The Las Vegas Aces sat atop the basketball world in September after winning their first WNBA championship. Since then, the team — which was already a favorite to repeat as champions in 2023 — has found itself embroiled in multiple controversies.

The franchise is being investigated for its treatment of Dearica Hamby, who was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks last month while expecting her second child, and also reportedly for circumventing the WNBA’s salary cap. Both accusations were raised in the last few weeks.

Here is a timeline of the events leading up to this point.

January 21: Aces trade Dearica Hamby to the Sparks

Las Vegas dealt the two-time Sixth Player of the Year to L.A. along with a 2024 first-round pick in exchange for a 2024 second-round pick and the negotiating rights for forward Amanda Zahui B., who was a free agent at the time. Zahui B. ended up signing with the Mystics later on in free agency.

The San Antonio Stars, who later moved to Las Vegas and became the Aces, drafted Hamby sixth overall in 2015. With the organization, she won a WNBA championship and was an All-Star in 2021 and 2022 as a key contributor off the bench.

Hamby, 29, had signed a multi-year contract extension on June 29, seven months before the trade.

January 21: Dearica Hamby takes grievances to Instagram and WNBPA releases statement

On the same day that the trade was made public, Hamby accused the Aces of mistreating her due to her pregnancy.

If true, the Aces could be in violation of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978.

“Being traded is part of the business,” Hamby wrote on Instagram. “Being lied to, bullied, manipulated and discriminated against is not.”

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She went on to say that the Aces organization “attacked” her character and work ethic and called into question her commitment to the team.

After Hamby’s post, the WNBA Players Association released a statement acknowledging a concern raised against the Aces but did not specify if the player in question was Hamby or if it was in relation to her post.

“A member of our Union has raised serious concerns regarding the conduct of members of Las Vegas Aces’ management,” the statement read. “We will review this matter and we will seek a comprehensive investigation to ensure that her rights under the collectively bargained provisions of the 2020 CBA, as well as her rights and protections under state and federal law, have not been violated.”

January 28: Candace Parker announces her intention to sign with Aces

After two years with the Chicago Sky, Parker opted to sign with the Aces in free agency, announcing her decision on Instagram on a Saturday afternoon.

“After evaluating the landscape together with my family, we’ve decided the Las Vegas Aces are the right organization for us at this point in our lives,” wrote the two-time WNBA champion.

Parker reportedly signed a one-year, $100,000 contract with Las Vegas, taking a steep discount to join the superteam for the 2023 season.

February 7: Aces avoid talking about Hamby

The Aces held an introductory press conference for Parker on Tuesday that included coach Becky Hammon, team president Nikki Fargas and general manager Natalie Williams.

Fargas started the press conference with an opening statement that addressed the Aces’ intentions with building their roster during the offseason and indirectly referenced the team’s decision to trade Hamby.

“We will always continue to make sure that our players and their families will always be in the forefront of who we are as a franchise,” Fargas said. “We’re going to always be supportive of our players in that regard. And we will always demonstrate that we will act accordingly when you are discussing any situation surrounding the well-being of our athletes.

“We are here to assemble the best team possible, and when putting together a team, there are times when trades will happen. But that’s for us to also remain competitive.”

Later, when a reporter raised a question to Fargas about Hamby, an Aces spokesperson interjected to tell the media in attendance that Fargas had to take another call and they would take just one more question. From there, the Zoom press conference ended abruptly.

In case folks are interested in seeing how this was handled on Candace's intro press conference...Here is the video of @ANYamashita trying to ask his question about Dearica Hamby: https://t.co/D3lMME5cAV pic.twitter.com/t4fYChCs6f

— Ben Pickman (@benpickman) February 7, 2023

February 8: News breaks alleging Aces circumvented salary cap

In addition to the Hamby investigation, the Aces also came under scrutiny this week for accusations that they circumvented the salary cap, which is set at $1,420,500 for the 2023 season.

