team when you already have a peek at how minutes and touches will work for most of these teams after a few days of games.

That said, projecting breakouts can be a bit harder than it looks. Injuries, slumps and our misperceptions caused by our tiny human brains can easily send a potential breakout sideways. Take a gander at last season’s list, for instance.

I had the Most Improved Player (Maxey), but none of the other 13 players who received votes made my list. I had Anthony Edwards, Chet Holmgren and Scottie Barnes on my team, all of whom genuinely broke out … but I also had LaMelo Ball and Mikal Bridges. And then there’s Charlotte’s Mark Williams, who seemed like an easy call 12 months ago. He ended up playing 19 games.

With that said, let me bravely charge ahead into my list for this year. I tried to represent every level of the playing spectrum, so along with a few players who are already big stars, I have some deep cuts in secondary roles.

My 11-man All-Breakout Team for 2024-25:

This isn’t just me riding the wave of Davis’ dominant opening night performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves. He’s low-key been on a heater for the last few months; Davis was one of the most productive players in preseason, even when most veterans throttle down to coasting speed, and was one of the best players on Team USA’s gold-medal winning squad.

Before that, he finished his 2023-24 regular season strong and was fantastic in the Lakers’ five-game, first-round defeat against the Denver Nuggets, averaging 27.8 points on 67 percent shooting and a playoff-leading 15.6 boards. He’s also, thankfully, playing full-time as a center, which is his most productive position even if he doesn’t like it.

Health and shooting will always be the swing variables for Davis, but he’s off to a good start on those fronts as well — he even made an above-the-break 3 in the opener. The bar is high for a “breakout” here, but with 39-year-old LeBron James’ volume possibly on the downslope and few others capable of soaking up the extra chances, this could be a career year for Davis.

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Dyson Daniels, SG, Atlanta

This one isn’t the usual case of a player breaking out because of an increase in touches and shots. This is a defensive breakout, where Daniels is being thrust into a role as the Hawks’ defensive stopper. He was a force at that end in New Orleans, but his role fluctuated because of a crowded backcourt and his iffy shooting, limiting him to 22 minutes per game across 61 appearances and just 17 total minutes in the playoffs.

That won’t be the case in Atlanta, where the Hawks have been desperate for an elite defender on the perimeter. The 6-foot-8, 21-year-old Daniels is starting and likely will see big minutes as along as his offense is at least somewhat threatening. If so, he has a great chance to lead the league in steals (he had five on opening night and was second in the NBA in steal rate a year ago) and a decent shot at cracking one of the All-Defensive teams.

This one is a pure eye-test call: Williamson finished last season playing the best basketball of his career. He was in the midst of destroying the Lakers in a Play-In game when his hamstring betrayed him. All that seems to have carried over to this year, where he looks fantastic in preseason — statistically, sure, but even more so physically, exploding past people as he did as a rookie and accumulating heaps of layups.

All of this is juiced by his expected positional move to center. Even if it isn’t full-time, he should have enough reps at that spot that he can feast blowing past overmatched centers or compromising defenses as a rim-running screener if they try to match up smaller against him.

Williamson missed the Pelicans’ opener with an illness, but that should be a quick absence. I don’t know exactly how many games we’ll see of this version of him, but I’m excited about the possibility of seeing a full-ish season of peak Williamson. This feels like the season we might get it.

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Amen Thompson, positionless, Houston

Between Wembymania and Thompson’s early-season injury, the hype machine for the fourth pick in the 2023 draft never really got rolling. I think that might change this year, when Thompson has a greater chance to establish himself as a hybrid center-guard-not-sure-what-to-call-it dynamo who can blow up offenses with his switchy, twitchy athleticism and wreak havoc in transition at the other end.

There are some barriers, as we saw on opening night. Thompson is coming off the bench, and his lack of shooting is exacerbated by a roster that already doesn’t have much reliable spacing. He still has to become a more refined decision-maker to take advantage of his ballhandling and athleticism too. That said, Thompson’s fine rookie season (18.2 PER, 57.6 percent true shooting, mammoth rebound and steal + block rates) largely went under the radar a season ago, and that doesn’t figure to be the case this season on a Houston squad that should be a League Pass favorite.

