Nancy Darsch, the gold winning assistant coach for the USA Women’s Olympic Basketball team in both the 1984 (Los Angeles) and 1996 (Atlanta) Olympic games, died last Monday after battling Parkinson’s disease. She was 68.

Darsch’s influence on the game extended to all levels of women’s basketball. Her coaching career began at Longmeadow High School in Massachusetts before eventually progressing to Ohio State University in 1985, where she led the Buckeyes to four Big Ten Conference Championships and seven NCAA tournament appearances.

Former Buckeyes player and current Minnesota Lynx coach Katie Smith took to Twitter to remember her former coach and mentor.

Thank you Nancy for all you did for the game and for your players. You did everything with class. You will be missed. Rest Well ????????❤️ https://t.co/rdQYUCeEca

— Katie Smith - OLY (@katiesmith30) November 4, 2020

In 1997, Darsch started her professional coaching career during the WNBA’s inaugural season with the New York Liberty. She had the privilege of coaching the Liberty in the first-ever WNBA game against the Los Angeles Sparks, where she earned her first professional victory with a final score of 67-57.

As head coach, she led the team to a 17-11 season, as the team advanced to the WNBA Finals, where they fell to the Houston Comets. In her two seasons with New York, Darsch compiled a 36-24 record.

In a statement released to WNBA.com, the New York Liberty thanked Darsch for the contributions she made to the team:

“We are grateful for Nancy’s leadership as a pioneer of this game. Her contributions to the advancement of both collegiate and professional women’s basketball, and her passion for the game will forever be felt.”

Teresa Weatherspoon, a member of that 1997 Liberty squad and a 2010 inductee into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, was one of many former players who took to social media to commemorate her experience under Coach Darsch:

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Teresa Weatherspoon (@tspoon_11)

Weatherspoon went on to start her own legacy of coaching women’s basketball, serving as the head basketball coach for the Louisiana Tech Lady Techsters for five years.

After her first two seasons with New York, Darsch took over as head coach for the Washington Mystics. At the end of two seasons, she became an advance scout for the team, and from 2003-2005, seasons she served as an assistant coach with the Minnesota Lynx. Darsch joined the Seattle Storm as an assistant coach in 2008, winning a WNBA title with the team in 2010.

In “Remembering Nancy Darsch” a video created by WNBA.com documenting Darsch’s experiences as a coach, she shares a few insightful words describing her coaching style.

“The players, to me, need to be at the forefront. I’m just the architect. Let people come and enjoy the building and enjoy the team, and I’m in the backseat.”

Darsch’s humility underscores her importance to the league and the players she coached. In four seasons as WNBA head coach, she compiled a 57-57 record, but her legacy goes well beyond those numbers.

Darsch is one of many unsung heroes who helped carry women’s basketball to where it is today. And it’s this legacy that will live on, reminding us that not all heroes wear capes, but some carry clipboards.

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."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Just Women’s Sports (@justwomenssports)

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.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Washington Mystics (@washmystics)

"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.