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Candace Parker: Las Vegas Aces ‘met all my needs’

Candace Parker signed with the Las Vegas Aces in WNBA free agency. (Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Candace Parker is all about relationships.

That’s a big part of why the 36-year-old signed with the Las Vegas Aces. Team president Nikki Fargas was an assistant coach at Tennessee when Parker played there, and she recruited Parker to play for the Vols. Parker’s wife played on the Russian national team with Becky Hammon. And Aces point guard Chelsea Gray and her wife are godparents to Parker’s son Airr.

The franchise also checks the box of being relatively close to family in Los Angeles for Parker’s 13-year-old daughter Lailaa. And of course, as a player, Parker was drawn to the defending champions.

“Las Vegas met all my needs from a basketball standpoint, and from a family standpoint as well,” she said Tuesday in her introductory press conference.

Parker signed with Las Vegas in free agency after playing two seasons for the Chicago Sky, with whom she won the 2021 title. Prior to that, Parker played 13 seasons for the Los Angeles Sparks, the franchise that drafted her first overall in 2008, winning a title in 2016.

In order to make room for Parker, a seven-time All-WNBA first-teamer, the Aces traded Dearica Hamby to the Sparks. The move garnered controversy when Hamby took to social media to make accusations against the Aces, claiming they wouldn’t have traded her if she was not pregnant. The 29-year-old forward stated that she was “lied to, manipulated and discriminated against” by the team.

In her introductory press conference with the Sparks, though, Hamby asked Las Vegas fans not to blame current Aces players for her exit, including Parker.

As for Aces management, they didn’t directly mention Hamby in Parker’s introductory press conference. But Fargas made a statement that seemingly alluded to the situation.

“All decisions that we have made to assemble this team by the front office is to assemble the best team possible,” she said. “When putting together a team there are times when a trade will happen, but that is for us to also remain competitive.”

The addition of Parker certainly makes the Aces more competitive, which is a difficult feat for a team coming off a WNBA championship.

The 15-year veteran averaged 13.2 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists in her two seasons with Chicago.

“It’s going to actually be on her team instead of playing against her or coaching against her,” Hammon said. “Going into the offseason, looking at pieces that we felt like we needed to fill in order to defend our title, she fits the piece.”

Hammon went on to praise Parker’s overall skills, basketball mind and passing ability.

“She does everything,” Hammon said. “So to be able to add, not just her championship culture and mentality that she brings in, but also the human aspect of it. I’m super excited to bring her into our locker room.”

Parker joked that playing against the Aces gave her headaches the last two seasons due to their overall firepower and ability to space the court. She’s excited to be a part of the system, and she expects to play several different roles for the team, depending on what is needed in each game.

“The evolution of what is needed game to game, part of what I want to bring is to fill that need,” she said. “If it’s defensive rebounding, if it’s facilitating, playmaking, scoring, whatever it is.”

12th Straight Win Shoots Las Vegas Aces to No. 2 in the WNBA Standings

Las Vegas Aces center A'ja Wilson and guard Chelsea Gray high-five during a 2025 WNBA game.
A 12th straight win launched the Las Vegas Aces to No. 2 in the 2025 WNBA standings. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The Las Vegas Aces are silencing the competition, shooting to No. 2 in the WNBA standings following an 81-75 take-down of the now-No. 3 Atlanta Dream on Wednesday night.

Defending WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson led Las Vegas with 34 points, while guard Jackie Young posted a triple-double.

The Aces have now won 12 straight games, claiming a meteoric rise from No. 8 to No. 2 in under a month as Wilson sits Top-5 league-wide in points, rebounds, and blocks per game.

"Don't call me 'Curry,'" Wilson joked, referencing all-time NBA three-point leader Steph Curry after tying her season-high of two made-threes in Wednesday's matchup.

Las Vegas's unbeaten streak dates back to August 2nd's 53-point blowout loss to the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, with Wednesday's statement win over a fellow postseason favorite cementing the 2023 WNBA champions' newfound effectiveness.

"This is our eighth game in 15 days. I was very concerned with our legs coming into this game," said Aces head coach Becky Hammon. "When you talk about gears and that ability to kick it up an extra notch, we really have been able to do that on the defensive end — and it's winning us games."

While Las Vegas already clinched a playoff berth, the path to a third franchise title won't be easy, as the Aces will look to avenge their 0-3 head-to-head record against the Lynx in the pair's final 2025 regular-season meeting next week.

How to watch the Las Vegas Aces in this week's WNBA slate

After a successful but jam-packed August, the No. 2 Aces are now on an eight-day rest, returning to the court to tangle with the No. 1 Lynx next Thursday, September 4th.

The top-table clash will tip off at 10 PM ET, with live coverage airing on Prime.

US Open Heats Up as Top WTA Stars Face Stiff 1st Round Competition

US tennis star Coco Gauff celebrates a point against Australia's Ajla Tomljanović during the first round of the 2025 US Open.
World No. 3 Coco Gauff advanced to the second round of the 2025 US Open with a three-set win over No. 79 Ajla Tomljanović. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

The 2025 US Open is putting the WTA's best to the test, with some top-ranked players battling in three-set epics in the annual Grand Slam's first round.

