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Why Jewell Loyd backs a crypto future for the WNBA

(Joshua Huston/NBAE via Getty Images)

When Coinbase became the official crypto platform of the WNBA last October, most teams and athletes had a lot to learn about the company’s products and services. Coinbase partnered with the WNBA Players Association to provide draft invitees with financial training and open accounts for all 144 players in an effort to bring crypto to the fingertips of women and fans across the country.

For Jewell Loyd, the landscape wasn’t new. The Seattle Storm guard and four-time WNBA All-Star has been active in the crypto economy for years.

“Investments in other things like real estate along with crypto is something I’ve been doing since around 2013 with my brother,” Loyd said.

Loyd is not your typical 28-year-old investor. While growing up in Illinois, Loyd learned about the stock market from her grandfather and other mentors, and she received a crash course on the economy through a program at her middle school.

“They taught us how to apply for jobs, how to pay taxes, what taxes are. You even had to pay for your desk. Everything you would have to pay for in real life, you had to pay for in school,” she recalled.

“They were teaching us how to save money. You could pick up two or three jobs, just to see how real-life works. At the end of the year, you would say ‘How come I only have 20 bucks? How come this person had a dollar? How come this person has $500?’ They basically broke things down, what it means to make a dollar and how to invest.”

At Niles West High School, where Loyd scored over 3,000 points as a four-year starter on the basketball team, she also took investment classes. She and a partner would be tasked with checking the market online, trading stocks and explaining their investment choices to the class.

“It was engraved in us in school,” she said.

So, when Coinbase signed on as a partner of the WNBA in 2021, Loyd jumped at the opportunity to be an ambassador and take part of her salary in crypto.

While Loyd is at the forefront of using her platform to set an example in crypto investing, fans may be yearning to learn more about the service from more of their favorite WNBA superstars.

A peer-to-peer financial system, crypto allows individuals to exchange funds directly through the internet, loosening many of the restrictions of traditional finance and banking systems. Now you can buy, sell, trade and stake your assets with just a few clicks.

Loyd, who plays both overseas and in the U.S. like many WNBA players, is a fan of the financial freedom crypto offers her.

“If I go into a bank, I want to open an account, and there’s all this paperwork and stuff to do. And then if you take this specific money out, you get fined. What? It’s my money,” Loyd said. “Now, I go on Coinbase, I get my money out. It shouldn’t be that complicated to get your money. You have so many loopholes with certain banks. In my mind, that doesn’t make sense.

“It’s freedom, understanding and probably a little bit of love. I feel I get all three of those things using crypto.”

Loyd feels fortunate that she had a background in investing when she entered the WNBA in 2015 as Seattle’s first overall draft pick. She remembers sitting through a meeting on draft day, when a league rep walked the players through their retirement funds but didn’t spend much time teaching them how to invest.

She’s sensed a different mentality in the year since the WNBA partnered with Coinbase, as more players take initiative with their long-term financial strategy. Loyd’s former Storm teammate, Sue Bird, has been one of the leading voices of other products and services crypto has to offer. Through Coinbase, investors can not only buy and sell cryptocurrencies, but they can also exchange NFTs and store crypto in their own personal wallets, among other things.

“I think with this last year,” Loyd said, “people are trying to learn and understand this since this is the way things are going and people don’t want to be passed by.”

“We think the future of money is here with crypto,” said Jessica Williams, Coinbase’s Director of Brand Partnerships & Experiential. “Coinbase will continue to focus on our suite of products and platform, which are all tools that currently over 100M people use daily to buy, sell and manage crypto.”

Loyd has found confidence in crypto through experience. She’s hopeful that even more WNBA players will get there, too, now that the league and teams like Seattle are offering educational programs and tools to participate.

“As you’re investing, you’re also learning,” she said. “Being educated in what you’re investing in helps a lot and I want to see more, whether it’s the rookies coming in and getting a quick Coinbase lesson from the start. As rookies, we only learned about the investments of retirement.”

In recent months, the rapid rise of cryptocurrency has led to economic volatility and skepticism among the public. Loyd doesn’t see this as an issue, but rather a chance for her to help usher in a new financial tool and leave a permanent mark on the global market.

