Aliyah Boston as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft was a foregone conclusion. Aliyah Boston as the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year could be the same.

So far this season, Boston isn’t just the best among her rookie class — she’s putting together one of the best rookie seasons ever.

On Aug. 6, Boston became just the fourth rookie in WNBA history to have a 25-point, 10-rebound, four-steal game. Through 33 games, Boston’s averages not only lead WNBA rookies in nearly every category but also rank among the league’s best. She is contributing 14.7 points per game (23rd overall) and 8.2 rebounds per game (ninth overall) for the Indiana Fever. She also leads the entire league in field-goal percentage at 59.9%.

“You wouldn’t know that she’s a rookie. She’s polished in everything that she does. She’s a professional,” All-Star guard and Fever teammate Kelsey Mitchell told Andscape last month. “She’s a great post player, obviously. More importantly, she’s got the professional look already and she’s just getting started. I’m proud of her.”

In her debut season, Boston became the first player in WNBA history to average 15 points per game on 60% shooting through 20 career games. The former South Carolina star is also the sixth player in the last two decades to have 300 points and 150 rebounds through 20 games, joining the likes of A’ja Wilson, Breanna Stewart and Candace Parker.

Go Aliyah, Go Aliyah 💃

With this bucket, @aa_boston is now 1st all-time in @IndianaFever rookie history in FGM, passing Tamika Catchings

📺 @iontv pic.twitter.com/GXaW84bp77

— WNBA (@WNBA) August 18, 2023

“I knew she was special, but she’s exceeded it,” first-year Fever coach Christy Sides told reporters in July. “You just don’t know until you get into this league how you’re going to respond. It’s the different levels, size, speed, quickness, strength — she hadn’t faced that night in and night out. She takes everything in, she talks to every coach, she watches video with every coach, she asks the best questions.”

The 21-year-old forward was named Rookie of the Month in May and June, and in July she became the youngest player to start in a WNBA All-Star Game. Only two other players — Sue Bird and Chamique Holdsclaw — started in an All-Star Game before turning 22, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

“I don’t want to sound like I’m being cocky, but I expect greatness,” Boston told reporters shortly after being named the eighth rookie All-Star Game starter in WNBA history.

“Greatness is just being true to who you are but also working hard to accomplish the goals,” Boston later told Andscape. “Every time I step on the court, I expect to be dominant. I go out there every game and I’m just going to be who I am.”

And the praise being heaped on Boston doesn’t end with her own teammates and coaches.

“She’s going to be a great one,” Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon said of Boston following the All-Star Game. “Already what I think Coach Sides has done in Indiana, the culture and everything that she’s trying to build there, and they have a centerpiece. Literally, a centerpiece.”

As the 2025/26 European club season shifts into full gear, a spike in ACL injuries is shedding new light on the increasingly dense women's soccer calendar.

Germany and Bayern Munich star Lena Oberdorf ruptured her right ACL during her club's Bundesliga match on Sunday, just weeks after the 23-year-old midfielder returned to play from rehabbing the same injury — in the same right knee.

"To now face a second such setback is incredibly hard," said Bayern Munich director of women's football Bianca Rech. "We are fully by Lena's side, will support her as best we can in her recovery and be there for her in every way."

Oberdorf is far from alone, with over 20 ACL injuries impacting multiple women's soccer leagues across the world in just the last three months.

Arsenal goalkeeper and Austrian international Manuela Zinsberger went down with an ACL tear during the Gunners' 2025/26 Champions League match last week, joining standouts like midfielder Sarah Zadrizil (Bayern Munich/Austria), striker Sophie Román Haug (Liverpool/Norway), forward Liana Joseph (OL Lyonnes/France), and midfielder Maite Oroz (Tottenham/Spain) on the injury's mounting hit list.

ACL injuries have long plagued the women's game, with FIFPRO recently developing the Project ACL research initiative to investigate and alleviate the issue.

The USWNT kicks off the first of their three October friendlies on Thursday night, facing Portugal as the team takes the pitch for the first time in nearly four months.

The matchup marks the first meeting between the two nations since the tense 0-0 group-stage finale at the 2023 World Cup that saw the USWNT narrowly advance to the knockouts.

"[Portugal] is a very good team," US midfielder Lindsey Heaps said earlier this week. "Many times that we've played them before, we get a tough game and a tough matchup."

The game also provides a glimpse of an evolving USWNT roster, bringing together NWSL standouts and European club stars ahead of next fall's World Cup qualifiers.

"That's the key right now — we need to finalize [the roster] in the next two years, and obviously leading up to qualification," continued Heaps. "That's an exciting process right now."

"It's just getting everyone together, everyone on the same page and know what the standards and levels are," she added. "What it takes to qualify for a World Cup."

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How to watch the USWNT vs. Portugal on Thursday

The world No. 2 USWNT will kick off a trio of friendlies with a match against No. 23 Portugal at 7 PM ET on Thursday.

The clash will air live across TNT, Peacock, and HBO Max.

The Toronto Tempo have apparently landed a head coach, with The IX Sports reporting Wednesday that the WNBA expansion side tapped ex-New York boss Sandy Brondello as their sideline leader for the team's 2026 season debut.

The Liberty parted ways with Brondello following New York's first-round exit in the playoffs last month — less than a year after the 20-year WNBA coaching veteran led the team to their first-ever championship.

Toronto expects to make the deal with Brondello official in the next few days, as soon as the parties finalize the terms of the contract.

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After her dismissal from the Liberty, Brondello reportedly fielded significant interest from several WNBA teams, opting to join the upstart squad as the Tempo continues to build out their front office.

Toronto brought on WNBA champion Monica Wright Rogers as GM in February 2025, later appointing longtime LA Sparks assistant GM Eli Horowitz as the new franchise's assistant GM and senior VP of basketball strategy.

With the Tempo now following fellow 2026 expansion side Portland in securing sideline leaders this month, the WNBA now has three vacancies remaining in its coaching carousel, with the Seattle Storm, Dallas Wings, and New York still searching for their next leaders.

Both the Toronto Tempo and the Portland Fire will now hope for clarity from the league's ongoing CBA negotiations in order to prep for an expected expansion draft and free agency period in early 2026.

Fresh off her rookie WNBA season, Seattle Storm star Dominique Malonga is causing a stir overseas, abruptly withdrawing from her offseason contract with Turkish club Fenerbahçe this week — and creating controversy in her wake.

Malonga initially signed a three-year deal with the two-time Euroleague champions in March before she "unilaterally terminated her professional player contract with our club without any just cause," according to a Fenerbahçe social media post on Monday.

"We inform the public that we will exercise all our legal rights to seek compensation for any material and moral damages incurred by our club during this process," the team continued.

While she didn't disclose a reason for leaving Istanbul, the 19-year-old did reveal that she recently required surgery to repair a dislocated tendon in her wrist, estimating that she'd be in a cast for six weeks.

The 2025 WNBA Draft overall No. 2 pick finished her debut WNBA season averaging 7.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, earning herself a spot on the stacked 2025 All-Rookie Team.

Should the contract dispute remain unresolved, Fenerbahçe could attempt to disrupt Malonga's second season in Seattle due to a longstanding "letter of clearance" rule requiring approval from both the WNBA and Europe's FIBA before athletes can move between leagues.

Front Office Sports reported on Tuesday that while the WNBA signed off on the 19-year-old's Turkish contract, Fenerbahçe could deny her ability to return to the US league "under the condition that she violated the terms of her contract."

"If the season tips off in May as it did in 2025, this would give Fenerbahçe and Malonga about six months to rectify any potential dispute and clear her for a WNBA return," warned FOS.