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olaqueenbeeofastrology · 4 days

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#shopping

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@givenchy

@chanel

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Almost 5️⃣8️⃣grams #18k #gold

@dior

More #goodstuff

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@gemstone-network @gemstonesilverjewelryus @gemstones @jewelry @fashion @crystalgems-blog @youtube @google @yahoo @bing @twobigblondes @consignmentcouture @christiesauctions @sothebys-pe-blog @sothebys @qvc @qvcuk @twitter @tv-moments @variety @thr @watchestobuy @watchesparadise @bestbuy @biglots @target @watchrepairlondon @vintage @watchrepair @vintagewatchesdepot @vintagewatchesandjewellery-blog @gemstone-network @baldassarreted @gemstonesilverjewelryus @gemstones @jewelry @fashion @crystalgems-blog @youtube @google @yahoo @bing @twobigblondes @consignmentcouture @christiesauctions @sothebys-pe-blog @sothebys @qvc @qvcuk @twitter @tv-moments @variety @thr @taylor13 @lizzo

@youtube @yahoo @google @thr @variety @instagram @yellowtaxi @lyft @twitter @tumblr @yahoofinance @money @fortune @forbes @wsj @dalailama @uscopyrightoffice @wholefoods @olaqueenbee @olatransits @olavay @pinkjonperry on @instagram

@vogue @ebay @thr @variety @nytimes @seattletimes @latimes @time @google @forbes @etsy @tvguide @pbs @nytimes @tissot @raymondweil @luxurywatchguy1 @calibercrown @rolex @nytimes @google @money @bestbuy @walmart @biglots @tiffanyandco @covergirl @essence @bet @mtv @bbc @cnn @espn @nba @wnba @nfl @revlon @goldmansachs @macys @gemstone-network @gemstonesilverjewelryus @gemstones @jewelry @fashion @crystalgems-blog @youtube @google @yahoo @bing @twobigblondes @consignmentcouture @christiesauctions @sothebys-pe-blog @sothebys @qvc @qvcuk @twitter @tv-moments @variety @thr @watchestobuy @watchesparadise @bestbuy @biglots @target @watchrepairlondon @vintage @watchrepair @vintagewatchesdepot @vintagewatchesandjewellery-blog @gemstone-network @baldassarreted @gemstonesilverjewelryus @gemstones @jewelry @fashion @crystalgems-blog @youtube @google @yahoo @bing @twobigblondes @consignmentcouture @christiesauctions @sothebys-pe-blog @sothebys @qvc @qvcuk @twitter @tv-moments @variety @thr @taylor13 @lizzo

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vlplum · 1 month

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WNBA

Weekly Schedule

Thurs, Aug. 15

• Mercury v. Sky — Prime | 8PM EST

• Mystics v. Lynx — ESPN 3 | 8PM EST

• Liberty v. Sparks — ESPN | 9PM EST

Fri, Aug. 16

• Storm v. Dream — ION | 7:30PM EST

• Mercury v. Fever — ION | 7:30PM EST

• Sun v. Wings — ION | 7:30PM EST

Sat, Aug. 17

• Lynx v. Mystics — CBS | 2PM EST

• Liberty v. Aces — CBS | 4PM EST

• Sky v. Sparks — WNBA LP | 5PM EST

Sun, Aug. 18

• Sun v. Dream — ESPN 3 | 3PM EST

• Storm v. Fever — ABC | 3:30PM EST

• Sparks v. Aces — NBA TV | 6PM EST

WNBA League Pass: $12.99/m & $34.99/y | USD

NBA League Pass: $14.99/m & $22.99/m | USD

#WNBA #Women’s Basketball #WBB #Basketball

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gotham--fc · 3 months

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I think the wnba should implement a “per game” price for the league pass like if there’s one game you really wanna watch and it’s only on the league pass but you don’t wanna pay the monthly or yearly price for the league pass I think they should offer a per game price like you pay $2-3 and you get access to that one singular game I think they’d get more ppl doing that especially the people who already pay for espn cbs nba tv etc that show a good portion of the games already no one wants to pay for a streaming service where they can’t watch over half the games but you’ll get people who are like yeah I wanna watch just this game I’ll pay $2 for it

