Every great rivalry needs two opposing forces.

And for the past decade, Megan Rapinoe has been just that for Christine Sinclair. Former teammates at the University of Portland, Sinclair and Rapinoe have been rivals in the NWSL and on the international stage, Sinclair for Canada and Rapinoe for the U.S. Women’s National Team.

Saturday night might have been the final time the two stars met on an NWSL pitch – Sinclair for the Portland Thorns, Rapinoe for the OL Reign – and afterward Sinclair spoke about what Rapinoe means to her.

“I’ve spent my entire career competing against her, whether it’s for Canada or with Portland,” Sinclair told reporters. “I have so much respect for her. We’re definitely two different types of people, but what she’s done for the game, she’s helped inspire an entire generation of young soccer fans.

“I’m going to miss playing against her. This rivalry is going to miss having her, and our fans are going to miss booing her.”

The Thorns won the game, 2-0, with goals from Hina Sugita and Morgan Weaver. When Rapinoe was subbed out in the 86th minute, she received a standing ovation from the Portland crowd.

Rapinoe and Sinclair were teammates on the 2005 Portland team that beat UCLA in the College Cup Finals. They eventually ended up on opposing sides in the NWSL, planting the seeds for what turned into one of the league’s fiercest rivalries.

Meghan Klingenberg, a Thorns defender and Rapinoe’s former national team teammate, spoke of the intensity of the matchup in advance of the game.

“From a significance point of a friend, I’m incredibly proud and happy for Pinoe to have this type of sendoff, and I hope we really f—k it up this weekend,” Klingenberg said. “We don’t give a f—k that Megan Rapinoe is coming to town and it’s her last game.”

The NWSL, in collaboration with Tiffany & Co., dropped revamped Shield and regular-season MVP trophies on Wednesday.

The bold new hardware is part of a plan to “set a new standard for recognition in women’s sports” by giving the Tiffany treatment to all NWSL end-of-season awards. This year's two additions join the redesigned Championship and Championship MVP awards that kicked off the league’s partnership with the jewelry company last year.

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An NWSL Shield worthy of superheroes

Both awards are handcrafted by Tiffany & Co. The refreshed MVP award includes a silver soccer ball atop a tall base.

"The best players in the world play here at the NWSL, and it is only fitting that we work with Tiffany to honor the best of the best," said NWSL chief marketing and commercial officer Julie Haddon in the league's announcement. “It has been a long time coming to create a suite of awards that are as extraordinary as our athletes."

Inspired by ancient Greco-Roman armor, the 24K gold and sterling silver Shield features a unique, interactive design. It is equipped with a handle so it can be removed from its base and held like "a true shield." 

Orlando poised to handle the new hardware

As the still-undefeated league leaders, the Orlando Pride are the clear frontrunners to claim the redesigned NWSL Shield.

The second-place Washington Spirit, third-place Gotham FC, and fourth-place KC Current are technically still in the running. However, with four matchdays left, Orlando can clinch the Shield outright by either defeating the Spirit this Sunday or winning two other remaining matches.

The regular-season MVP award race is tighter. Though Golden Boot leader Temwa Chawinga (KC) and the league's next top scorer Barbra Banda (Orlando) have pulled away from the pack.

And if Banda snags the honor, both new trophies will likely be bound for Florida.

Two games into the best-of-five 2024 WNBA semifinals, and the back-to-back defending champion Aces are staring down elimination while the Lynx evened the score last night.

With Friday's Game 3 offering a venue change, Las Vegas will need every ounce of their home-court advantage to continue their playoff run, while Minnesota's aim will be to silence the Connecticut crowd.

Aces on the brink of elimination after Game 2 loss

Tuesday's second-straight loss, an 88-84 defeat by the No. 1 seed Liberty in Brooklyn, has No. 4 seed Las Vegas on the brink of playoff elimination. The Aces are now the first reigning champions to ever fall to a 0-2 deficit in a WNBA playoff series.

Las Vegas has yet to conquer the Liberty this season, falling a franchise record-tying five straight times to same opponent, all after defeating New York in the 2023 WNBA Finals.

