Sports
Sparks’ Dearica Hamby utilizes strong mentality to thrive in L.A. and inspire teammates
Dearica Hamby watched as her shot from the free-throw line fell perfectly through the hoop during warmups Wednesday. Swoosh. Her next one missed the basket, but her expression didn’t change.
Learn and move on. It’s a familiar sentiment for the Sparks.
After being traded by Las Vegas during her pregnancy in January 2023 — a move she contested and labeled discrimination, leading to a two-game suspension of Aces coach Becky Hammon — Hamby is having a hard-earned moment in her second season in Los Angeles. Nine games into this season, the two-time All-Star entered Sunday’s matchup with the Aces averaging 36.3 minutes, 20.6 points, 11.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals — all ranking in the top 10 in the WNBA.
“I’ve learned a lot and been through a lot on and off the floor, so I just have a different mind-set coming in,” said Hamby, a 10-year veteran who won a title with the Aces in 2022. “My confidence is really high coming off of the kinds of things I’ve done in the offseason to better myself. My teammates and coaching staff believe in me.”
It’s a belief that is welcomed after a turbulent exit from Las Vegas. Hamby, who was the sixth player of the year in 2019 and 2020 before developing into an All-Star in 2021 and 2022, announced at the Aces’ championship parade that she was expecting her second child, and her pregnancy appeared to create a rift between her and the organization.
In a statement on Instagram on the day the trade was announced, Hamby wrote she was “heartbroken” about the way her tenure in Las Vegas ended, accusing the Aces of bullying, manipulation and discrimination.
After months of investigation, Hammon was suspended without pay for comments she allegedly made to Hamby about her pregnancy that violated league and team respect-in-the-workplace policies. Hamby, who gave birth to her son Legend in March 2023, went on to play all 40 games for the Sparks last season, starting 19, while averaging 8.9 points and 5.9 rebounds.
This season, as a veteran leader on a rebuilding team, the 6-foot-3 forward has been a staple of the starting lineup and putting up career-best numbers.
“[Hamby] has been excellent out of the gate,” Sparks coach Curt Miller said. “A full season out of her pregnancy she’s playing really determined, confident basketball and she’s just playing really great. Can’t say enough good things about her. She came in with a chip that she was going to take it to another level and it’s been great to see her back.”
While it’s still early in the season, teammates already say Hamby should be in the conversation for most valuable player. According to first-round picks Rickea Jackson and Cameron Brink, the WNBA champion Hamby’s hard work at practice is an example they look to every day.
“Her relentlessness has contributed to her stellar season,” Jackson said. “Coming from the Aces, I feel like she comes in with a chip on her shoulder to prove everyone wrong and show the type of player she really is. She wants to make her teammates proud. She’s been working so hard and you can see that. She’s a person I look up to so much and she’s always there for me. I’m proud of the season she’s had and she truly deserves it.”
Hamby has used her experience to guide the younger players through professional life both on and off the court. She’s a source of advice and a player who leads by example.
“I do my best, as a mom, to check in on them and see how they are doing and see if I can help in any way,” Hamby said. “They are being very transparent on their end so I appreciate it. I also try to be tough out there to show the way. I’m not perfect, but I try to compete and try as hard as I can. Do the little things, have a tough mentality and hopefully they follow.”
Hamby is part of a young Sparks team that has struggled to find its groove because of a lack of offensive consistency. Off the court they have great chemistry, but on the court it still is developing.
Even so, Miller is confident that game experience will help the team succeed together.
“A lot of new people are learning our system, but we have really good people and that’s the most important part,” Miller said. “[Hamby] is leading in her role certainly from the post position. The confidence of what it takes in this league to be successful and she’s leading by example. She’s teaching our young players how hard it is to win in this league.”
While she dreams of another championship, Hamby realizes it could take time. For now she’s focused on taking it week by week and helping her team win. It has been a strong start for the veteran, and the most important thing is continuing the momentum.
“I just want to win, first and foremost, and I feel like if I play the way I am, that will turn at some point.” Hamby said. “We still need to clean up the turnovers. It’s still been a month, still a new group, a young group, learning new roles. There’s things to be happy about but also things to improve on.”
The Cleveland Browns, rumored to be willing to trade down from their No. 6 overall selection in the 2026 NFL draft, did just that Thursday evening when the traded the pick to the Kansas City Chiefs.
Cleveland traded the sixth overall pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft to the Chiefs, in exchange for the ninth overall pick, as well as pick No. 74 in the third round and No. 148 in the fifth round.
The Browns now hold the No. 9 and No. 24 picks in the first round of the draft. They have a total of 11 picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson of the Cleveland Browns watch from the sidelines during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sept. 7, 2025. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
So the Chiefs gave up three picks in making the first trade of the first round.
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And we know what the fan bases of both clubs were thinking prior to the selection:
Chiefs fans were thinking we know something they don’t. And then the Chiefs selected cornerback Mansoor Delane from LSU — a move no doubt forced by the club’s trade of Pro Bowl cornerback Trent McDuffie to the Los Angeles Rams earlier in the offseason.
So, the Chiefs fill a major need, assuming Delane is indeed the quality corner they believe.
LSU Tigers CB Mansoor Delane celebrates a defensive stop against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium in South Carolina. (Ken Ruinard/USA TODAY Network)
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ESPN’s Mel Kiper didn’t like the pick, by the way. He had Delane as the 14th best player in the draft.
“It was a necessity,” ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, a former NFL defensive back, responded.
