Former players have accused former women’s basketball coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke of “demeaning, demoralizing and abusive behavior,” according to a report from The Athletic’s Chantel Jennings and Dana O’Neil.

Players from throughout Cooper-Dyke’s coaching career told The Athletic that she made sexual and degrading comments and endangered athletes’ physical and mental well-being.

A four-time WNBA champion with the Houston Comets, Cooper-Dyke was named to “The W25,” a list of the league’s top 25 players of all time in celebration of its 25th season. Following her playing career, she began her college coaching career in 2005 at Prairie View A&M.

The Athletic’s investigation uncovered allegations that spanned three schools during Cooper-Dyke’s coaching career, beginning at UNC Wilmington in 2010. She also spent time at USC and most recently Texas Southern.

She retired from her position as head coach at Texas Southern in March after being investigated by the school’s Title IX office. During her final season, no-contact orders were issued to players, which prohibited them from talking with the coach or assistant coaches.

Cooper-Dyke’s Title IX hearing was scheduled for April 6, but shortly after her retirement, that meeting was canceled. Per Texas Southern’s policy, a Title IX complaint can be dismissed if “the Respondent is no longer enrolled or employed by the University.”

At all three schools, Cooper-Dyke is said to have discussed her and her players’ sex lives. In her first stint at Texas Southern in 2012, she reportedly got on her knees and pretended to perform fellatio on a male assistant with players present.

In addition to the reported sexual comments, Cooper-Dyke also reportedly called players slurs and curse words. She asked an assistant coach at Texas Southern if she could send a player, who is the daughter of Haitian immigrants, “home on a boat” while the team was at a tournament in the Bahamas, the report said.

“She would talk to us like we were murderers in jail, if you know what I mean,” one player told The Athletic. “I’ve never had a coach that’s cussed at me like she did or said some of the things she would say.”

Cooper-Dyke also put players’ physical and mental health at risk, The Athletic reported. At UNC-Wilmington, she allegedly made a player do log rolls across the court for 30 minutes, causing the player to vomit and the skin on her knees to rub off. While at USC in 2013, she reportedly pressured injured players to return to practice before they were cleared to do so.

Thaddesia Southall, who played for Cooper-Dyke at USC in 2013-14, was kicked off the team when she tried to explain that she was unable to bend her knee and practice.

“Every time something comes across my Instagram, someone celebrating her, I want to scream,” she told The Athletic. “She does not stand for what the WNBA represents. She does not stand for what they are trying to promote. This is a woman who demeaned us, who talked to us like we were not human. She made me hate basketball, and no one did anything to stop her.”

Another person in the program described their depleted mental state. “Not a day went by that I didn’t think about taking my life and even had an idea to do it at Cynthia’s house so she could understand what a devastating impact she had on me,” the person said.

Multiple complaints were presented to officials at USC, but it wasn’t until complaints were made to newly appointed athletic director Lynn Swann during the 2016-17 season that any action was taken. After an investigation, Cooper-Dyke was faced with possible termination and resigned. The reason for her departure was not made public.

Cooper-Dyke was hired at Texas Southern in 2019.

“Nobody has said anything or done anything, just passed her off to the next school,” a USC player said. “This woman mentally and emotionally terrorized us.”

In a statement texted to The Athletic, Cooper-Dyke said that her “countless” interactions with a majority of her players have been “positive.”

“My only intention was to maximize players’ potential and help them be their best,” she wrote. “While these allegations are untrue, everyone deserves to work, play and learn in a respectful environment, and I deeply apologize for and regret any words used during the course of a spirited game or practice that offended or hurt someone.”

Cameron Brink already has her rookie of the year pick for the upcoming WNBA season, and it’s Indiana-bound star Caitlin Clark. 

In the latest edition of Kelley on the Street, host Kelley O'Hara caught up with Brink in New York hours before the Stanford phenom went No. 2 overall to the Los Angeles Sparks at the 2024 WNBA Draft. When O’Hara asked who would win the WNBA's rookie of the year, she answered without pause.

"Caitlin Clark," she said, while a fan commented that she thought Brink would take home the award. Brink later added that the extra foul granted to WNBA players will be "good for me."

"I hope it’s me," Charisma Osborne, who was later drafted by the Phoenix Mercury, said when asked her ROY prediction. "But, I don’t know — we’ll see."

Watch more of Kelley on the Street:

Maria Sanchez issued a statement on Thursday, confirming recent reports that she has requested a trade from the Houston Dash. 

In it, she revealed that the club has been aware of the request "since late March."