Especially for the people who only watch one team the league pass is good if you wanna watch everyone but it’s not worth it for just one team bc of all the blackouts but if you’re like hey my team plays today but it’s only streaming on the league pass yeah I’ll pay for just this game

#it’s me I’ll do it #the league pass is worthless to me bc of all the blackouts #and I only really care about chicagos games #so $15 a month or $45 a year is not worth it for me when I still have to watch a bunch of games illegally #but I would pay $2 to watch the game today on the league pass #Cathy hire me #wnba

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elizabethkitley · 2 months

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ik it’s Vegas and I don’t trust betting odds but Caitlin’s odds went back up after the mystics game despite the loss. I just don’t think you can ignore that stat line and what’s she’s doing for the offensive engine of the entire team can’t be ignored.

I’m not gonna get into Angels double double streak cause I think it’s impressive!! But ESPN put out a push notification basically saying she was stat padding for the streak to continue. I think it’s a little wild to do that but I don’t think it’s gonna go down as so impressive in the long run when Caitlin is doing so much more.

and lastly (sorry it’s so long!!) but I was happy to see Cait go to the free throw a lot this game. Sometimes she lives and dies by the 3 and setting up her teammates but when they’re bricking shots and layups she needs to be aggressive driving to the paint hoping to get fouled lol

my thinking for her is to be aggressive looking for her shot in the first half of the game (that’s when her legs are fresh and 3s are falling) and then drive into the paint for the second half to get more points.. ppl use the “disappearing in q4” against her when it’s really she’s just fucking gassed.

when you're putting up a statline thats was never recorded in WNBA & NBA history...that stuff is great for her roty case.

last game she absolutely ate in the 4th quarter and proved those disappearing allegations wrong. idek but it's not like she got much rest either. that type of stuff is probably going to be pretty rare though here on out though so i generally agree.

yeah i totally agree with that 3rd paragraph. i find that it's much easier for her to get in the paint whenever that shot isn't falling 9even in college this was usually the case), but then you have the conundrum of refs being blind and not calling shit so at some point it's like what am i doing this for ykwim. so that brings us back to that floater/midrange talk, i've seen flashes of them this season from her which is great.

#indiana fever #meandmyanons #caitlin clark

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beardedmrbean · 2 months

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ESPN be like, "We focus on certain teams instead of others, and largely neglect hockey entirely, because we want to focus on the teams and sports that draw the most viewers. Anyway, here's our hourly ten minutes of coverage on the WNBA."

I'm old enough to remember when women played in the NBA instead of having to have their own league.

Not many of them mind you

one in the 90's who's name escapes me right now and isn't popping up because the search keeps returning WNBA instead of NBA players, she was good though, had to be to get that far even if only for a couple seasons.

Good for getting buzz and news coverage for the NBA too,

ESPN thing I imagine there's a requirement to spend X amount of time covering womens sports even if they aren't popular and being watched.

I'd have thought this new Katlyn Clark girl would get more people tuning in just because she's all over the news and people would want to see what the deal is.

But ya ESPN thing is likely some kind of mandated minimum level of coverage or something like that

#anonymous

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garudabluffs · 4 months

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Can Caitlin Clark mark a turning point for the WNBA?

The NCAA’s all-time scoring leader Caitlin Clark begins her WNBA career on Tuesday. Caitlin Clark helped elevate the game of basketball to new heights at the college level. What impact will she have in the pros?

The NCAA’s all-time scoring leader Caitlin Clark begins her WNBA career on Tuesday.

Caitlin Clark helped elevate the game of basketball to new heights at the college level.

What impact will she have in the pros?

Today, On Point: Caitlin Clark's turning point for the WNBA.

Guests

Rebecca Lobo, women’s basketball analyst for ESPN. Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer.

David Berri, professor of economics at Southern Utah University whose research specializes in gender issues in sports.

Also Featured

Theresa Runstedtler, associate professor of history at American University. Author of "Black Ball: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Spencer Haywood, and the Generation That Saved the Soul of the NBA."

This program aired on May 13, 2024.