Giddy only had a lukewarm opener against New Orleans’ feisty wing defenders, but I’ll stay on the bandwagon here. He should fit in his role in Chicago much more easily than he did in Oklahoma City as an on-ball creator with limited shooting gravity. That should provide him more opportunity to grow in some of the other areas (drawing fouls, defense, catch-and-shoots, etc.), where his limitations dragged him down with the Thunder. Additionally, Chicago’s situation should give Giddey a lot more opportunities to play through mistakes and develop on the floor.

Not that he’s chopped liver now. The 22-year-old is a plus passer and rebounder with an excellent floater game and good court vision, and for what it’s worth, he’s also one of the best inbound passers in basketball. That he’s also playing for a contract after he and the Bulls didn’t reach an extension this past week is another reason to believe in him taking a big step up.

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Just because it’s obvious doesn’t mean it isn’t true. The Thunder badly need a secondary shot creator to step up, especially with the aforementioned Giddey gone, and Williams is the clear candidate to soak up a lot of those touches and shots.

He’s also shown the capability of being a player who can handle that added responsibility efficiently, as he’s proven up to the challenge at each step of his development in his first two seasons with the Thunder. Again, it’s not just about the opportunity here, but about Williams having the talent to sustain a greater role on a winning team. For what it’s worth, Williams was awesome in his four preseason games, with a 30.1 PER on 66.3 percent true shooting.

If a tree falls in the forest and nobody hears, it, does it makes a sound? What if, instead of a forest, it’s Canada?

Barrett was already showing signs of turning a corner last season in New York, then played significantly better after the trade in Toronto. Nobody noticed because it happened in the general destitution of the Raptors’ 2023-24 season, but Barrett is becoming a dude.

In 32 games as a Raptor, Barrett averaged 21.4 points per game and shot 60.5 percent on 2s. The eye test backed it up; there was more comfort and control in the finishing, more nuanced shot selection and distribution and even (gasp) the occasional right-handed attack.

He built on that in the summer by arguably being Canada’s second-best Olympian, averaging 19.8 points on blistering 70.1 percent true shooting. While we didn’t see him in preseason due to a sprained AC joint, he’s listed as day-to-day and expected to rejoin the action soon, so it shouldn’t slow him down too much.

Entering his age-24 season, on a roster with basically four real players and some serious question marks, Barrett should have plenty of room to explore his limits and continue refining his hard-charging downhill game.

Tre Mann makes a move against Miles McBride and the Knicks. (John Jones / USA Today Network via Imagn Images)

Mann is single-handedly trying to bring baggy back. Seeing him on the court in his 178-pound frame and size XXXXL jersey and shorts, it looks like one of those in-game promotions where they have kids put on an NBA player’s uniform then run around and try to score a basket.

Mann, however, is pretty good at the latter part. He scored 24 points in Charlotte’s upset of Houston on opening night, continuing a positive stretch of basketball dating to his trade from the Thunder last spring. Mann was one of the league’s most effective players statistically in preseason, which does have some predictive value, and quietly averaged double figures in 28 games for the Hornets at the end of last season.

This was a bit of a surprise, as he had struggled to gain traction for three years in Oklahoma City, and it’s possible his lack of size for a two guard and limited playmaking for a point guard restrict him going forward. As with Giddey above, there’s also a financial incentive. The Hornets could have extended Mann this past week (he’s on the last year of his rookie deal) and instead opted to wait and gather more information.

I’m not even cheating on this one because the Nuggets hadn’t played yet when I wrote this. But Strawther seems to be at the right nexus of opportunity and production. He was eighth in the NBA in preseason scoring, and the Nuggets desperately need him to fill a void in the wing rotation created by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope’s departure. He also has the specific skill set they most crave, as a high-volume 3-point shooter on a team that was last in 3-point rate a year ago.

Strawther’s rookie season with the Nuggets was mostly spent watching, and his NBA minutes didn’t go all that well with an 8.2 PER and 29.7 percent 3-point shooting. However, the 22-year-old from Gonzaga has thrived in other settings — he’s had two strong summer leagues in addition to his 2024 preseason — and small-sample shooting variance explains much of his poor stats from 2023-24.

Cam Thomas’ green light, Brooklyn

I’m not sure whether this qualifies as a genuine breakout or just something that’s going to be fun as hell to watch. But if we’re talking about touches and opportunity? Sheesh. Thomas had 36 points on 27 shots opening night in Atlanta, and if you look at the Nets’ roster, that trend line seems likely to continue. There’s just nobody else on the team who can create shot volume like Thomas, and the volume will only increase if Brooklyn moves Dennis Schröder’s expiring contract.

