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As Sue Bird and Sylvia Fowles say goodbye, WNBA players reflect on their legacies

Retiring stars Sylvia Fowles and Sue Bird were celebrated at the WNBA All-Star Game in July. (Jeff Haynes/NBAE via Getty Images)

The WNBA regular season is nearing its end, and so are the careers of two of the game’s best players.

Sylvia Fowles and Sue Bird will meet for the final time in the regular season Friday, as Fowles’ Minnesota Lynx host Bird’s Seattle Storm. In the coming weeks, each will step onto a WNBA court for the final time as a player. Still, the impact each has had on the game will remain.

Los Angeles Sparks forward and WNBPA president Nneka Ogwumike underlined the power of both players, which extends well beyond their stat lines.

“The legacy that they’re leaving – it touches so many young players that I can’t wait to see how that evolves in someone else’s game,” Ogwumike told Just Women’s Sports. “They’ve done so much for the league, so much for the culture, so much for certain franchises that are now living in history.

“I’m happy we can give them their flowers while they’re still going hard and hooping.”

As a young player, Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum looked up to the duo, who she said not only influenced her game but also made her proud to be part of a league like the WNBA.

“You can’t speak enough to what both of them have done in different realms of the sport,” Plum said.

Speaking at the WNBA’s All-Star weekend, stars from across the league pointed to Bird and Fowles as trailblazers, role models and leaders.

Chicago Sky guard Candace Parker has played against Fowles since she was 14 years old and matched up against Bird for the first time in college in 2006, but also has gotten to play alongside both as part of gold-medal winning U.S. Olympic teams.

“For me personally, they’ve made me better as teammates but also made me better competing against them,” she said. “It’s amazing to be able to honor them.”

For Connecticut Sun forward Jonquel Jones, Fowles is “the toughest matchup” that she’s ever played against in her career.

“So strong physically. So dominant. A great finisher around the rim,” she said of the Lynx center. “She’s definitely someone that I look up to, someone that I try to model and shape my game around. She was the prototype of what success for a long time in this league looks like.”

Jones views Bird as a “prototype” for point guards in the league. The Storm star has helped shape the game both for the WNBA and women’s sports as a whole, Jones said.

“I’m happy to say that she’s a member of the WNBA and I’m a member of the WNBA with her,” she added.

When Fowles and Bird each were asked about the other’s impact, both focused on the strengths of the person – not the player.

“Sue Bird is everything this game needed: her leadership, her sisterhood, her friendship and just the things she does for the community,” Fowles said. “I think any young player, young point guard should have a good foundation of role models to go off of and Sue Bird is definitely one of those people.”

For Bird, Fowles’ care for her teammates sets the Lynx center apart from the rest.

“Sylvia is the one player I think in our league, when you see how her teammates interact with her, how they take to her – I know they jokingly call her grandma and whatnot – she really just has a certain nature about her that is so warm, so welcoming and so inviting,” Bird said. “I think the way that she impacts her team, the way she’s able to bring groups together, I can’t even think of another player that does it the same way Syl does.

“Believe me, I could sit here and talk about points and rebounds and championships and all of the things, but that, I think, is the secret ingredient that she has.”

Younger players, including Atlanta Dream rookie Rhyne Howard and New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, recognize how Fowles and Bird have elevated the WNBA.

“It’s pretty remarkable, what they’ve meant to our sport and to everyone,” Ionescu said. “Where they came from and where they’ve left the game is absolutely in better hands. We’re excited as younger athletes to continue to pave the way for those to follow but they’ve done an incredible job and their career has been nothing short of amazing.”

For Howard, Fowles and Bird have provided footsteps to follow.

“They’ve set the stone,” Howard said. “They’ve been and done everything that young rookies like me want to do. So just to have them to look up to is big.”

Seattle Storm star Jewell Loyd sees in the retirements of Fowles and Bird a call to action for those still in the league and those to come.

“They’re what it means to be a professional athlete. To be a role model. To be a leader,” she said. “They are a generational talent. It’s sad that they’re leaving but they’ve left their mark and it’s our job now to carry that through.”

New York Liberty Fans Protest Surging WNBA Season Ticket Prices

New York Liberty fans cheer during a 2025 WNBA game.
WNBA season ticket holders are seeing steep price increases ahead of the 2026 season. (John Taggart for The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Ticket prices are skyrocketing across the WNBA, with commissioner Cathy Engelbert addressing the surge after several New York Liberty fans wore T-shirts in protest of the increase.

Donning orange shirts emblazoned with the phrase "We've been priced out," New York fans came together to express their frustrations at a recent game.

The WNBA fans' custom shirts referred to season ticket price jumps of more than 250%, saying the Liberty is asking upwards of $30,000 for 2026 renewals.

Some New York season ticket holders noted that their 2026 renewal more than triples the cost they paid for the team's 2024 championship-winning campaign.

The exponential increase isn't just occurring in the New York market, however — it points to an overall rise in ticket prices across the WNBA.

The WNBA's recent ticket surge has seen seats across the league jumping by an average cost increase of 43% in the last year alone.

"In order to fund all these investments that owners are making, and obviously paying the players more which we will do in this next CBA cycle…that's the reality," Engelbert said on Thursday's episode of In Case You Missed It with Khristina Williams. "That's our responsibility as a league and team owners."