“I think a lot of people, especially women, are nervous about it. They don’t know what it is,” Loyd said. “For me, I’ve gone into meetings and people ask, ‘Oh, you know about crypto?’ Yeah, I’m a woman and an athlete and I know about crypto. It’s a cool thing for women to understand what it is, to sit in these seats in sports leagues and have another edge to them. Not just, ‘I’m here because they put me here,’ but ‘I can talk the language and know what’s going on.’”

For Loyd, whose own financial background is rooted in family and community, crypto is about more than monetary gains. It’s also a source of equality and other values she believes in at her core.

“Coinbase is meant for everybody. It’s hard to find something in the world that’s for everybody,” Loyd said. “Having the ability to teach this, to help people understand this, you are educating them, but also giving them something they can use for the rest of their lives. That’s impactful to me. This world isn’t equal, but this allows money, understanding and finances to be equal.”

Daniel Newton is a contributing writer at Just Women’s Sports.

USC Star JuJu Watkins to Sit Out 2025/26 NCAA Basketball Season with Injury

ESPN journalist Holly Rowe interviews USC basketball guard JuJu Watkins during the first round of the 2024/25 NCAA tournament.
USC star guard JuJu Watkins suffered an ACL tear during the 2024/25 NCAA tournament. (John W. McDonough/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

USC basketball star JuJu Watkins won't take the court this year, with the junior guard announcing Sunday that she'll miss the entire 2025/26 NCAA season while continuing to recover from injury.

"These last few months have been filled with a lot of healing, rest, and reflection," Watkins posted to social media on Sunday. "Following the advice of my doctors and trainers, I will sit out this season and fully focus on continuing to recover so I can come back to the game I love."

Watkins tore her right ACL in the second-round of the 2024/25 NCAA tournament, just days after earning her second straight All-American nod.

The reigning Player of the Year's 23.9 points per game and 6.8 rebounds per game were instrumental in leading the Trojans to the 2024/25 Big Ten regular-season title.

Though ACL recovery timelines can vary, recent history has shown that taking a measured, methodical approach can make an athlete's return even more powerful — an outcome that Watkins is clearly banking on.

While Watkins remains key to the longterm USC game plan, the Trojans' 2025/26 season hopes are still very much alive on the heels of back-to-back Elite Eight appearances.

That said, with the additional loss of USC alums Kiki Iriafen and Rayah Marshall to the WNBA, there are big shoes to fill on the roster — though the Trojans did snag this year's No. 1 high school recruit Jasmine "Jazzy" Davidson to boost their lineup this season.

"While we will certainly miss her impact on the court, [Watkins] continues to play a vital role in our program as a leader and teammate," said USC manager Lindsay Gottlieb. "The strength and maturity she has shown through this process is a reflection of who she is, and we know the Trojan Family will continue to rally behind her."

Phoenix Mercury Upset Minnesota Lynx, Advance 2025 WNBA Finals

Phoenix Mercury star Kahleah Copper proudly poses in her "This is Finals basketball" T-shirt following her team's series win in the 2025 WNBA semifinals.
Kahleah Copper and the Phoenix Mercury punched a ticket to their first WNBA Finals since 2021. (Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty Images)

The No. 4 Phoenix Mercury are headed to their first WNBA Finals since 2021, clinching their spot in the 2025 season finale after sweeping a two-game semifinals homestand against the No. 1 Minnesota Lynx with Sunday's 86-81 Game 4 win.

The Mercury are now the first team in WNBA Playoffs history to battle back from multiple 14-point deficits in a single series, with Phoenix star forward Alyssa Thomas putting up a team-leading 23 points to complete Sunday's comeback win.

"No one has had expectations for us except ourselves," Phoenix head coach Nate Tibbetts said following Game 4. "The pride and the togetherness for such a new group, it's pretty impressive."

After ceding a 20-point lead in Game 2, the Lynx's championship prospects took an even bigger hit on Friday, as leading scorer Napheesa Collier exited Game 3 with a serious ankle injury that left her sidelined for Sunday's big Game 4.