Thomas has always been a high-volume player, ranking sixth in the league in field goal frequency a year ago. However, the criticism was about quality, not quantity. In the past, there have been too many tough 2-point jumpers and little in the way of playmaking, both of which dragged down his efficiency. Thomas corrected some of that in the opener, getting off 13 3-point attempts and making seven, and interjecting at least a couple of passing reads that let you talk yourself into growth there.

After 48 hours, he was third in the NBA in field goal attempts and second in scoring. With few other options on the Nets’ roster and operating in a contract year, Thomas may stay near the top of both columns all season.

This isn’t quite on Thomas’ level, but Powell is in a contract year and looks set to re-establish at least some of his value on a Clippers team that really needs his scoring. Or maybe, as a “Cheers” fan, I just like to yell out “Norm!” occasionally.

Either way, Powell will be the second option next to James Harden for as long as Kawhi Leonard is out. When Leonard returns, Powell will likely revert to a sixth man role. A 17-point, four-assist opener in Phoenix is a good start for this trend line, and Powell did this while going 1 of 7 from 3 (he’s a 39.4 percent career shooter from distance).

Powell has the added benefit of no longer having to watch the Russell Westbrook show when he checks in with the Clippers’ subs. Instead, with Leonard injured and Paul George departed, it mostly will be his show any time Harden is off the floor. While Powell thrives best as a secondary scorer rather than a get-out-of-my-way guy, he’ll also have significant overlap with Harden where he can thrive off the ball. At age 31, he could end up threatening his career-high scoring average of 19.6 from back in Toronto.

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(Photo of Anthony Davis and Zion Williamson: Tyler Kaufman / Getty Images)

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Sports

World Baseball Classic final attracted historic viewership with over 10M watching on FOX

Published

4 hours ago

March 20, 2026

Press Room

World Baseball Classic final attracted historic viewership with over 10M watching on FOX

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Venezuela defeated Team USA, 3-2, in the World Baseball Classic (WBC) final Tuesday, and the game was historic in more ways than one.

Venezuela won its first-ever WBC title, and players flooded the field with emotion and pride as they celebrated the thrilling victory.

History was also made during the telecast when 10,784,000 viewers watched the final on FOX and FOX Deportes.

It became the most-watched WBC telecast of all time.

Fox Sports broadcaster Tom Verducci interviews MVP Maikel Garcia of Venezuela and his translator after a 3-2 victory against the United States at loanDepot Park March 17, 2026, in Miami, Fla. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

The telecast averaged 10,228,000 viewers, while hitting its peak at 12,148,000 from 10:30-10:45 p.m. ET on FOX.

This number was up 128% from the Team USA-Japan WBC final on FS1 during the 2023 tournament, when Shohei Ohtani struck out Mike Trout to seal a third WBC win for his country.

TRUMP RAISES EYEBROWS WITH ‘STATEHOOD’ COMMENT AFTER VENEZUELA BEATS THE US IN WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC

While this game had all the thrills, the WBC turned out to be an exciting tournament from the very start with pool play.

Whether it was feel-good stories like Ondřej Satoria’s standing ovation from Japanese fans at the Tokyo Dome during his final outing for Czechia or Italy’s espresso machine home run celebration, viewers from all over were tuning in to watch magic happen on the diamond.

Fox Sports broadcaster Tom Verducci interviews manager Omar López Team Venezuela after a 3-2 victory against the United States at loanDepot park March 17, 2026, in Miami, Fla. (Megan Briggs/Getty Images)

The tournament averaged 1,294,000 viewers across FOX, FS1 and FS2, making it the most-watched WBC in its 20-year history on English language networks.

It looked like Venezuela was going to shut out Team USA, which had just two hits and four base runners in the bottom of the eighth inning when Bryce Harper walked to the plate.

The game turned on its head when Harper belted a two-run homer to tie the game during the peak viewing window.

Venezuela, though, never blinked. Eugenio Suarez hit a rope to left-center field, scoring the game-winning run with a double.