"This has all taken a toll and isn’t an easy thing to talk about, but I want to confirm that I’ve requested an immediate trade," she wrote. "My expectations and reasons have been clear. I trust that my current club’s management will honor my decision in a timely manner and proceed with accepting a trade."

"I’m eager to refocus and dive back into what I love most: playing football," she concluded.

Thank you, everyone, for the outpouring of kindness and support. pic.twitter.com/gcnN7dhCJU

— Maria Sanchez (@Maria17_7) April 19, 2024

Reports of Sanchez's trade request first surfaced on ESPN last week, and were later confirmed by multiple sources. 

In December of last year, Sanchez signed a three-year contract with the Dash valued at $1.5 million including bonuses and an option year. It was the largest contract in NWSL history at the time — a figure that would be eclipsed by multiple contracts in the following months. 

Sanchez spent the offseason as a restricted free agent, meaning that Houston could match any other team's offer to retain her rights. Should the Dash trade Sanchez, her current contract terms would remain intact, limiting potential buyers to teams able to afford to take on an inking of that size.

The Dash has yet to address the trade, instead reiterating to ESPN that Sanchez is "under contract, a choice she made in free agency at the end of 2023." 

Both the NWSL trade window and transfer window close tonight, April 19th, at 12 a.m. ET. The window will stay closed through the next 11 regular season games, reopening on August 1st, 2024.

The four-time league champion Seattle Storm unveiled their new practice facility on Thursday, with Storm co-owner Lisa Brummel dubbing Interbay's Seattle Storm Center for Basketball Performance the team’s "new home."

"It's just such a special space," Brummel told Fox 13 Seattle. "I think when the players get here, it's gonna be overwhelming."

The sprawling 50,000-square-foot, $64 million property is just the second designated practice facility to be designed and built expressly for a WNBA team, with the Storm further noting that 85% of all design and engineering team members involved in the project's construction were women and people of color. The finished product holds two professional indoor courts, two 3x3 outdoor courts, a state-of-the-art locker room, and players' lounge, plus designated areas for strength and conditioning, kitchen, dining, and nutrition, and recovery. 

"This facility reflects our commitment to providing our athletes an exceptional environment that supports their growth, health, and performance," said Storm co-owner Ginny Gilder in an official team release. "It’s built for women, by women, embodying our dedication to leading the way in professional women’s sports."

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For their part, the team can't wait to make the faciilty their own.

"It's amazing," Storm guard Jewell Loyd told Fox 13. "Not having to drive everywhere around, knowing you have access anytime of the day to get into the gym, to workout." 

Head coach Noelle Quinn said she predicts the team is "never going to leave this building."

"Which is a good thing for me," she continued. "You talk about having an edge in performance. We want our athletes to not only perform on the court, but get whatever they need."

All of the Storm's staff and operations will now live under one roof, and the team also has plans to launch a youth basketball program operating out of the building.

The Caitlin Clark effect is quickly making its mark on the big leagues, as WNBA host teams around the country rush to upgrade their Fever games to larger arenas in order to accommodate surging ticket sales.

With Clark mere weeks away from her Indiana Fever debut, both the Las Vegas Aces and Washington Mystics have officially relocated their scheduled home games with head coach Christie Sides' squad. On Thursday, the Mystics became the latest to adjust their plans, moving their June 7th matchup from Entertainment & Sports Arena in Southwest DC to the more centrally located — and much larger — Capital One Arena "due to unprecedented demand."

The Mystics home court's capacity taps out at 4,200, while Capital One Arena — home to the Wizards, Capitals, and Georgetown Hoya's Men's Basketball — can fit nearly five times that crowd at some 20,000 spectators.

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"The move to Capital One Arena will allow for additional fans in the stands as well as premium hospitality options, including Suites and the all-new all-inclusive courtside Hennessy Lofts," the team announced via Thursday's press release.

The Aces were one of the first teams to switch venues, aiming to take on the Indiana Fever in front of as many as 20,000 fans inside T-Mobile Arena on July 2nd. That’s a sizable a boost from their home venue, which holds just 12,000.

For those still planning to face the Fever in their home arenas, ticket prices have skyrocketed. Previously scheduled construction has already forced the LA Sparks to relocate their first five games — including their May 24th clash with the Fever — to Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid. The temporary venue is quite the downsize, holding just 4,000 in comparison to Crypto.com Arena's near-19,000. As of Friday, the get-in price for that game started around $400.

Despite fans launching a Change.org petition urging relocation, the Chicago Sky say they're unable to move their June 23rd Fever meeting from Wintrust Arena's 10,000-seat facility to the 23,500-seat United Center due to a concert. Tickets for that game start around $325 as of Friday.