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New York's Sabrina Ionescu and Las Vegas's A'ja Wilson led their teams in scoring with 24 points each, while Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot provided a crucial spark off the bench. 

Should Las Vegas turn things around when the series moves back to Nevada on Friday, they'd become the first team to ever bounce back from 0-2 to reach the WNBA Finals.

Aces guard Chelsea Gray put a positive spin on the challenge, saying "I love being in the history books, so might as well try to start there. That's going to be our mentality."

Lynx level up with Game 2 semifinal win in Minnesota

No. 2 seed Minnesota evened their semifinal score with No. 3 seed Connecticut on Tuesday, earning a 77-70 win in Minneapolis to send the series back East at one victory apiece.

Courtney Williams led the Lynx in scoring with 17 points, while a physical Minnesota defense held the Sun to less than 40% shooting from the field.

In the loss, Sun forward DeWanna Bonner became the third all-time leading scorer in WNBA postseason history. She also inked her name into the league record books as the player with the most appearances in playoff history at 83 games and counting.

Friday kicks off a guaranteed two-game run in Connecticut, with the home side on a mission to reach the Finals for the first time since 2022.

How to watch Game 3 of the WNBA semifinals

Las Vegas and Minnesota will look to pick up critical wins in Friday's Game 3, with the Aces facing a must-win scenario in front of what promises to be a rocking home crowd.

The Lynx will travel to Connecticut for a 7:30 PM ET tip off on Friday, October 4th, followed by a Liberty vs. Aces showdown in Las Vegas at 9:30 PM ET. Both games are scheduled to air on ESPN2.

In this week's episode of The Late Sub, host Claire Watkins takes a look at the first games of the 2024 WNBA semifinals, discussion whether or not Aces and Lynx fans can find the silver lining in their teams' respective shortcomings heading into Game 2.

Then, she shouts out the big winners and losers of this weekend's NWSL's slate, including this season's historic Golden Boot race and the competition to clinch one of the final playoff spots.

The Late Sub with Claire Watkins brings you the latest news and freshest takes in women’s sports. This is the weekly rundown you’ve been missing, covering the USWNT, NWSL, WNBA, college hoops, and whatever else is popping off in women’s sports each week. Special guest appearances with the biggest names in women’s sports make The Late Sub a must-listen for every fan. Follow Claire on X/Twitter @ScoutRipley and subscribe to the Just Women’s Sports newsletter for more.

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On Monday, the WNBA announced that the expansion draft for incoming 2025 franchise the Golden State Valkyries will be held December 6th.

This will mark the league's first expansion draft since 2008, when the Atlanta Dream joined the league.

League sets draft limitations on 2025 expansion draft

Per the rules, the WNBA's 12 current teams can protect up to six players each, with all others available for selection. Those available for selection include all athletes each franchise holds rights to as of the end of the 2024 regular season. Accordingly, that pool spans both active players and those on suspended, retired, core, draft, or reserved lists.

Current teams must submit full roster lists showing all players — including those protected — to the league by a yet-to-be-set deadline. That deadline will likely fall around 10 days prior to the expansion draft.

In the expansion draft, the Valkyries will be able to pick a maximum of one player from each team. They can also choose only one 2024 unrestricted free agent.

Valkyries trade window could spur strategic WNBA moves

Perhaps most interestingly, once all roster lists are submitted, Golden State will be allotted a short pre-draft trade window to broker deals.

During this window, they can negotiate with teams to select, or purposefully not select, certain athletes. Golden State can also pick a player with the express purpose of trading them to another franchise.

Expect more WNBA roster shake-ups next season

The league has yet to announce if Golden State will be granted 2025 college draft picks, but has said the Valkyries will be eligible to participate in February’s free agency period.

With two new WNBA franchises in Toronto and Portland slated to begin play in 2026, Golden State's draft will likely be a preview of more expansion drafts to come next year.

While December 6th's proceedings will air live on ESPN, other aspects of the expansion draft will not be made public, including the current teams's protected players lists.