LISTEN 50:03 READ MORE https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2024/05/13/caitlin-clark-wnba-sports-ncaa-basketball

If you want to see superstar Caitlin Clark play live it's gonna cost you

WNBA teams will travel on chartered flights for the next 2 seasons, the league says

Caitlin Clark shines in her WNBA debut, a preseason sellout

NBA Play-In tournament begins; Caitlin Clark taken first in WNBA draft

%%title%% WNBA Star A’ja Wilson Blasts Caitlin Clark’s Endorsements, Plays the Race Card May 13,2024

"There is one big reason that Clark had an edge over other long-time WNBA stars. As Fox Sports noted, Clark has had the benefit of big-dollar name, image and likeness (NIL) deals that college athletes are now allowed to sign. So, Clark already has deals with advertisers, deals and contacts that others did not have.

Clark is not alone in having this advantage. Her college rival, LSU's Angel Reese, and LSU teammate Flau’jae Johnson, both of whom are black, also have these deals.

But beyond all this, Clark is an amazing talent and it is her talent that brought her such recognition. Not her race. If Clark was a middling player, but was still being showered with praise, maybe Wilson and the detractors would have a point. But Clark now has some of the top college records in history. And she has earned them."

READ MORE %%title%% WNBA Star A’ja Wilson Blasts Caitlin Clark’s Endorsements, Plays the Race Card (msn.com)

#WNBA #Caitlin Clark #2024 season

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razorroy · 5 months

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A Date To Remember

On June 9, 1978 the NBA held their thirty second annual entry draft. The sixth pick in the first round that year was foward Larry Bird of Indiana State, selected by the Boston Celtics. Bird stayed one more seaon at Indiana State. His senior year. The Boston Celtics would have to wait one more year for their new addition.

The follwing year on June 25, 1979 the first selection of the thirty third NBA draft was a point guard named Ervin "Magic" Johnson Jr. from Michigan State. The Los Angeles Lakers held the rights to the first overall selection and thus selected the 6 foot 9 inch future Hall of Famer Johnson to pair with their other future NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul Jabbar.

The 1979 NBA season saw the begining of the famous rivalry between the two NBA greats Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird. A rivalry that lasted for more than a decade. Producing a combined: eight NBA championships, six NBA MVP season awards, five NBA MVP finals awards, 24 NBA All-Star game selections, three NBA All-Star MVP awards, and eighteen All-NBA First Team selections. Both were elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Sunday, April 7, 2024 saw the conclusion of the 2024 NCAA division 1 women's basketball tournament. A tournament that was supported by record television viewership. The final between the undefeated South Carolina Gamecocks and Iowa Hawkeyes featuring Caitlin Clark, averaged approximately 18.7 million viewers. A combined 24 million viewers between two networks: ABC and ESPN! This day also recorded for the very first time, the women's title game outdrawing the men's final in viewership!

An enormous success assured. But what comes next? Obviously the start of the WNBA season. However, the WNBA hasn't ever come close to the viewership numbers achieved by the 2024 women's NCAA tournament. Change however is about to happen.

Monday, April 15, 2024 was the day Caitlin Clark of the Iowa Hackeyes was drafted by the WNBA's Indiana Fever. A moment that could very well be the beganing of a golden generation for the women's national basketball association.

Now I'm not suggesting that we will see 18 to 24 million tune in to see a WNBA regular season game. Yet I do feel there will be a spike in ratings that has nothing to do with curiosity. The WNBA is a league that already has well established stars and is now about to get an injection of exciting new talent. Caitlin Clark may be the most recognizable name to enter the league this season. But she isn't the only skilled player joining the league this season. Kamilla Cardoso, Rickea Jackson, Cameron Brink, Angel Reese, and Aaliyah Edwards are just a few of the talented players that are about to begin applying their talents this season. A season that launches on May 14th.

Add the 2024 Paris Olympic games this summer. The women's Olympic basketball tournament opens play on July 28th. Some of the WNBA's best will be on showcase for team USA. Players like: Ariel Atkins/Washington Mystics, Aliyah Boston/Indiana Fever , Napheesa Collier/Minnesota Lynx, Kahleah Copper/Phoenix Mercury, Rhyne Howard/Atlanta Dream, Sabrina Ionescu/New York Liberty, Jewell Loyd/Seattle Storm, Kelsey Plum/Las Vegas Aces, Breanna Stewart/New York Liberty, Diana Taurasi/Phoenix Mercury, Alyssa Thomas/Connecticut Sun and Jackie Young/Las Vegas Aces. For those who miss the start of the WNBA season. Or for those that didn't watch the women's NCAA basketball tournament, but do watch and cheer on the United States during the Olympics. The cheering doesn't have to stop, once the Paris games have concluded. The WNBA will be entering the final month of their regular season when the Paris games conclude. A chance for many to jump on board just in time for the playoffs.