The organization allegedly made “under-the-table” offers to players they hoped to sign in free agency, which included sponsorship offers from “pre-selected companies,” as first reported by The Next on Wednesday.

The CBA does not allow sponsorships that exceed fair market value. It also forbids teams from making deals that serve as “compensation for basketball services.”

WNBA leaders sounded off on the report on Twitter this week, with Dream owner Larry Gottesdiener, Lynx head coach and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve and Fever GM Lin Dunn calling for a “level playing field” when it comes to the salary cap.

February 8: Aces release statement about WNBPA investigation surrounding Hamby trade

The Aces released a statement on Feb. 8 at 5:48 PM local time (PST) addressing the investigation for the first time.

“The Las Vegas Aces are aware of the formal investigation launched today by the WNBA regarding Dearica Hamby,” the statement read.

The investigation, however, had started prior to the Aces’ statement, The Athletic confirmed this week. The WNBPA’s own investigation had also begun earlier.

The statement continued: “As an organization whose mission is to support and celebrate the tremendously talented women in our league, we take seriously our responsibility to hold ourselves to the highest professional standards.

We have been in contact with league investigators to assist with all information requested, and will continue to do so throughout the investigation. Due to the ongoing investigation, the organization will have no further comment at this time.”

The statement did not address the salary cap accusations.

Led by undefeated overall No. 1-seed Nebraska, the college volleyball elite will begin their quest for the 2025 national championship on Thursday, when the first round of the 64-team NCAA Division I tournament hits courts nationwide.

The Huskers are still chasing a perfect season, entering the 2025 title hunt on a 30-0 run having dropped just six sets all season — including losing just one set since September 16th.

"I was expecting us to be great, but certainly not undefeated," said Nebraska alumna and first-year Cornhusker head coach Dani Busboom Kelly on a recent episode of the Welcome to the Party podcast. "They continue to exceed our expectations."

Busboom Kelly's roster is loaded with the kind of experienced connection that only comes when the core of players have competed together for three straight seasons — an increasing rarity in the transfer portal and NIL era.

That said, this core has unfinished business on the national stage, with the superstar junior trio of middle blocker Andi Jackson, outside hitter Harper Murray, and setter Bergen Reilly — all AVCA Player of the Year semifinalists — looking to bring the first NCAA trophy in eight years back to Lincoln.

"It's such a special row, because we just know that all of us have been through thick and thin together and our bond is so strong," Jackson told USA Today Sports earlier this week. "[And Busboom Kelly] gives us so much confidence and we know that with her as our coach, we just can play fearless."

Stacked tournament field looks to spoil Nebraska's season

Even with their "fearless" play, a host of stellar opponents await Nebraska in the NCAA tournament gauntlet, hoping to play spoiler — including Busboom Kelly's previous program, the Louisville Cardinals, who await the Cornhuskers as the No. 2-seed in their own regional quadrant.

Fellow No. 1 seeds Texas, Kentucky, and Pitt will also chase their eventual chance at the Huskers via their own regionals, where the Longhorns could see arguably the stiffest competition from both No. 2-seed Stanford — the winningest program in NCAA volleyball history — and defending champion and No. 8-seed Penn State.

With tickets to the 2025 Final Four in Kansas City on the line, the NCAA volleyball bracket's 64 squads will start serving at 16 campus sites on Thursday.

How to watch the first round of the 2025 NCAA volleyball tournament

This year's NCAA volleyball finale begins when No. 5-seed Colorado takes on unseeded American University at 3 PM ET on Thursday, kicking off a two-day first round of 32 matches — with No. 1 Nebraska looking to handle Long Island University in their initial tournament tilt at 8 PM ET on Friday.

All games in the early rounds of the 2025 Division I tournament will air live on ESPN+.

US tennis star Coco Gauff continues to win off the court, with the 2025 French Open champion topping Sportico's list of the 15 Highest-Paid Female Athletes for the third consecutive year.