"You just want it for the people around you," said Minnesota guard Kayla McBride, who posted a game-leading 31 points in Sunday's loss. "You want it for the people who grind with you every single day, good days, bad days, bus rides, locker room."

"In pro sports, it doesn't get any better than what we have in our locker room," McBride continued. "I would feel [this emotion] one hundred times over to be with the people that I've been with."

While Minnesota's season is officially over, No. 4 Phoenix will now await the winner of Tuesday's semifinal Game 5 between the No. 6 Indiana Fever and No. 2 Las Vegas Aces, with the best-of-seven 2025 WNBA Finals set to tip off on Friday.

Indiana Fever Upset Forces WNBA Semifinals Game 5 Against Las Vegas Aces

The Indiana Fever huddle after defeating the Las Vegas Aces in Game 4 of the 2025 WNBA semifinals.
The Indiana Fever defeated the Las Vegas Aces 90-83 in Sunday's must-win Game 4 of the 2025 WNBA semifinals. (Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)

The championship dreams of the injury-plagued Indiana Fever are still alive after the No. 6 seed held off the No. 2 Las Vegas Aces 90-83 in Sunday's Game 4, forcing a winner-take-all decider in the 2025 WNBA semifinals.

Following an 84-72 Game 3 loss that saw Indiana fall behind 2-1 in the best-of-five series last Friday, Fever center Aliyah Boston and guard Kelsey Mitchell stepped up on Sunday, putting up a combined 49 of Indiana's 90 points.

"The desperation and the urgency that we play with when we're in those positions has been exactly what we need," Fever head coach Stephanie White said postgame.

As for Las Vegas, the fired-up Aces expressed frustration after Sunday's upset loss, with officiating issues continuing to take center stage throughout the 2025 WNBA postseason.

"[Indiana] shot 34 free throws, and we shot 11," Aces head coach Becky Hammon told reporters, with game-leading scorer A'ja Wilson adding that Boston alone shot 13 free throws — more than Las Vegas's entire team.

"I did appreciate it was a little tighter call, but tighter on both ends would have been nice," continued Hammon.

How to watch Indiana vs. Las Vegas in Game 5 of the semifinals

The No. 2 Aces and No. 6 Fever will close out the 2025 WNBA semifinals with a high-stakes Game 5 clash in Las Vegas on Tuesday.

The action tips off at 9:30 PM ET, with live coverage airing on ESPN2.

WNBA Suspends Minnesota Lynx Coach Cheryl Reeve Ahead of Game 4 Loss

Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve reacts to a play during Game 3 of the 2025 WNBA semifinals.
Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve was ejected from their Game 3 semifinals loss for confronting the referees. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Minnesota competed without their sideline leader in Sunday's 86-81 Game 4 semifinals loss, as the No. 4 Phoenix Mercury ousted the No. 1 Lynx while head coach Cheryl Reeve served a one-game suspension following her ejection from Friday's Game 3.

In the dying seconds of Friday's 84-76 loss, a collision caused Minnesota star Napheesa Collier to collapse with an ankle injury.

In reaction, Reeve ran onto the court as her staff worked to restrain her, earning the Lynx boss her second technical foul of the game for confronting the officials.

"The officiating crew that we had tonight, for the leadership to deem those three people semifinal-playoff worthy, it's f—ing malpractice," Reeve said after the game.

In a Saturday statement, the league said that Reeve's suspension stemmed from "aggressively pursuing and verbally abusing a game official on the court, [and] failure to leave the court in a timely manner upon her ejection," as well as "inappropriate comments made to fans when exiting the court, and remarks made in a post-game press conference."

Officiating has been under fire throughout the 2025 WNBA Playoffs, with coaches like Golden State Valkyries' boss Natalie Nakase and Las Vegas Aces leader Becky Hammon expressing concerns about the quality and consistency of postseason calls.

"If this is what the league wants, okay, but I want to call for a change of leadership at the league level when it comes to officiating," said Reeve.

With support from the National Basketball Referees Association, the three-person officiating crew from Friday's Game 3 in Minnesota also oversaw Sunday's Game 4 between the No. 2 Aces and No. 6 Fever in Indiana.

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