The Caitlin Clark frenzy for her final collegiate season that began on November 6, 2023 didn't end on April 7, 2024. Clark may be the spearhead for the heightened interest in women's basketball. But she isn't the only reason for the sudden enthusiasm.

Magic Johnson needed Larry Bird. Larry Bird needed Magic Johnson. Caitlin Clark's rivals are still to be determined. Those rivalries will create drama and increase television ratings and attendance. An overall increase in popularity for the WNBA. Which equates to money. Money = Everyone wins. And this is the date so many are waiting for.

#Caitlin Clark #WNBA #Paris 2024 #2024 Summer Olympics #2024 Olympic Games #2024 NCAA division 1 women's basketball tournament #Razor Roy #Razor Roy Matthews #Roy Matthews

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fruitbasketball · 4 months

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hey! just wanted to say that i’ve been following your blog for awhile despite just getting tumblr and i REALLY enjoy watching your breakdowns and commentary as both a former player and a (hopefully future) coach! i always get a kick out of you, you’re hilarious and genuinely know what you are talking abt! (also a fellow steph lover and furtherer of the he can play defense Y'ALL JUST GOT TO WATCH agenda bless you fr) 💛

AWWWW Y’ALL

this was so so kind <3

mwah i love you anon you made my fucking day

just a wannabe espn commentator yapping on tumblr and y’all let me - will forever be grateful for this little community we have here

#wbb #nba #wnba #wcbb #basketball #espn #mina loves y’all fr #ask

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fiercynn · 5 months

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ESPN should be ashamed for that. The fact is, it’s not deserving of what it now has — one of the hottest products in sports. The women’s game this year attracted more viewers than the NBA Finals, World Series, college football playoffs — you name it. And while there might be a drop-off with Clark leaving for the WNBA, the chances of a significant decline seem remote at best. The reason is the abundance of elite teams and playmaking young stars, including USC freshman JuJu Watkins, who ranked second in the country in scoring; Notre Dame freshman Hannah Hildago, who was must-see TV; and South Carolina freshmen MiLaysia Fulwiley and Tessa Johnson, who just played prominent roles in winning the Gamecocks their third national championship in franchise history. And then there is senior guard Paige Bueckers, who led Connecticut to the Final Four and should be in the running for national Player of the Year next season. “I just want our game to grow. I don’t care if it’s us. I don’t care if it’s Caitlin. I don’t care if it’s JuJu or Hannah,” Staley said. “I just want our games to grow, no matter who it is. Because there’s a lot of people that are out there growing our game, a lot of programs out there growing our game. We need to continue to uplift them as well, as we take our game to the next level.” [x]

#wbb #women's college basketball #wcbb #ncaa wbb #knowing me knowing queue

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female-buckets · 2 years

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Brittney Griner's reintegration with the sport she loves and the only WNBA team she's ever known has been filled with "joy, excitement, and celebration," Phoenix Mercury President Vince Kozar told Insider.

"She wants to get back the pieces of her life that were taken away from her for a while," Kozar added. "Basketball is one of those things."

The Phoenix executive 'found out with the rest of the world' that Griner had been freed

Kozar remembers December 7, 2022 being a long day and a late night. He was in attendance at Footprint Center as the Mercury's NBA counterpart, the Suns, hosted the Boston Celtics for a game that tipped at 8 p.m. local time.

By the time the final buzzer sounded two hours later, Phoenix had suffered its biggest loss of the season — a 25-point rout so demoralizing, Suns superstar Devin Booker suggested it "should count as two losses," per the AP.

The daylight hours of that Wednesday hadn't been much more pleasant for Kozar; the slightly chilly, slightly overcast morning marked 293 days since Griner had first been taken into Russian custody. With the holidays fast approaching and end-of-year preparations in full swing, The Athletic published an article naming Griner the "WNBA Person of the Year."