World No. 6 Madison Keys suffered the first major upset of the tournament on Monday, committing 89 unforced errors across three hours and 10 minutes of play to fall to Mexico's No. 82 Renata Zarazúa 6-7 (10), 7-6 (3), 7-5.

No. 3 Coco Gauff also found herself locked in a three-set battle, narrowly defeating Australia's No. 79 Ajla Tomljanović 6-4, 6-7 (2), 7-5 in her own three-hour endurance trial on Tuesday.

"This is the match that I needed," Gauff said afterwards. "I don't think it can get any more stressful than this."

Meanwhile, other top talents have seen smoother rides, with No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, No. 2 Iga Świątek, and No. 4 Jessica Pegula all dispatching their opponents with relative ease.

Fan favorite No. 24 Naomi Osaka also cruised through her first-round matchup against No. 106 Greet Minnen, downing the Belgian in straight sets on Tuesday to meet US star No. 47 Hailey Baptiste on Thursday's second-round court.

A dramatic finish in Wednesday's second-round play also dominated headlines, as popular US contender No. 139 Taylor Townsend — the current world No. 1 doubles player — served Latvia's No. 26 Jeļena Ostapenko a 7-5, 6-1 upset loss in singles play, with the pair's heated post-match exchange causing a stir.

"[Ostapenko] told me I have no class and no education and to see what happens when we get outside the US," Townsend relayed in her on-court interview.

How to watch the 2025 US Open

The US Open's second-round play concludes on Thursday before the third round kicks off on Friday.

Live coverage of the New York Grand Slam airs across ESPN platforms.

Women’s Sports Stars Azzi Fudd, Suni Lee Headline Travis Kelce American Eagle Campaign

Athletes Anna Frey, Azzi Fudd, Drew Allar, Jeremiah Smith, Kiyan Anthony, Suni Lee, and Travis Kelce pose wearing the AE x Tru Kolors by Travis Kelce collection.
Alongside other NCAA athletes, women’s sports standouts Azzi Fudd and Suni Lee starred in Travis Kelce and American Eagle's Tru Kolors launch this week. (American Eagle Outfitters)

UConn basketball star Azzi Fudd, Olympic gymnast Suni Lee, and more college talents struck a pose this week, teaming up with Kansas City Chiefs tight end — and newly minted fiancé — Travis Kelce to launch his new "Tru Kolors" American Eagle collection on Wednesday.

The Tru Kolors campaign highlights rising, current, and former NCAA athletes, with Fudd and Lee joined by UNC tennis commit Anna Frey as well as a trio of standouts in men's basketball and football.

"I'm inspired by where I come from and the people around me. That's why we chose six incredible athletes — Anna, Azzi, Drew, Kiyan, Suni, and Jeremiah — who stay true to themselves while changing the game," Kelce said in Wednesday's press release.

"Each athlete shares Travis's beliefs of staying true and living life beyond boundaries," the statement continues, describing reigning national champion Fudd as one of "college basketball's most resilient and dynamic players."

Lee is the only former collegiate icon featured in the campaign, with the Auburn alum departing NCAA competition to add three more medals to her six Olympic hardware total at the 2024 Paris Games.

College phenoms like Fudd and Lee have been able to funnel their athletic success into increasingly high-profile NIL deals.

Fudd has had a particularly lucrative year off the court, with this latest venture closely following a collab with Meta earlier this month.

How to buy the Travis Kelce American Eagle collection

Items from the initial Tru Kolors run hit shelves on Wednesday, with the rest of the 90-piece collection dropping on September 24th.

All pieces will be available to buy online at American Eagle.

NWSL Updates Controversial Policy After Kansas City Match Heat Delay

Kansas City Current goalkeeper Lorena splashes water on her face during a 2025 NWSL match.
The NWSL updated their 2025 Competition Rules and Regulations after this month's rift-causing heat delay in Kansas City. (Bill Barrett/ISI Photos/Getty Images)

The NWSL quietly updated its heat delay policy this week, after extreme temperatures delayed the August 16th match between the Kansas City Current and Orlando Pride — causing ongoing controversy.

According to The Guardian, the league's rules and regulations now omit a previously instated clause allowing on-site staff the discretion to stop the match when temperatures rise to one degree below the official delay threshold of 92.3°F.

The NWSL Players Association later stated that the NWSL did not seek approval or even make the athletes union aware of the rule change.

The specific discretionary scenario occurred amid the many delays in Kansas City on August 16th, with staff attributing a brief temperature dip below the official threshold to a cloud passing overhead.

Minutes later, the temperature reading rose more than three degrees above the 92.3°F barrier — justifying the on-site officials' call to wait for a second reading instead of immediately calling for the match to begin.

Calling it a break in protocol, NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman reportedly threatened to fine the Current after that decision process caused the teams to miss their national CBS broadcast slot.

Player safety concerns lie at the heart of the rift, with the heat delay saga becoming just the latest in a series of NWSL protocol issues dating back to the handling of Angel City defender Savy King's mid-match medical event in May.

"It was too hot to play… and there's a lot of confusion and lack of communication as well on what the next steps were," Orlando head coach Sebastian Hines said after the 0-0 draw. "It's brutal, three o'clock, sun's beaming. We have to have the best interest for everyone who's involved here at the stadium."

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