Skylar Diggins-Smith wants to be “supported and welcomed” by her next WNBA team.

The impending free agent hinted again at her rift with the Phoenix Mercury in an interview with Edition by Modern Luxury. The 33-year-old guard spent the 2023 season on maternity leave, and she seems set to depart the Mercury in the offseason.

In 2020, Diggins-Smith joined the Mercury via a sign-and-trade deal from the Dallas Wings after spending the 2019 season on maternity leave after the birth of her first child. Ahead of the 2023 season, she gave birth to her second child. Her desire to balance motherhood and her playing career created friction with her teams, she said.

“I’ve definitely been working towards trying to have one of my most productive years next year, because I think a lot of times—especially in sports—you’re not encouraged to have kids. And the teams that I played for in the past when I got pregnant didn’t like that,” she said. “And so I’m looking forward to being somewhere where my family and I are supported and welcomed.”

While she contemplates free agency, she is working her way toward her WNBA comeback. But she also is not pressuring herself.

“I have been trying to give myself grace and not putting that pressure on myself to be ready now,” she said. “I’m just going through flowing through the process. I’ve been feeling really good.”

And she knows she has time to get back into form. The next WNBA season is still more than six months away, so she is taking it “one day at a time” and spending time with her daughters.

“I hate this freaking snapback culture. Nope, I’m not conforming to that,” she said. “I was obviously blessed. I know not everybody has that luxury to take on maternity leave. So I was able to do that and just recover. So I didn’t feel the pressure to have to pop right back up to practice.”

Even still, she has “hated” missing this year as a competitor. But it’s made her eager to return next year.

And when she does return, she’ll be celebrating 10 years in the WNBA. That’s not something many players can say.

“It’s so dope. I wouldn’t even say 10% of women who come into the WNBA are able to sustain that for 10 years,” she said. “So I really am proud of that and I don’t take it for granted.”

Diggins-Smith “can’t wait to get back on the court again,” and she is excited to have her kids watch her play, she told Edition.

“I love for the idea for them to see me pouring into what I’m really passionate about and to see how high I can go,” she said. “You put your work into this craft, you don’t cheat it. It opened doors to me. … I definitely look forward to seeing what my personal best is because I feel like I still have more to give to the game.”

As the NWSL preps for this weekend's return from an extended summer break, No. 4 Washington Spirit star forward Trinity Rodman is also hoping to re-take the pitch for the first time since April.

Rodman is currently back training with the team, rejoining her club after undergoing extended treatment overseas for chronic back issues.

"I'd never really dealt with something like that," Rodman admitted after an open practice earlier this week. "So, for me, mentally, it was very difficult."

"[I was] trying to function through pain, and kind of gaslight myself to thinking it was fine every day, when it wasn't," she said. "I can now kind of openly say, I was in pain all the time."

Rodman also admits that stepping away was, though difficult, the right call to make for her healing.

"Obviously, it sucks being away from the team and being away from soccer in general," she added. "But I got to work on things that I wouldn't have gotten to work on if I was in the team environment all the time, so I think that was a positive."

Rodman's availability fluctuated after she earned an Olympic gold medal with the USWNT in Paris last summer, with the soccer superstar featuring in just four Spirit games this season — and none since stepping away in April.

Now functioning pain-free, Rodman's next on-pitch challenge is balancing her competitive intensity with her newly found health.

"It's really understanding my body and acknowledging [when] it's in pain," she explained. "And not pushing through things that I shouldn't."

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Rodman eyes new contract amid NWSL return

On top of navigating her return to play, Rodman is also actively negotiating with the Washington Spirit for a contract renewal.

Her current deal expires at the end of 2025, and with interest in the US standout reportedly mounting from overseas clubs, the 23-year-old could eventually field multiple offers.

Considering her lack of minutes so far this season, the star called the assumed interest "a weird situation."

"I'm trying not to stress about it or put too much pressure on it," she said of the ongoing talks. "At the end of the day, I'm worried about health first.... Everything else can come next."

Wednesday's WNBA bill puts a heavyweight battle in the spotlight, as 2024 finalists and 2025 league leaders Minnesota will host reigning champion No. 2 New York in their first face-off of the season — with the Liberty hoping to rattle both the Lynx and the standings.