The young executive had been interviewed for the story, so as he crawled into bed shortly before night gave way to morning, he ended the day by giving it a read.

"The very last line of that article — I'm paraphrasing — basically said, 'It's December 7th, and Brittney Griner still isn't home,'" Kozar recalled. "And that was essentially the last thing I read before I went to bed."

He woke up mere hours later to the sound of a phone that wouldn't stop ringing. Bleary-eyed, Kozar briefly glimpsed a screen that showed "five or six missed calls and dozens and dozens and dozens of text messages and a CNN alert and an ESPN alert and a New York Times alert" before yet another incoming call filled the display of his phone.

It was Diana Taurasi, the league legend who had spent all 18 seasons of her illustrious WNBA career with the Mercury. She had some urgent news — the same news contained in Kozar's constant stream of notifications.

It was December 8, and Brittney Griner was headed home.

"When I finally answered, that's essentially how I found out for sure," Kozar said. "And it was her call that woke me up.

"I found out with the rest of the world," he added.

Days after Griner first touched down in the US, Kozar was on a private jet to bring her home to Phoenix

"Tremendous relief" washed over Kozar as soon as he answered his phone and heard the good news. Sure, Griner's return would be great for his team — she is, after all, a generational talent and a key contributor to Phoenix's on-court success over the past decade — but that didn't even cross his mind.

Basketball had long ago taken a back seat to his concerns for Griner's "safety and her physical and mental well-being."

A Mercury mainstay for nearly a decade — a year longer than Kozar himself — the 6-foot-9 center represented so much more than points, rebounds, playoff bids, and championship rings to the leader of Phoenix's front office and the rest of his franchise. Griner was, and is, "a member of the family."

"Even after so much concern over time, none of that core anxiety ever waned," Kozar told Insider. "And so when you hear that she's on her way home, the feeling is relief because you no longer have to be worried about her safety and her physical and mental well-being."

"Anyone who's ever experienced something like that with a family member, you know you never really realize the weight that you're carrying around until it's lifted off," he added. "Certainly a lot of people who love her felt that, and the weight that we were carrying around doesn't even compare to that of her family or BG herself."

But after allowing himself a brief moment to let it all sink in, Kozar was back to work. He had plenty of preparations to make and people to reach out to: members of the Mercury, WNBA executives, and Griner's agent — Wasserman's Lindsay Kagawa Colas — among them.

On behalf of the franchise, Kozar made it clear that "anything and everything was available to BG" as she prepared to come home. One of those resources, he noted, was a private plane belonging to Sam Garvin, a minority owner of Phoenix's WNBA and NBA teams.

Griner — who had flown from Russia to the United Arab Emirates, then from Abu Dhabi to San Antonio, Texas — first arrived in her native Lone Star State to undergo physical and mental health evaluations at the Brooke Army Medical Center. But upon getting the green light to resume her normal life — whatever that might look like for her now — it was expected that Griner would join her wife, Cherelle, back home in Phoenix.

But standing nearly a foot and a half taller than the average woman in the US, the eight-time WNBA All-Star couldn't exactly be discreet walking through an airport and boarding a commercial flight to Arizona. Kozar, via Garvin, had a solution.

And "with the blessing of all the people who were helping her in San Antonio," Colas encouraged him and some other folks from the Mercury to "be on that plane to come pick her up." One week and one day after Kozar answered that fateful phone call from Taurasi, "Diana, myself, and our general manager, Jim Pitman, got on that plane and flew to San Antonio.

"It was a turnaround trip that was done in about five hours," he added. "Unforgettable, for sure."

After so many months of uncertainty, Griner and her team were able to 'pick up where they left off'

Griner knew there was a plane coming to pick her and Cherelle up from the military base and bring them back home to The Valley. But she had "no idea" that anyone she knew would be coming along for the ride.

It was a complete surprise. The night before their highly anticipated return to Phoenix, the two-time Olympic gold medalist and her wife FaceTimed with Kozar and Colas, both of whom were "keeping up the ruse."

So the next morning, when they looked up to find Kozar, Taurasi, and Pitman in front of them in Texas, they were "very, very surprised" and "so happy."

