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Alexis Jones Talks Adidas, Boxing, and Fighting Through Injury Amidst COVID-19

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Alexis Jones plays guard for the Atlanta Dream of the WNBA. Below, she spoke with Just Women’s Sports about her relationship with Adidas, her favorite cross-training workouts, and how she’s managing to rehab her knee while also training under quarantine. You can find an earlier interview with Alexis Jones about her draft day experience and her time with the Minnesota Lynx here.

Adidas has made a big push to invest in women’s sports. Can you talk about your experience with the brand and how they’ve supported you through your injuries?

Adidas has been super great to me, with anything I need. They’re always there for me and right now we have the #hometeam going on, where we got together all our Adidas athletes, and we’re just trying to show our fans and our community our activity while staying inside. We want to show them we’re still working out. And we’re just trying to get that positive energy to everybody who has to stay in the house right now. We’re trying to give the love back to our fans and show them that we’re here, and we’re going to support them in any cause, in any way.

What have you been doing while you’ve been quarantined?

I’ve been working out, keeping with the same routine I’ve had for the last three months. I made a hashtag video for Adidas where I showed them my boxing workouts I do. I’ve been really harping on these boxing workouts I’ve been doing lately.

I saw that. They’re gnarly. They’re really good workouts, too. I feel like people don’t realize that.

Yeah, I be going hard with the boxing workouts. Man, you can go in there for 30 minutes and be dead tired and feel like you’ve been working out for two hours. It’s crazy. And I feel like it’s the combo of cardio, and because you’re hitting, it feels almost like an upper body workout, too. And it’s mental, too. If you’re going for 30 minutes, you can’t just pause. You have to mentally train your body and train your mind to keep doing something that you don’t want to do for a long period of time, and it helps you with your breathing, your stamina and just finishing through anything. You can’t just quit during that moment when it’s hard. You just keep finishing and keep attacking.

I love that. That’s awesome. Do you do a lot of cross training?

Only boxing right now, but I wouldn’t put it past me. The further I get in my career, I’m going to start doing other stuff. I do a little swimming, too. That’s so hard. I don’t know how swimmers do it. I had to learn, and at first I was like, we can just regularly swim, but somebody taught me how to swim swim, and I was like, yeah, I can’t breathe like that. I’m hyperventilating, feeling like I’m about to drown. But if I can get that part down, I think that’s something I might try to really get into.

How have you mentally been handling some of the collective stress of this moment combined with your own training and rehab? 

It sucks that this is all happening, what we’re all going through… I’m trying to have a professional mindset. I found a lot of people that support me, and I’m super proud of how I’ve been handling rehab these last three months. I want to be a professional. And I think me being back home, and starting to build my foundation and find people who I want to be around me, will all help my game grow.

I want to get out there and let people know that I am out here and trying to work. I’m not trying to show-off or nothing like that. But I really do love the game, and this injury has been super impactful to me. But I’m feeling good. I like my process.

You’ve had to recover from multiple serious injuries in your career. How have you been able to overcome those and still compete at a high level?

Man, it’s crazy because I’m still overcoming them. When I went down in college, I was already physically hurt from my other right knee. Nobody knew, but I was trying to play through it as much as possible, and it just didn’t work out for me. My ACL has thankfully been fine ever since it’s been fixed. It’s just my right knee has been a little bit rocky ever since I tried to come back.

I think I rehab hard. And in every rehab, I try to take the baby steps, even if that means taking the year off to get everything right. And since coming into the league, I’ve learned a lot more about my body. I know how to train my body now. I know how it works. I know all the flexibilities I need to keep my joints and stuff moving and things like that. Those are things that I didn’t really grasp when I was in college. But I’m glad I’m 25 and I found out now before it was too late, because I know if I can just maintain my body and do the things that I do, I can last so much longer in this league.

Before signing Dream, you were waived by LA at the end of last season. How was that? That’s got to be emotional. 

No.

No? 

