Former Seattle Storm center and WNBA champion Simone Edwards died Thursday at the age of 49 after a battle with ovarian cancer.

Edwards, who was born in Jamaica and earned the nickname the “Jamaican Hurricane” from Storm fans, played junior college basketball in Oklahoma before starring for the Iowa Hawkeyes from 1994 to 1997. She helped lead Iowa to a Big Ten regular-season championship title in 1996 and the Big Ten tournament title in 1997.

After her successful college career, she joined the New York Liberty in 1997 – the WNBA’s inaugural season – as a developmental player. She didn’t play in the league, though, until 2000, when she joined the Seattle Storm for their first season.

She spent six seasons in Seattle, averaging 5.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. A member of the Storm’s first-ever championship team in 2004, she retired from the WNBA ahead of the 2006 season. At the time, she was Seattle’s all-time leader in rebounds, games and minutes played.

She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2021.

“Our Jamaican Hurricane was a warrior on and off the court,” the Storm tweeted Thursday. “With her indefatigable energy and optimism, she brought happiness to so many. Our thoughts and condolences are with Simone’s family and loved ones at this time.”

We are saddened by the passing of our very own Simone Edwards.

Our Jamaican Hurricane was a warrior on & off the court. With her indefatigable energy & optimism, she brought happiness to so many.

Our thoughts & condolences are with Simone’s family and loved ones at this time. pic.twitter.com/fJPvDe1ydL

— Seattle Storm (@seattlestorm) February 17, 2023

In a reply to a tweet from the WNBA, NBA star Pau Gasol expressed his “deepest condolences” to her family and friends.

Lauren Jackson, who played with Edwards on the Storm, tweeted out a video of the two of them together and said that her “heart is broken.”

“Rest in Peace beautiful Angel,” she added. “You will be dearly missed and loved every day.”

Rest in Peace beautiful Angel. You will be dearly missed and loved every day. 💔💔💔 pic.twitter.com/8Bu6XolujM

— Lauren Jackson AO OLY (@laurenej15) February 17, 2023

Chastity Melvin, who starred in the WNBA around the same time as Edwards, wrote that she is “so sad” to hear of Edwards’ passing.

“I thought she was going to beat this thing,” she wrote.

Wow you can be up so high one minute and down the next. I'm so sad to hear about Simmie. 🥲 I thought she was going to beat this thing. Rest in power 🕊️ #cancersucks https://t.co/gyms6YjyvH

— Chasity Melvin (@chasitymelvin) February 17, 2023

Decorated US skier Mikaela Shiffrin is investing in the NWSL, backing 2026 expansion side Denver, the club announced on Tuesday.

Hailing from Vail, Colorado, the all-time winningest World Cup alpine skier is bringing her championship ways — which includes two Olympic gold medals, eight World Championships, and 101 World Cup victories — to her home soccer team.

"I'm beyond thrilled to join the ownership group of Denver NWSL and support something so meaningful in the community I call home," Shiffrin said in a club statement.

"The sport culture in Colorado is rich and deep, and — most notably — the growth of women's sports is one of the most exciting movements in our culture today," she continued. "To be part of it, and to help bring professional women's soccer to Colorado, is not only an incredible investment opportunity — but it is both an honor and a joy."

The 30-year-old is just the latest prominent women's sports athlete to buy into the NWSL, with the league seeing club valuations rise and further expansion on the horizon.

"Mikaela's commitment to excellence, her global impact, and her deep Colorado roots make her a perfect addition to our ownership group," said Denver NWSL controlling owner Rob Cohen. "We're building a club with purpose, and having Mikaela's vision and voice in that journey will be invaluable."

The 2025 WNBA preseason continued on Tuesday, as teams size up their rosters with less than 10 days to go until the regular season tips off.

After missing the playoffs last year, the Chicago Sky is showing out under new head coach Tyler Marsh, complementing their weekend win over Brazil with a 74-69 victory against 2024 championship contenders Minnesota on Tuesday.

The Sky successfully leaned into their young core, pairing second-year bigs Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso with new backcourt talent like rookie Hailey Van Lith. Also lifting Chicago this season are veteran leaders Ariel Atkins and Courtney Vandersloot.

"Hailey is great, she's like a sponge," Vandersloot said after Tuesday's game. "She's listened to everything I say. I think the best part of it is that we can compete in practice — we're going to make each other better."

With Tuesday's win, the Sky join the Indiana Fever and Las Vegas Aces in winning both of their 2025 WNBA preseason matchups so far, with Chicago forecasting quite the turnaround from last year's losing record.

"We understand that nothing that's happened in the past, good or bad, impacts what we're doing moving forward — and that's with any team," Marsh told reporters this week.

After a quietly active offseason and several key draft picks, the 2025 WNBA season could see the Sky right the ship — as long as Chicago keeps striking a balance between their young firepower and seasoned leaders.

Five-time Olympic gold medalist Sue Bird is taking over as managing director for the USA women's basketball team, per multiple reports on Tuesday.

Bird will move into the key leadership position with Team USA in the lead-up to the 2028 LA Olympics, where the women's side will shoot for a record-ninth consecutive gold medal.

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The legendary point guard's hiring is a significant departure for USA Basketball, with the 44-year-old now responsible for selecting the team's players and coaches.

Until now, Team USA relied on an Olympic committee to oversee roster decisions and build national team camps. The decision to institute a managing director, however, will shift the women's program to mirror the leadership structure that the men's side first implemented in 2005.

Bird's first major test at the helm will be next year's FIBA World Cup, which tips off in Germany in September 2026.

That said, the work toward that international title will begin with World Cup qualifying this coming November, when national teams will hit the court immediately after the WNBA wraps up its 2025 postseason play.

The selection and evaluation committee for USA Basketball never shied away from difficult decisions, but this week's switch to a single-entity structure will put Bird directly on the hook for the program's success — with an Olympic record streak on the line.

The US Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame announced their Class of 2025 on Tuesday, with this year's iconic cohort headlined by tennis titan Serena Williams and track legend Allyson Felix.

Alongside four-time Olympic gold medalist Williams and seven-time gold medalist Felix — the most decorated woman in Olympic track and field history with 11 total medals — four other women and one women's team snagged spots in the 2025 class.

Joining the pair are gymnastics icon Gabby Douglas, a two-time team gold medalist and the first Black woman to take individual all-around gold in Olympic history, and three-time beach volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings.

Additional inductees include the gold medal-winning 2004 USA women's wheelchair basketball Paralympic team, five-time Paralympic gold medalist in track Marla Runyan — the only US athlete to have competed in both the Paralympic and Olympic Games — and multi-sport specialist Susan Hagel.

Hagel competed in six Paralympic Games across three different sports — archery, track and field, and wheelchair basketball — picking up four gold and two bronze medals along the way.

Barrier-breakers honored as Class of 2025 Legends

Also earning Hall of Fame honors are two trailblazing Black women, named as the Legends of the Class of 2025.

Renowned volleyball player and 1984 silver medalist Flo Hyman — whose work to bolster Title IX as well as her role helping Team USA to their first-ever Olympic medal in women's volleyball were crucial to growing the sport in the US — will be posthumously celebrated.

Honored alongside Hyman will be 1976 Olympic bronze medalist Anita DeFrantz, the first and only Black woman to medal in rowing.

DeFrantz, the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) first-ever woman member, is still helping to make Olympic history, casting the deciding vote to elect the IOC's first woman president this past March.

The Class of 2025 is the 18th overall group and first since 2022 to enter the Hall of Fame.

Following their July 12th induction, the US Olympic and Paralympic Hall of Fame will bloom to 210 individual and team members.