Fueled by $23 million in off-court endorsements, the $31 million earned by the 21-year-old world No. 3 WTA player edged out the $30 million total income that fellow tennis star and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka garnered in 2025.

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Unsurprisingly, a full 10 athletes on the Sportico Top 15 list are tennis stars, a direct result of the fact that all four Grand Slams and the Masters 1000 tournaments boast equal prize money between the men's and women's competitions — a shift that began with the 1973 US Open.

That established expectation of gender equity in prize money has tennis far outpacing salaries in most other women's sports.

Also making the Top 15 are two LPGA golfers — world No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul (No. 15 on the Highest-Paid Female Athletes list) and US star No. 2 Nelly Korda (No. 7) — as well as popular Olympic skiier Eileen Gu (No. 4), WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark (No. 6), and USA gymnastics legend Simone Biles (No. 11).

Notably, Gu, Clark, and Biles as well as Venus Williams (No. 14) all proved the power of endorsements on this year's list, with nearly all of the quartet's earnings coming from sponsorship deals.

As WNBA CBA negotiations rage on, revenue sharing continues to be a wedge issue for both sides of the table, with the league office and the WNBPA eyeing the terms of the most recent proposal from differing viewpoints.

The Athletic reported on Wednesday that the WNBA believes it has offered the revenue-sharing salary model that the players have pushed for throughout the CBA talks, leaving athletes to claim 50% of the "sharable" portion of league revenue.

How the WNBA will determine the "sharable" cut is uncertain, though sources claim the compensation structure on offer will result in players taking home less than 15% of the league's total earnings.

That percentage is likely to take a further hit over the lifetime of a new CBA, according to the league's multi-year earning projections.

"I don't feel like there's any cultivation of a culture of trust [in the CBA talks]," WNBPA president and Seattle Storm star Nneka Ogwumike told The Athletic. "I feel like we've been heard, but not listened to, and I'm hoping that that changes in this 40-day extension, because what we want to do is get a good deal done."

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Parental leave, draft combine, and more enters the WNBA CBA talks

Along with the issue of revenue sharing, the latest WNBA offer also reportedly outlined other proposals, such as the institution of a required offseason draft combine, the elimination of team housing, and the possible extension of the competition calendar by starting earlier and/or finishing the season later.

As for the WNBPA's Tuesday counteroffer, the players union is seeking to eliminate the core designation and shorten the current four-year rookie contract to three years.

The WNBPA is also asking to add non-birthing parental leave, retirement benefits, and reimbursements for mental healthcare.

The WNBA and WNBPA will meet again to negotiate sometime this week, with talks racing toward the second-extension deadline of January 9th, 2026.

After setting a new NCAA basketball record by scoring 100+ points in eight consecutive games, the No. 5 LSU Tigers will face their season's first true test when they visit the preseason-No. 7 Duke Blue Devils as part of the 2025 ACC/SEC Challenge on Thursday night.

"We don't play nobody in our nonconference schedule," senior guard Flau'jae Johnson told JWS in November. "From December on out, that's when it gets really [exciting]."

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With their history-making string of lopsided wins under their belt, the Tigers will try to keep the streak alive against a now-unranked Duke side on a three-game losing skid.

The Blue Devils will rely on leading scorer and rebounder Toby Fournier for a spark, with the sophomore forward averaging 15.8 points per game despite Duke's 3-5 start.

As for LSU, the title-hunting Tigers will look to stat undefeated behind Johnson's team-leading 17.0 scoring average, as well as the 16.1 points per game put up by junior star transfer MiLaysia Fulwiley.

"Ballers just want to ball, like hoopers just want to hoop," Johnson said of LSU's quick cohesion this season. "You find different ways to bond and gel with teammates."

How to watch LSU vs. Duke on Thursday

Duke will host No. 5 LSU in the 2025 ACC/SEC Challenge at 9 PM ET, with live coverage airing on ESPN.