No. I got waived, and it is hard to get waived, because that was my one thing, to never get waived, and I got waived. But I had an opportunity to go to Atlanta. They believed in me, even coming back from this injury. And for them to trust me to be ready and be prepared to come and play — at this point, I’m just happy for the opportunity and praying for the best.

Regardless of when it’s played, what are your goals for next season?

I think my goal for the season is just to go in there, play hard, and to just try to have a good season and to try to just build the team and try to be a real team player in the midst of all that. And just try to get the feel of the game and keep learning in that area until I reach the level where I need to be.

Trinity Rodman, European Club Stars Headline USWNT October Roster

USWNT veteran stars Lindsey Heaps and Trinity Rodman are all smiles entering an April 2025 training session.
OL Lyonnes midfielder Lindsey Heaps and Washington Spirit forward Trinity Rodman are among the returning USWNT players named to the October roster. (Brad Smith/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF)

The USWNT is getting the band back together this October, as manager Emma Hayes tapped a number of veteran faces in a 26-player roster for the team's upcoming three international friendlies on Wednesday morning.

The team's European-based players are stepping back into the spotlight, after Hayes chose to rest stars Lindsey Heaps, Lily Yohannes, Emily Fox, Phallon Tullis-Joyce, and Catarina Macario during the summer.

However, sidelined Chelsea defender Naomi Girma will sit this one out as she continues to recover from a calf injury.

The roster also highlights the return of favorites Trinity Rodman, Rose Lavelle, and Jaedyn Shaw, as Hayes also calls up 24-year-old San Diego Wave defender Kennedy Wesley for the first time.

As next fall's qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup quickly approach, Hayes is narrowing the field from her previous developmentally focused roster-building strategy.

"I think this was the one camp I had to make some really hard decisions, and that's the place I wanted to be in," Hayes told reporters on Wednesday morning. "It's the build for [World Cup] qualification for next year."

With an average age of 24.6, the latest squad reflects the US's youth movement, though Lavelle's return helps boost the average international experience from 18.4 caps in this summer's USWNT roster to 27.3 appearances on Hayes's October lineup.

The October 2025 USWNT roster

  • Goalkeepers: Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign) Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals), Phallon Tullis-Joyce (Manchester United)
  • Defenders: Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Lilly Reale (Gotham), Tara McKeown (Washington Spirit), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave)
  • Midfielders: Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns), Lindsey Heaps (OL Lyonnes), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Rose Lavelle (Gotham), Sam Meza (Seattle Reign), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham), Lily Yohannes (OL Lyonnes)
  • Forwards: Michelle Cooper (Kansas City Current), Catarina Macario (Chelsea), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Yazmeen Ryan (Houston Dash), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Ally Sentnor (Kansas City Current), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea)

How to watch the October USWNT friendlies

The world No. 2 USWNT will first take on No. 23 Portugal at 7 PM ET on October 23rd and at 4 PM ET on the 26th, before closing out the international window against No. 33 New Zealand at 8 PM ET on October 29th.

All three friendlies will air live on TNT.

Chelsea Looks to Bounce Back from 2025/26 Champions League Opening Draw

Chelsea FC winger Alyssa Thompson passes the ball during a 2025/26 Champions League match.
Chelsea FC newcomer Alyssa Thompson earned her first-ever UEFA Champions League start in last week's 2025/26 league phase opener. (Marcel ter Bals/DeFodi Images/DeFodi via Getty Images)

The 2025/26 UEFA Women's Champions League action returns on Wednesday, kicking off another week of league-phase play as WSL titans Chelsea search for their first UWCL win of the season.

The Blues settled for a disappointing 1-1 draw with FC Twente last week, despite outshooting the Dutch club 20-9 while holding 65% of possession.

"When I analyze the games, I think we are creating a lot, which is the most important thing," said Chelsea head coach Sonia Bompastor. "But the most difficult thing in football is to score goals. We need to stay confident and keep trying."

