Sports
Fever’s Caitlin Clark says flying commercial will be ‘an adjustment’ as debate on WNBA flights is reignited
The debate surrounding the WNBA’s use of commercial flights has come back into the spotlight after former women’s college basketball star Caitlin Clark made her first trip with the Indiana Fever to Texas this week ahead of their preseason game against the Dallas Wings.
Video shared on social media Thursday showed the WNBA No. 1 overall pick and her teammates arriving at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.
Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark speaks with the media after the WNBA basketball team practiced in Indianapolis, Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
The immediate response from social media users was why the league wasn’t flying the team on a charter flight – something the Iowa program utilized during Clark’s time as a Hawkeye.
“It’ll definitely be an adjustment, but it is what it is,” Clark said of the issue while speaking to the media on Thursday.
“At this point of my career and across the WNBA, it is what it is. I’m sure, certainly, everybody would say that they would love to be flying charter all the time – that definitely would help a lot of problems. But I think the fever organization has done a really good job of getting out ahead of things. There’s going to be a lot of security traveling with us, there will be certain plans of how we’re going to navigate going throughout airports and things like that.”
Becoming the NCAA Division 1 all-time leading scorer, Clark helped the NCAA reach its best viewership in history for women’s basketball, with nearly 19 million fans watching the title game.
Caitlin Clark at the WNBA Draft held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on April 15, 2024, in New York. (Cora Veltman/Sportico via Getty Images)
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The hope is that it will translate to the WNBA, and if it does, it could present a safety issue at airports.
“It’s not like we’re the odd man out here. Everybody has to navigate, it and I think it’s going to cause some problems, maybe, because the popularity of our league is continuing to grow and having to navigate travel with that,” Clark continued Thursday.
“But at the same time, that’s a positive thing, too. You want people to be excited about our game. Hopefully, it changes in the near future, but for now that’s just what it is, and everybody’s dealing with the same thing. You can’t use it as an excuse.”
Caitlin Clark, #22 of the Indiana Fever, talks to reporters during media day activities at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on May 1, 2024, in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
Fever general manager Lin Dunn told reporters Thursday that the team has security measures in place, but declined to disclose the details.
“We’re certainly aware of what took place at Iowa when she traveled to away arenas, and certainly we’re aware of what happened at Ohio State, and we’re going to take all the precautions we can to make sure that not only is she safe, but that I’m safe – that we’re all safe, that all the players are prepared to be safe and secure.”
Last year, the WNBA spent $4 million on charter flights for the entire playoffs as well as for any back-to-back games during the regular season. Ahead of the draft last month, Commissioner Cathy Engelbert confirmed that the league would do the same this season.
“No one wants (charters) more than I do for these players. We need to be in the right financial position,” Engelbert said. “Just a few years ago, we were surviving. Now we’re going from survive to thrive. We want to do it at the appropriate time.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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The Sparks are finally in the win column, but the outcome was in doubt late Friday night.
Behind double-digit scoring from all five starters, the Sparks had by far their best offensive showing of the season, shooting 63.8% during a 99-95 win over the expansion Toronto Tempo.
The Tempo didn’t make things easy, cutting the deficit to two points late and later trailing by just three with 31 seconds remaining and possession of the ball. Marina Mabrey missed a three-point attempt before late Tempo fouls gave the Sparks enough of a cushion to win.
Kelsey Plum nearly claimed a double-double with 27 points and nine assists, while Dearica Hamby had 19 points with seven rebounds and Nneka Ogwumike scored 20 points.
Erica Wheeler, who started in place of Ariel Atkins (concussion), scored 10 points with seven assists and was a plus-16 as the primary ball handler after starting the season two for 16 from the field. That freed up Plum to be in position to score, setting up a much more efficient Sparks offense.
Toronto was shorthanded in the frontcourt without starting center Temi Fagbenle (right shoulder), and the Sparks trio of bigs had a field day with 54 points in the paint.
The Sparks came out firing on Friday, opening with a 17-2 run.
The Tempo went on a 10-0 burst heading into the second quarter but the Sparks countered to maintain momentum and led 46-38 at halftime.
A Wheeler three-pointer early in the third quarter gave the Sparks a 20-point lead. The Tempo cut it to three midway through the fourth while Brittany Sykes (27 points, seven assists) sparked Toronto’s rally. The Tempo put up more shots than the Sparks, 70-58, largely because of a 10-2 offensive-rebounding gap.