"I think common sense would say that those two teams probably should have played earlier in the season," Minnesota head coach Cheryl Reeve told media this week, referencing the apparent scheduling idiosyncrasies that delayed the championship rematch.

"It doesn't feel like a Finals rematch anymore, honestly," Lynx forward Napheesa Collier echoed. "It's a new year for us. And it's been so long, it's almost August, so it's just the two top teams going against each other."

Both squads enter the clash on uncharacteristic skids, as Minnesota and New York look to avenge recent losses while other WNBA teams jockey for positioning during the league's Wednesday night slate:

• No. 3 Phoenix Mercury vs. No. 6 Indiana Fever, 7 PM ET (ESPN3): The Fever must continue to contend without injured star guard Caitlin Clark, as Indiana faces a newly healthy Mercury side striving to steal back the No. 2 spot with a win.

• No. 5 Atlanta Dream vs. No. 11 Dallas Wings, 8 PM ET (ESPN3): After a disappointing Tuesday upset loss, the will Dream close out a back-to-back against a bolstered Dallas squad fresh off a big victory over New York.

• No. 2 New York Liberty vs. No. 1 Minnesota Lynx, 8 PM ET (ESPN): With a four-game lead in the standings, the Lynx aren't in danger of giving up their perch at the top, but a strong performance from the Liberty could provide a much-needed boost to the ailing title-holders.

The No. 9 Golden State Valkyries emerged as the WNBA's big winners on Tuesday night, with the 2025 expansion side shaking off a tough Sunday loss to the last-place Connecticut Sun with a 77-75 win over the No. 5 Atlanta Dream.

Golden State forward Cecilia Zandalasini scored a team-leading 18 points off the bench — including the game-winner — as Golden State built up a 30-point third quarter to narrowly hang onto the lead.

"We were talking about resilience, so it felt really good, especially on the road," starting guard Tiffany Hayes said after the win.

While Golden State secured momentum with the upset win, Tuesday's result wasn't quite enough to catapult the Valkyries over the postseason cutoff line.

Both the No. 7 Las Vegas Aces and the No. 8 Washington Mystics held fast to their playoff positions with Tuesday victories over No. 10 LA and No. 12 Chicago, respectively — denying both the Sparks and the Sky any headway in pushing out of their current lottery slots.

LA did see some upside in forward Cam Brink's return from injury, with the 2024 No. 2 draft pick contributing five points and three rebounds in her limited 14-minute performance.

With such parity, any WNBA team — including Golden State — can make a run up the 2025 table, so long as the squads at the top cede any ground.

World No. 18 Colombia secured their spot in the 2025 Copa América final on Monday night, when Las Cafeteras bested No. 32 Argentina in a penalty shootout to take the first of the continental tournament's two semifinals.

Despite dominating in both possession and attacking opportunities, Colombia failed to break through in regulation time, ending the Copa semifinal in a 0-0 stalemate.

However, the 2022 runners-up showed confidence from the spot, securing the victory with a narrow 5-4 penalty differential after six shootout rounds.

"We are finalists and we qualified for the Olympics in Los Angeles, that was our objective," said Colombia goalkeeper Katherine Tapia after the win. "We are prepared for the Final."

With Colombia hunting a first-ever Copa title in their fourth trip to the tournament's finale, they will either face underdog No. 63 Uruguay or reigning champions No. 4 Brazil in Saturday's 2025 title match.

Should Brazil soccer legend Marta and the rest of her team continue their run to a fifth straight — and ninth overall — Conmebol trophy, Colombia would find themselves facing As Canarinhas for a competition record-tying fourth time in the Copa América final.

On the other hand, a Uruguay semifinal victory over Brazil would set up the first-ever Copa América finale to not feature the continental powerhouse.

How to watch Brazil vs. Uruguay in the Copa América semifinal

Defending champ Brazil will take on Uruguay in the second Copa América semifinal at 8 PM ET on Tuesday, as each team aims for a spot against Colombia in Saturday's 5 PM ET tournament final.

Tuesday's semifinal will air live on FS1.