Members of Team Venezuela celebrate with their gold medals after defeating the United States 3-2 at loanDepot Park March 17, 2026, in Miami, Fla. (Al Bello/Getty Images)

Daniel Palencia closed things out for Venezuela, sealing the win with a strikeout of Roman Anthony. The party ensued for Venezuela at loanDepot Park.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Scott Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital.

Sports

High school baseball and softball: Thursday’s scores

Published

5 hours ago

March 20, 2026

Press Room

Thursday’s Results

BASEBALL

CITY SECTION

North Hollywood 5, Granada Hills Kennedy 3

Sun Valley Poly 11, Sylmar 9

Verdugo Hills 5, San Fernando 3

WISH Academy 11, Washington Prep 5

SOUTHERN SECTION

Adelanto 6, Granite Hills 4

Alhambra 10, Schurr 2

Animo Leadership 6, Compton Early College 3

Arroyo 14, Glendale 0

Banning 9, Yucca Valley 8

Beverly Hills 13, Lennox Academy 3

Bloomington 10, Carter 0

Buckley 7, Santa Monica Pacifica Christian 6

Campbell Hall 6, Brentwood 1

Chaparral 8, Citrus Valley 3

Charter Oak 3, El Rancho 2

Chino 7, Don Lugo 1

Compton Centennial 7, Lawndale 5

Covina 9, Pasadena Marshall 8

Diamond Ranch 5, Chaffey 4

Eisenhower 2, Colton 1

Environmental Charter 13, Ambassador 6

Etiwanda 2, Santa Ana Foothill 0

Gabrielino 23, Southlands Christian 4

Garden Grove 14, Rancho Alamitos 1

Glendora 14, Western Christian 3

Grace 29, Santa Clara 2

Grand Terrace 12, Arroyo Valley 0

Heritage Christian 12, Village Christian 1

La Mirada 7, Aliso Niguel 1

La Quinta 11, Rancho Mirage 0

Leuzinger 4, Culver City 3

Maranatha 12, Whittier Christian 4

Milken 4, Burbank Providence 1

Montebello 18, San Gabriel 0

Newbury Park 7, Buena 1

Norwalk 8, Sante Fe 3

Ontario 6, Montclair 3

Orange County Pacifica Christian 7, Laguna Beach 4

Palm Springs 17, Xavier Prep 4

Palo Verde 8, Bellflower 7

Redlands 15, Hesperia Christian 0

Redlands East Valley 18, Silverado 1

Rolling Hills Prep 13, HMSA 4

Rowland 3, Diamond Bar 1

San Juan Hills 11, Riverside Prep 10

Santa Clarita Christian 4, Desert Christian 0

Santa Monica 8, Calabasas 4

Santa Rosa Academy 9, San Jacinto Valley Academy 8

Shadow Hills 5, Palm Desert 3

South Hills 11, Los Altos 3

Summit 5, Rialto 1

Temecula Prep 14, SJDLCS 1

Temecula Valley 11, Trabuco Hills 0

Temescal Canyon 5, San Dimas 3

Trinity Classical Academy 7, Castaic 3

Twentynine Palms 4, AAE 2

Victory Valley 4, Barstow 3

Webb 16 La Puente 2

West Torrance 9, New Roads 0

West Valley 14, San Jacinto 4

INTERSECTIONAL

Borrego Springs 12, Anza Hamilton 0

Colorado Legend 10, La Habra 5

Eagle Rock 19, CALS Early College 1

Fullerton 14, Colorado Mullen 4

Gahr 7, Utah American Fork 1

Inglewood 16, Dorsey 1

St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 7, Port of LA 4

WISH Academy 11, Washington Prep 5

SOFTBALL

CITY SECTION

Animo Robinson 24, Animo Watts 14

Bell 11, Huntington Park 6

Bernstein 25, Contreras 12

Central City Value 18, Vaughn 14

Dorsey 21, Dymally 0

East Valley 20, Panorama 4

Garfield 6, LA Roosevelt 2

Hollywood 18, Belmont 5

Mendez 20, Roybal 8

SOCES 15, Northridge Academy 4

Triumph Charter 19, Bert Corona 1

Westchester 15, Narbonne 13

SOUTHERN SECTION

Alhambra 16, Mark Keppel 0

Aliso Niguel 4, El Toro 1

Alta Loma 6, Citrus Valley 2

Arrowhead Christian 19, Woodcrest Christian 2

Barstow 4, Victor valley 2

Beaumont 7, Rancho Verde 1

Bonita 20, Claremont 6

California 5, Sante Fe 4

Cantwell-Sacred Heart 5, Bishop Conaty-Loretto 2

Castaic 13, Golden Valley 4

Chadwick 22, Westridge 1

Chaffey 9, Diamond Ranch 0

Chaminade 7, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 6

Coastal Academy 9, Mayfield 0

Crescenta Valley 23, Hoover 0