Cameron Brink’s 10 points were the only ones provided by the Sparks’ bench, while the Tempo got 42 points from reserves.
Toronto was coming off its first win in franchise history on Wednesday when it defeated Seattle but struggled against a more complete offensive team in the Sparks.
In her return to Los Angeles after winning a national championship with UCLA this spring, Tempo rookie Kiki Rice netted 11 points.
Kate Martin made her Sparks debut as a developmental player with Atkins and Sania Feagin (lower left leg) unavailable and picked up one rebound in six minutes.
The Sparks will face Toronto again on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena.
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The WNBA season has been in session for about a week, so it is far too early to make assumptions about teams. That doesn’t mean we won’t make them; it’s just too early to really believe it. I lost my first WNBA bet this season, so I’m hoping to avenge that loss here as the Sky take on the Mercury.
The Chicago Sky are one of the most poorly run franchises in basketball. They have had some great names on their team and only one championship to show for it.
Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner shoots over Indiana Fever guard Aerial Powers in the first half at PHX Arena. (Rick Scuteri/Imagn Images)
There really isn’t a clear indication of what is wrong with the franchise, but they’ve never been able to retain their talent. Aside from Kamilla Cardoso, I can’t name a player on this team that they’ve actually drafted. They just seem to get good players and then show them the door.
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Even though they’ve had questionable front office decisions, they seem to have put together a solid team for this season – something I didn’t expect before the season started.
They are 2-0, which is too early to really say they are a good team. I also want to reserve judgment until they face a team with a longer history than last year. The Portland Tempo played their first-ever game against the Sky, and Golden State was good last year, but still is in just their second season of existence.
The Phoenix Mercury are actually considered one of the best franchises in the league. I’m sure there are issues that people have reported, but for the most part, they have good facilities, and people want to play for their team. They made it all the way to the WNBA Finals last season before falling to the Las Vegas Aces. This year, they are looking to restart that journey and see if they can win the last game of the year.
Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper dribbles the ball in the second half at CareFirst Arena in Washington, D.C., on July 27, 2025. (Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images)
It will need to come with some better play than they’ve shown through three games this year. They are just 1-2 for the year with a 0-1 home record. The lone win was a blowout victory over the Aces (a clear revenge game if we’ve ever seen one). Then they lost the next two games against Golden State and Minnesota. Losing to the Lynx wouldn’t be a problem, but they didn’t have Napheesa Collier, who still has an ankle injury.
I expect the Mercury to make some adjustments for this game. They haven’t looked very crisp to begin the year, but they’ve been strong on offense, averaging 87 points per game.
The Sky are going to keep relying on their offense to do just enough and their defense to lock in. The Sky do have an edge on the interior, so they can get buckets fairly easily down low. I like the over 166.5 in this game.
Chicago Sky guard Skylar Diggins chases the ball during the fourth quarter against the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on May 13, 2026. (Bob Kupbens/Imagn Images)
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I also think it is worth betting on Kahleah Copper to go over her point total. Copper had two rough games before she broke out in the last game. Now she has the same sight lines and can attack the bigs from the Sky with her athleticism. Since going to Phoenix, she has scored 29, 7, 16, 25 and 28 points in five games against them.
For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024
Tom Harp has been coaching volleyball at Granada Hills High for so long that few remember he won a City Section championship as a co-head football coach with Darryl Stroh in 1987.
In the 1990s, he turned exclusively to coaching boys’ and girls’ volleyball, winning a combined 15 City titles and making 28 finals appearances. The top-seeded Highlanders will try to deliver a seventh Open Division championship on Saturday when they face West Valley League rival Chatsworth in a 4 p.m. final at Birmingham.
The league rivals split their two West Valley matches, with each going five games. Chatsworth knocked off 17-time champion Palisades in the semifinals. MIT-bound Grant Chang is Chatsworth’s 6-foot-6 powerful outside hitter.
All-City volleyball player RJ Francisco of Granada Hills shows off his hitting skills against Chatsworth.
(Craig Weston)
Granada Hills has RJ Francisco, who had 19 kills in a win over Chatsworth.
The Southern Section Division 1 final is Friday night, with Mira Costa taking on Loyola in a 7:30 p.m. match at Cerritos College.
Regional and state playoffs begin next week.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
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