Calling the price hikes a result of "simple economics" and "high demand," Engelbert acknowledged the effect on fans, though did not address potential solutions.

"I realize there's some concern out there, certainly that we don't price out our kind of core fan base," she noted.

Chelsea Teases Sam Kerr, Alyssa Thompson Season Debuts Against Aston Villa

USWNT star and new Chelsea FC signee Alyssa Thompson walks out to the pitch to be introduced to WSL fans before a 2025 match.
USWNT star Alyssa Thompson could make her WSL debut with Chelsea on Sunday. (Chris Lee - Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)

Chelsea FC is playing it close to the chest, with big-name new signing Alyssa Thompson and previously injured superstar Sam Kerr waiting in the wings as manager Sonia Bompastor teases a 2025/26 WSL season debut for the pair.

Kerr joined the 18-player game-day roster for Chelsea FC's opening-day victory over Manchester City last Friday, but saw her season debut delayed as the Australian remained an unused sub while Thompson greeted fans from the stands.

This Sunday's matchup against Aston Villa provides another chance for the standouts to take the pitch, as the six-time reigning WSL champs hunt another result.

"With Alyssa, we are looking for her to be able to play. We don't have the confirmation yet, but we are hoping for her to be able to play in this game," Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor said earlier today. "I think she has already shown some good things this week in training, and we can see what she can bring to the team."

Bompastor went on to call last week's decision to keep Kerr on the bench "my choice," saying "She's doing everything she can to be available for the squad and available to start…. The next step for her is to be involved in a short game in the league, and maybe we'll see that on Sunday."

USWNT fans will not get a glimpse of defender Naomi Girma, however, as the January 2025 Chelsea addition sat out last Friday's clash with a calf injury and remains unavailable.

How to watch Aston Villa vs. Chelsea FC this weekend

With the possibility of Thompson and Kerr taking the WSL pitch, Chelsea will visit Aston Villa at 7 AM ET on Sunday, with live coverage of the match streaming on ESPN+.

Gotham FC Newcomer Jaedyn Shaw Returns to 1st NWSL Home in Clash at San Diego Wave

San Diego Wave attacker Jaedyn Shaw raises her hands to the crowd during the 2024 NWSL Challenge Cup against Gotham FC.
Recent Gotham addition Jaedyn Shaw could face her original NWSL club, the San Diego Wave, on Friday night. (Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images)

Splashy new Gotham FC addition Jaedyn Shaw is returning West, as the No. 6 NY/NJ club preps for a Friday night clash against the No. 3 San Diego Wave — Shaw's original NWSL team — days after signing the USWNT prospect from the No. 11 North Carolina Courage.

"I'm so excited to be a part of this incredible club and community," the 20-year-old said after her NWSL-record $1.25 million transfer to Gotham. "I'm looking forward to playing alongside world class players and giving my all to help the team win another championship."

After finding immediate success with the Wave in 2023, Shaw requested a trade to the Courage in January 2025, initiating what turned out to be a short stint in Cary, NC.

"I've grown so much just over the past few months, being at the Courage," Shaw told ESPN on Thursday. "I feel like I've matured a lot. I've had to experience things that I haven't necessarily experienced in my career and having to deal with those things."

Gotham and Shaw are currently "working toward an updated and extended contract," per a team release on Thursday, with the young attacker looking to boost Gotham's offense while adding to her 16-goal and five-assist NWSL career tally.

How to watch the San Diego Wave vs. Gotham on Friday

Shaw could take the pitch for No. 6 Gotham in her new club's Friday night visit to the No. 3 San Diego Wave.

The match kicks off at 10 PM ET, with live coverage airing on Prime.

Kansas City Current Battle Washington Spirit as NWSL Shield Looms

Kansas City Current midfielder Lo'eau LaBonta prepares to take a penalty kick during a 2025 NWSL match.
The NWSL-leading Kansas City Current can widen their lead over the No. 2 Washington Spirit with a win this weekend. (Brad Smith/ISI Photos/Getty Images)

The No. 1 Kansas City Current are closing in on the 2025 NWSL Shield, gearing up for a Saturday night showdown against the No. 2 Washington Spirit that could inject insurmountable distance between the Current and the rest of the league.

With a 14-point lead at the top of the NWSL standings, Kansas City has already clinched a postseason berth, and the Current only need only a few more results to secure a franchise-first league trophy.

Even more, KC enters Saturday's match on an 11-game unbeaten streak, with the Current hosting the Spirit at their home CPKC Stadium — a pitch where Kansas City has yet to drop a match this year.

Despite that dominance, it may not be smooth sailing for the Current, as Washington's future is beginning to take shape behind recently returned star Trinity Rodman, whose brace lifted the Spirit over the No. 7 Seattle Reign last Sunday.

"She's not back, because she's a different player," Washington head coach Adrián González told reporters about Rodman's level of play. "After her injury, she's more prepared mentally. She's having enough time to get the minutes, the training, and the exposures that she needs with no pressure."

How to watch the Kansas City Current vs. Washington Spirit

The No. 1 Kansas City Current will host the No. 2 Washington Spirit on Saturday, with the top-tier match kicking off live at 7:30 PM ET on ION.

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