Cypress 3, Segerstrom 0

Desert Christian Academy 11, California Military Institute 10

Don Lugo 3, Chino 2

Eastside 11, Littlerock 4

El Cajon Christian 8, Trabuco Hills 2

El Dorado 10, Mayfair 0

El Modena 9, La Habra 6

El Rancho 15, Arroyo 5

Fillmore 15, Channel Islands 4

Firebaugh 19, Hawthorne 13

Fontana 11, Bethel Christian 2

Foothill Tech 12, Bishop Diego 0

Fullerton 6, Los Altos 1

Garden Grove Pacifica 4, Anaheim Canyon 1

Gahr 10, Cerritos 0

Garden Grove 11, Westminster 1

Granite Hills 12, Adelanto 4

Hemet 16, United Christian Academy 5

Hesperia Christian 17, Immanuel Christian 2

Highland 2, Quartz Hill 1

Indio 18, Lakeside 1

Indio 14, Temecula Prep 1

Irvine University 9, San Marino 8

Jurupa Hills 16, San Gorgonio 0

Kaiser 14, Grand Terrace 5

Knight 14, Antelope Valley 1

Lakeside 7, San Jacinto 6

La Mirada 5, Valley Christian 0

La Quinta 10, Rancho Mirage 0

La Salle 13, Mary Star of the Sea 2

La Serna 16, Whittier 4

Lennox Academy 14, Compton Early College 8

Leuzinger 9, Culver City 6

Liberty 10, Linfield Christian 4

Los Alamitos 6, Huntington Beach 5

Marina 6, Edison 0

Millikan 9, Lakewood 0

Mira Costa 9, Bishop Montgomery 8

Mission Viejo 2, El Cajon Christian 1

Moorpark 14, Royal 2

Moreno Valley 9, Vista del Lago 6

Muir 18, Glendale 3

Murrieta Valley 15, Chaparral 5

Newport Harbor 7, Corona del Mar 4

North Torrance 6, Santa Monica 1

Northwood 8, Irvine 0

Oak Park 5, Camarillo 4

Ontario 5, Montclair 0

Oxnard 5, Buena 1

Paloma Valley 15, Tahquitz 2

Palos Verdes 4, El Segundo 0

Paraclete 9, Lakewood St. Joseph 4

Pasadena 19, Immaculate Heart 8

Pasadena Poly 10, Flintridge Prep 0

Rialto 18, Eisenhower 8

Ridgecrest Burroughs 31, Silver Valley 1

Riverside Notre Dame 6, United Christian Academy 0

Riverside Poly 2, Shadow Ridge 0

San Jacinto 15, Temecula Prep 1

San Juan Hills 8, Tesoro 5

Santa Ana Foothill 17, Esperanza 0

Santa Paula 18, Nordhoff 1

Saugus 3, Valencia 2

Schurr 25, San Gabriel 0

Shadow Hills 21, Palm Desert 14

Shadow Ridge 8, Louisville 4

Simi Valley 5, Newbury Park 4

St. Bernard d. San Gabriel Mission, forfeit

St. Bonaventure 20, Del Sol 0

St. Monica 16, St. Anthony 2

St. Paul 10, Bishop Amat 0

St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 18, Gardena Serra 5

Summit 20, Arroyo Valley 0

Temecula Valley 4, Great Oak 2

Viewpoint 10, Brentwood 0

Warren 9, La Palma Kennedy 1

West Covina 9, Southlands Christian 8

Western Christian 16, San Dimas 15

West Ranch 13, Canyon Country Canyon 4

Whittier Christian 3, Maranatha 1

Windward 11, Archer 8

Yucaipa 5, Rancho Cucamonga 3

Yucca Valley 19, Banning 9

INTERSECTIONAL

Anza Hamilton 10, Borrego Springs 0

Eagle Rock 6, Alemany 4

Harvard-Westlake 6, El Camino Real 3

Nevada Bishop Gorman 5, Mission Viejo 1

Nevada Spanish Springs 7, Carson 4

Rio Hondo Prep 3, San Diego 2

Riverside Poly 9, Nevada Reed 0

San Fernando 4, Tri-City Christian 3

Sierra Canyon 17, Nevada Douglas 0

Sierra Canyon 3, Nevada Reed 2

Sun Valley Magnet 7, Lakeview Charter 6

Thousand Oaks 9, Granada Hills 4

Torrance 7, Legacy 2

Trabuco Hills 4, Nevada Bishop Gorman 4

Utah Lehi 10, Carson 5

Sports

Former Wyoming volleyball star reveals how the SJSU trans scandal permanently ruined friendships on her team

Published

16 hours ago

March 19, 2026

Press Room

Former Wyoming volleyball star reveals how the SJSU trans scandal permanently ruined friendships on her team

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

As San Jose State University approaches a critical deadline in its Title IX conflict against President Donald Trump’s administration, another woman who was affected by the school’s 2024 volleyball scandal has come forward.