"Sometimes, when you're able to be clinical, you kill the opposition’s hope a bit sooner," Bompastor continued, hoping to supercharge the Blues' offense ahead of their Wednesday afternoon clash with French side Paris FC.

Other UWCL heavy hitters will also feature on Wednesday's pitch, as Barcelona, Wolfsburg and OL Lyonnes all look to continue their winning ways after major victories in last week's opening slate.

The rest of the 18-club league phase will conclude the second matchday on Thursday, when fellow WSL powerhouses Manchester United and defending Champions League winners Arsenal return to the UWCL pitch.

How to watch Chelsea vs. Paris FC in Champions League play

Chelsea will host Paris FC in London for their second league phase match at 3 PM ET on Wednesday.

All 2025/26 Champions League matches will air live on Paramount+.

South Carolina Boss Dawn Staley Says the NBA Isn’t Ready for a Woman Head Coach

South Carolina basketball head coach Dawn Staley speaks to the press during the 2025 SEC Media Day.
South Carolina basketball head coach Dawn Staley interviewed with the NBA's New York Knicks during the NCAA offseason. (Vasha Hunt/Imagn Images)

South Carolina basketball head coach Dawn Staley isn't sure about the NBA, as the venerated NCAA sideline leader told media this week that, after taking an interview with the New York Knicks earlier this year, she doesn't see the men's pro league hiring a woman coach anytime soon.

"No, I don't," the 55-year-old responded when asked on Tuesday if she thought there'd be a woman NBA coach in her lifetime. "And I hope I'm wrong."

"If the Knicks have a five-game losing streak, it's not going to be about the losing streak, it's going to be about being a female coach," she explained. "So you as an organization, a franchise, you have to be prepared for and strong enough to ignore those types of instances when you're going to look to hire a female coach."

Earlier this year, Staley — who also interviewed with the Portland Trail Blazers in 2021 — admitted that she would have taken the Knicks job if New York offered it to her.

"I would have had to do it. Not just for me. For women. To break [that door] open," Staley told Indiana Fever center Aliyah Boston and retired WNBA icon Candace Parker on their "Post Moves" podcast in August.

As it stands, Staley remains open to using her NBA interview experiences to help any future woman coach — or men's team — navigate the pitfalls of breaking that glass ceiling.

"It's not just about hiring the first female NBA coach," explained the South Carolina boss. "[There will be] questions that you don't have to answer if you're a male coach."

"I've got all the information," Staley offered. "Come see me, because I'll [prepare you] for the interview."

2026 WNBA Expansion Side Portland Fire Leaks Alex Sarama as Head Coach Hire

The new logo for incoming WNBA expansion team Portland Fire is revealed during a July 2025 launch party.
The Portland Fire will reportedly be the next WNBA team to hire their head coach out of the NBA. (Ali Gradischer/Getty Images)

Incoming 2026 WNBA expansion side Portland sprung a leak this week, prematurely introducing NBA assistant Alex Sarama of the Cleveland Cavaliers as the inaugural head coach for the Fire on LinkedIn early Tuesday morning before pulling the post.

Shortly following the retracted news, the Fire did official announce that WNBA veteran Ashley Battle will join the team as VP of basketball operations, strategy, and innovation.

Per a Front Office Sports report, Portland is currently on track to announce Sarama's hiring in the coming days, though the parties are still working to finalize a contract.

Sarama falls in line with the WNBA's recent turn to the NBA pipeline, with the Phoenix Mercury bringing on head coach Nate Tibbetts from the Orlando Magic in 2023, the Las Vegas Aces tapping Becky Hammon from the San Antonio Spurs in 2021, and Hammon herself hiring now-Golden State Valkyries boss Natalie Nakase from the LA Clippers in 2022.

Sarama also has experience with Portland Fire GM Vanja Černivec, after both spent time working for the British Basketball League's London Lions.

While the rollout might have come early, Portland now has their basketball staff in place as the WNBA enters an uncertain offseason dictated by tense CBA negotiations.

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