Browns fans weren’t thinking that way.
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They were probably thinking something akin to “We screwed up.”
This is understandable because they’re Browns fans and this could have been the Browns Browning.
Well, the Browns, moving down three slots, gave up a shot to draft linebacker Sonny Styles of Ohio State to the Washington Commanders, receiver Jordyn Tyson to the New Orleans Saints and then the Browns got their chance with the newly acquired No. 9 pick:
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Offensive tackle Spencer Fano of Utah.
Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, Ind., on Feb. 24, 2026. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
Fano is good. And he makes the Browns offensive line instantly better because he’s going to likely start at left tackle for them.
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So what will Browns fans think of this pick?
They’ll probably wonder why the Browns didn’t pick Miami’s Francis Mauigoa, who went with the No. 10 pick to the New York Giants and promised “to die for” Jaxson Dart if necessary. They’ll wonder this because Browns fans expect the worst.
UCLA women’s basketball team has added some star power as its revamped roster begins to take shape.
Former Iowa State forward Addy Brown announced Thursday she is committing to UCLA, giving the Bruins one of the top players in the portal.
Brown averaged 11.9 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 43.1% from the floor and 33.8% from three-point distance with the Cyclones last season. She played just 21 games due to injury, but she is one of the better two-way players in the nation on the transfer market.
The 6-foot-2 forward co-starred with Audi Crooks for Iowa State the past few seasons and was a part of the mass exodus from the Cyclones’ program.
The Bruins reeled in former North Carolina junior guard Elina Aarnisalo and former Texas Christian senior guard Donovyn Hunter a few weeks ago, adding two more experienced players to the depleted starting lineup after a record six UCLA players were selected in the WNBA draft.
UCLA also signed Arkansas sophomore guard Bonnie Deas earlier this month. She is likely to start at point guard for the Bruins and is one of the best rebounding guards in the nation.
Along with returner Timea Gardiner, the Bruins are starting to form somewhat of a core to defend their national championship. Gardiner was a starter during UCLA’s 2024-25 Final Four run, but missed all of this past season with injury and has one season of eligibility left.
A lineup with Deas and Aarnisalo in the backcourt, Hunter at the three and Gardiner or Brown at the four and adding another big or Sienna Betts at the five would be a competitive lineup in the Big Ten.
Before going to TCU, Hunter played two seasons at Oregon State where she earned All-Pac-12 Defensive Team honorable mention and All-Pac-12 Freshman team honors. This past season with a Horned Frogs team that went to the Sweet 16, she was third in scoring with 10.2 points per game and averaged 3.2 rebounds per contest. She also shot 45.7% from the field and was 33.7% from beyond the arc.
Aarnisalo played her freshman year in Westwood after she originally committed to UCLA in 2025. Due to injuries from point guard Kiki Rice at the start of the 2024-25 season, she was forced into action early her freshman season and finished the year averaging 5.1 points per game.
The Helsinki, Finland, native averaged 10.2 points per game for the Tar Heels as a sophomore last season while shooting 47.3% from the field and 40.3% from the arc. The Bruins will desperately need to replace the three-point production lost with the departure of Rice, Gianna Kneepkens and Charlisse Leger-Walker.
UCLA coach Cori Close said she wanted to sign five players from the portal. She probably needs one more guard and a little more forward depth coming off the bench following the departures of Gabriela Jaquez and Angela Dugalic.
Lena Bilic and Amanda Muse are returners coming off the bench who got a little bit of playing time in the tournament and should have much larger roles, but they are still relatively unproven in late-game situations. They will get a chance to develop as backups with some more Power Four experienced starters now in the fold.
Trump says there’s ‘no time frame’ to secure Iran deal
Republican Minnesota Senate candidate Tom Weiler joins ‘Fox & Friends’ to discuss President Donald Trump’s blockade in the Strait of Hormuz as the U.S.-Iranian conflict continues and react to Gov. Tim Walz’s, D-Minn., criticism of the president.
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Saudi Arabia was among the countries seeing missiles fly into their airspace as a conflict broke out in the Middle East between the U.S. and Iran.
The prospect of Iran targeting its Middle Eastern neighbors like Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates put some sporting events on hold and questioned others. Formula 1 races in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain were canceled and rumors swirled around whether future WWE events could be held in the kingdom.
Roman Reigns celebrates his win during WWE’s Royal Rumble at Riyadh Season Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 31, 2026. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
As the Trump administration brokered a ceasefire with Iran, WWE announced on Thursday that its Night of Champions premium live event will be held in Riyadh on June 27.
“We are proud to welcome Night of Champions back to Riyadh and look forward to delivering another unforgettable night of WWE action for fans in the Kingdom and around the world,” General Entertainment Authority chairman Turki Al-Sheikh said in a news release.
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Sami Zayn makes his entrance during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
The release touted that WrestleMania 43 will still be held in Riyadh in 2027. It will be the first time that WrestleMania is held outside the U.S.
WWE president Nick Khan was adamant before WrestleMania 42 that the event will still take place in Saudi Arabia despite the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
“We’re doing WrestleMania next year in Saudi,” he said at a Sports Business Journal event, via The Sporting Tribune. “First time ever, WrestleMania will be outside the United States or Canada. And we’ve had a big, fruitful partnership with them.”
John Cena wrestles CM Punk during Night of Champions at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 28, 2025. (Georgiana Dallas/WWE)
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He added that those complaining about WrestleMania being held in Saudi Arabia were a “vocal minority.”
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