Former University of Wyoming volleyball star Macey Boggs said her team had been “torn apart” over a decision of whether to forfeit two matches to SJSU in 2024. The Spartans were embroiled in a national controversy at that time due to the presence of a biological male transgender athlete on the roster.

Boggs said in a recent interview the players had found out about the trans player, whom they had competed against two years earlier, in the spring of 2024. When the fall rolled around, the locker room became a hive of tension and nerves due to the two scheduled matches between Wyoming and SJSU, and disagreements about whether to forfeit or not.

Former University of Wyoming volleyball star Macey Boggs (Courtesy of Macey Boggs)

“You could tell that things got a little bit hostile,” Boggs told Fox News Digital.

“In between the whispering between each other’s back, and then we were no longer one team, one unit, it was like these two separate islands.”

Friendships were permanently ruined for Boggs and the rest of the Cowgirls, she said.

“Yeah,” Boggs said when asked if the situation “permanently ruined friendships.”

“There were some of the girls who I really enjoyed, and we got along great, and then this situation came up, some conflict came up, and ultimately we went in separate directions because of that … as soon as we played in our last game, we all went in separate directions… it was hard to maintain those relationships.”

How did it get to that point?

The first Mountain West team to forfeit to SJSU that year was Utah State, becoming the first of five conference teams to do so.

Former Utah State star Kaylie Ray previously told Fox News Digital that the decision was left up to a player poll, and the majority of players voted to forfeit.

Wyoming also left the decision up to a player vote, per Boggs. But that vote had troubling outcome for her.

“It was said that it was up to the players. So we took an anonymous vote, it ended up we were going to play because most of the girls on my team wanted to play,” Boggs said. But she and others weren’t going to play anyway, regardless of the vote.

FORMER SJSU VOLLEYBALL STAR OPENS UP ON LIVING WITH TRANS TEAMMATE WITHOUT KNOWING ATHLETE’S BIOLOGICAL SEX

“There were a few of us who were like, ‘We’re not gonna play.’ So we decided we’re not gonna play. . . . There was a lot of conflict within the team . . . and it was not something you should have to deal with on your team. . . . It just seems so silly and something that tore apart the team.”

The divide came with several difficult conversations for Boggs.

But most of the conversations weren’t necessarily ideological, over whether males should be able to play in women’s sports. Boggs said the conversations were mostly about the pain of taking two losses on their record, when they were all working so hard to make the playoffs.

It was especially hard for the seniors.

“One of the hardest conversations, there were two, one of them was a fellow senior and she said, ‘This is my fellow senior year, I don’t want it to be ruined by this. And I fully resonated with that because it was also my senior year, and it was ruined by that,” Boggs said.

“One girl was doing really well statistically in the Mountain West and the NCAA and she mentioned, ‘how is this going to affect my stats?’ And that didn’t settle well for me because I was like, ‘OK, that’s kind of selfish.’

“I understood where she was coming from … but ultimately it’s a bigger issue.”

Boggs and the players who were determined not to play the game were preparing to tell the coaches of their intent.

But just then, prior to the first match between Wyoming and SJSU on Oct. 5 of that year, the players were called into another meeting, Boggs said.