"It was a very celebratory moment," Kozar said. "There were a lot of tears shed throughout the process, but to my knowledge, there weren't any shed that morning just because there was so much joy. Joy and excitement and celebration."

Even with all that had transpired over the previous 10 months, the five of them managed to "pick up where [they] left off." And despite understandable speculation that Griner may not be ready to return to play for the 2023 season — including from Kozar himself, who was careful not to exert any pressure on the 32-year-old — the then-unrestricted free agent made it clear "as soon as we were wheels up" that she "intended to play basketball for the Phoenix Mercury" in 2023.

Right from her seat on that flight, the two-time WNBA scoring champion pushed send on an Instagram post that publicized those intentions to the world.

While Kozar and Pitman still needed to mind the rules governing free agency, they felt free to talk "about everything from the haircut she got in San Antonio, to some of her time away, to family and friends, to basketball."

"She loves basketball," Kozar said. "She wanted to talk about the team. She wanted to talk about last year. She wanted to talk about this year."

"It's one of her loves, and she's been excited to talk about it every time I've seen her," he added.

Griner has been reacclimating to life in Phoenix, reintegrating with the Mercury, and 'rehabbing her way back' to basketball in the months since

Griner took the holiday season to get comfortable back home, rest, spend time with family and loved ones, and continue her recovery after an unimaginably trying 10 months. But once the new year came around, she made her way back to the gym of the very same franchise where she started her professional basketball career.

Yes, Griner was technically a free agent, so Kozar and the Mercury staff had "to be careful" to abide by the league's rules. But the WNBA's eight-time blocks leader was "allowed to be in our facility to see our trainers," the president explained, as she was — and is — "rehabbing her way back to being able to play basketball."

Throughout her time back in Phoenix's facilities, Kozar has been "fortunate" to witness several of Griner's reunions with teammates and many of the other "people that make up the lifeblood of a team." The moments have been "really special" every single time — from crossing paths with trainers and equipment managers to run-ins with staffers and teammates who are in-market for the off-season.

Griner enjoyed some fun extracurriculars away from the Mercury as well. With the Valley playing host to two massive sporting events in mid-February, the superstar and her wife hit the town and made appearances at both Super Bowl LVII and the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

The Griners also made the five-plus hour drive from Phoenix to Los Angeles for the 2023 NAACP Image Awards on February 25. The couple took the stage, and the basketball star used her moment on the mic to implore the audience to "fight to bring home every American detained overseas."

And, on Monday, another piece of her former reality fell back into place; Griner officially re-signed with the Mercury. She'll earn $165,100 over the 2023 WNBA campaign, per Spotrac, marking a 32% drop from last season's salary and far less than the $234,936 supermax for which she was eligible and could have easily drawn from Phoenix.

But as a result of Griner commanding less than 15% of the team's total salary cap, the Mercury were able to re-sign Taurasi — a 10-time All-Star and the WNBA's all-time scoring champion — while reaching deals with several other free agents to round out their roster.

Because the league enforces a hard salary cap — and because Phoenix already has star point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith signed to a supermax contract of her own — the Mercury only had enough space to offer either Taurasi or Griner the supermax. Sources familiar with the contract negotiations told Insider that Griner's financial sacrifice was one of unselfishness rather than necessity.

It was meant as an act of good will toward the franchise — which paid her salary in full through the season she missed while detained in Russia — and as a show of respect to Taurasi, who played the vast majority of her illustrious WNBA career without the opportunity to make more than five figures.

Once Griner signed on the dotted line, both parties were quick to celebrate her return. She posed for fresh headshots featuring her newly cropped hair, did a shoot-around in her jersey, and announced to the locker room — and the world — "I'm Back MF!!"

But Griner's welcome home wasn't just about photo shoots and fun social media posts; the franchise also recommitted itself to the cause Kozar calls Griner's "legacy work." The Mercury's "leadership team spent the afternoon writing letters to Paul Whelan" — a fellow American whom the US government deems "wrongfully detained" by Russia — in honor of BG's decision to return to Phoenix, according to social media posts from the franchise.

The organization encouraged fans to keep Whelan top of mind and join the effort to bring all wrongfully detained Americans home to their families.

"What we saw was the power of sport generally last year in support of her, but also specifically the power of W players and the power of W fans," Kozar said. "So we won't deter from that in any way. We will do the campaigns to bring these detainees home, to have these families reunited.

"We will do the same work that we would've done on BG's behalf if she were still gone," he added. "We will just now do it with her in support of all of those other families who are enduring the same thing. So there's a lot more to come there."

What comes next in Griner's journey is still a bit of a mystery

Griner is itching to get back into the flow of WNBA competition, sources close to the star tell Insider. And the Mercury's fans, front office, and players — who struggled last season without Griner in the paint — are eager to see their superstar back in orange and purple.

But the logistics of making it happen are far more complicated than they were prior to February 17, 2022. Her Russian detainment and the politicized circumstances surrounding her return stateside has drastically increased her recognizability and, among some people, her notoriety.

As a result, ensuring Griner's "safety and security" throughout the season has become a major concern.

"We are all acutely aware of some of the things that have been said about her. We were acutely aware of the way that her return has been used to try and further polarize people," Kozar said. "We understand that certain [people] have tried to continue to use this to polarize people... and we understand that people have done that through the lens of BG's identity, which is as a woman, it's as a Black woman, and it's as a gay, Black woman.

"None of that is lost on us, and we understand that words oftentimes can be a precursor to violence," he added. "And so we take all of that incredibly seriously. We understand, and all of the people around her understand, that it is our joint responsibility to ensure that we are approaching this with the due gravity that it requires."

The franchise is prepared to take every precaution necessary to protect its superstar — at its own venues, on the road, and everywhere in between — and Kozar says "there is a collective commitment to support" those efforts across the WNBA. They'll likely approach Griner's security much like the NBA handles its biggest superstars' safety, sources familiar with the situation tell Insider.

That could very well necessitate private flights to and from away games, as many have speculated could be the case. But sources privy to conversations between the league, the Mercury, and Griner's camp told Insider the involved parties have not yet reached a consensus regarding how they'll handle her and her teammates' transportation for the season.

The WNBA's collective bargaining agreement (CBA) prohibits individual franchises from chartering flights. BG's unique circumstances, however, could very well elicit an exception.

"It's safe to say that as we consider all of those things, her safety as we travel is a top priority," Kozar said.

They have just under three months to figure it out. Phoenix's season tips off on the road, with Griner and the Mercury set to take on the Los Angeles Sparks at Crypto.com Arena on May 19. Two days later, she will suit up at Phoenix's Footprint Center for the first time in 19 months for her homecoming game against the Chicago Sky.

Regardless of all the remaining uncertainties, Kozar said he expects the moment Griner steps back onto her home court to be "one of the most special things any of us has ever experienced."

"After December 8, nothing will compare to December 8, right?" Kozar told Insider, referring to the date of Griner's release. "The news of BG coming home is the best thing that I've ever experienced in this job. What will probably come close to that is May 21 — what this building is going to look and feel like the moment she returns to play a home game for the first time.

"I don't know how that works, if you have any energy left to play basketball after something like that, so I don't know what the game's gonna be like," he continued, adding: "It's a moment in history. It's sports history; it's American history; it's just this moment in history that you'll be able to say you were a part of, but that also one that no news story or broadcast will be able to capture. I hope everyone's in the building, and I hope there's not a single seat left."

As far as the rest of the season goes, Kozar doesn't have any expectations for how things will play out. Though he's hopeful, he can't be sure whether Phoenix will compete among the upper echelons of the WNBA's Western Conference, return to the playoffs for an 11th consecutive year, or clinch the franchise's fourth WNBA championship.

All he knows for certain, he says, is that Griner will serve as "a constant reminder to all of us, whether on the court or off the court, that tomorrow's just not guaranteed."

"These moments that we have to be together, to compete, to find joy in this game, and to make a difference because of the platform we've been given by this game, they're not things to waste," Kozar said. "And so that relief has become gratitude, and I think it's just gonna be an incredible season of gratitude.

"I don't know how many games we're gonna win," he added. "My hope is that we're gonna win the very last one we play.

"But I know the season's gonna be about a lot more than just basketball."

#wnba #phoenix mercury #brittney griner

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