‘HORRIBLE’ MOMENTS EXPOSED FOR UNR VOLLEYBALL PLAYERS WHEN THEY WERE ROPED INTO THE SJSU TITLE IX SCANDAL

Boggs claims that Wyoming Athletic Director Tom Burman told them they were encouraged by the Wyoming state government to forfeit the game, but Burman made the final decision on the forfeit

“By the time it was time to tell the coaches, we had another meeting… It was told to us by our AD Tom Burman, so he was the one who said, ‘this is the decision that has been made, it’s been taken out of your guys’ hands. And I’m so grateful for that,” Boggs said.

Fox News Digital has reached out to University of Wyoming Athletics and Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon’s office for a response.

Public records show the university faced “outside pressure” to forfeit the match, according to WyoFile.

Gordon commended the forfeit in a statement at the time.

“I am in full support of the decision by Wyoming Athletics to forego playing its volleyball match against San Jose State. It is important we stand for integrity and fairness in female athletics,” Gordon said.

The dispute was resolved. But the consequences remain.

Wyoming went on to finish the season 17-13, losing six of their last nine games. They finished two games out of the final spot in the conference tournament, and would have made the tournament had they won their two games against SJSU. It was Boggs and other seniors’ last chance to make the tournament in their Wyoming careers.

Within the locker room, the disagreements over initial vote left rifts. Boggs and the women on her side dug their heels in deeper.

In November of that year, Boggs and teammates Sierra Grizzle and Jordan Sandy joined former SJSU volleyball star Brooke Slusser’s lawsuit against the Mountain West Conference. Slusser initially brought the scandal into the national spotlight that September, when she joined Riley Gaines’ lawsuit against the NCAA, with Slusser citing her experience playing with and rooming with trans teammate Blaire Fleming without ever being officially told of Fleming’s birth sex.

Boggs, Grizzle and Sandy joined Slusser and seven other conference players in suing the Mountain West and representative of SJSU and the California State University (CSU) system.

Boggs said the decision to take things that far earned the respect of teammates who initially voted to play the game.

Once they joined, Boggs said she told her other teammates, “‘Hey, can we talk to you guys? We’ve decided to join this lawsuit, and this is why.”

“And after that, they like totally understood . . . I think that standing up for something can be extremely scary, and something you need to be very brave and bold in.”

FORMER COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL STAR KAYLIE RAY OPENS UP ON VIRAL CLASH WITH ARIZONA DEMOCRAT SENATOR

The Slusser v Mountain West lawsuit was partially dismissed by federal judge Kato Crews earlier in March, with all charges being dismissed against the Mountain West.

However, Title IX claims and representatives of SJSU and CSU were not dismissed. Crews is reserving a ruling on those charges until after the ruling in the ongoing B.P.J. v West Virginia Supreme Court case over trans athletes in women’s sports, and the Title IX implications.

At the same time, SJSU and CSU are waging a legal war of resistance to the Trump administration’s efforts to get SJSU to resolve its alleged Title IX violations for how it handled Fleming.

After the U.S. Department of Education announced an investigation determined that SJSU violated Title IX, and offered a series of compliance points to resolve it, SJSU and CSU sued the federal government to challenge the findings.

“I laughed,” Boggs said, when she heard the news of SJSU’s lawsuit. “That seems like something that is a little bit silly. I truly believe that we even shouldn’t be having lawsuits centered around men in women’s sports.”

U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon responded to the lawsuits on March 11, giving the institutions a deadline of 10 days to come to an agreement or risk federal funding cuts and a referral to the U.S. Department of Justice.

With that deadline coming up within a week, Boggs is the latest woman to have been impacted by the scandal to speak out about the experience, joining Slusser and Ray.

Both Slusser and Ray have gone viral on social media in recent weeks after speaking out, prompting criticism and even online insults from people with pro-transgender views.

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Boggs said she’s faced online attacks from the other side ever since her decision to forfeit and join the lawsuit in 2024, and she is prepared to face more, if necessary.

“I will bare the weight all day, I will take any hate that has to come, because I truly believe in this. If you have to say these crazy things, I would rather you say them to me than those girls that I am fighting with.”

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Jackson Thompson is a sports reporter for Fox News Digital covering critical political and cultural issues in sports, with an investigative lens. Jackson’s reporting has been cited in federal government actions related to the enforcement of Title IX, and in legacy media outlets including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Associated Press and ESPN.com.