The Los Angeles Sparks failed to make the playoffs for the second season in a row, and they enter the offseason facing what forward Chiney Ogwumike called a “harsh reset.”

Los Angeles has missed the postseason in back-to-back years just once before in franchise history. Yet while the Sparks finished just a few wins shy of a playoff berth, the path back to contention seems murky.

Los Angeles Sparks: Year in Review

What went right?

Let’s be honest: Very little went right for the Sparks this season other than the sunny Los Angeles weather.

Sure, they started with lofty goals. The team signed Liz Cambage in the offseason and went all in on Chennedy Carter, trading a first-round pick to Atlanta in exchange for the guard. But then it all went downhill.

An early sign of the Sparks’ strife came in June, when they parted ways with coach and general manager Derek Fisher. Yet this acknowledgment of the lack of fit between team and coach could be considered a positive step, even if it contributed to the team’s sunken season.

After all, sometimes things need to get worse before they get better. And in the Sparks’ case, things certainly got worse.

What went wrong?

A series of problems in the locker room involving Cambage led her and the team to agree to a contract divorce in late July, and the center said Monday she has “decided to step away from the league for the time being.”

The departure of Cambage didn’t bring an immediate turnaround. In a do-or-die game against the Sun on Aug. 11, the Sparks failed to keep their playoff hopes alive, and the postgame comments surrounding Carter underscored the tension surrounding the team.

Carter had missed the previous four games due to a “coach’s decision” before interim coach Fred Williams had what he described as a change of heart ahead of the game against Connecticut.

Carter and Williams both have remained mum on the reasoning behind her absence. The guard had played just 11 games for the Dream in 2021 before she was suspended following a locker room confrontation.

Away from the court, in what seemed like a metaphor for the team’s season as a whole, half of the Sparks’ roster spent the night in a Washington, D.C., airport after experiencing travel problems, which have plagued the league at large all year long.

What comes next?

Nneka Ogwumike and sister Chiney are both free agents, as are Kristi Toliver, Jordin Canada, Lexie Brown and Brittney Sykes.

“Conversations haven’t been had,” Nneka Ogwumike said Monday of whether or not she’ll return to the Sparks. “A lot of times, being the one that scores all the points is a heavy cross to bear. It sounds fun and it sounds like everyone wants it, but for me I am all about having a goon squad. It’s not just about having one player that’s doing it all.”

Still, she said leaving the Sparks hasn’t crossed her mind. She reiterated that she wants to continue playing for the Sparks, and Chiney Ogwumike has described she and her sister as a package deal.

Re-signing Nneka Ogwumike should be priority No. 1 for the Sparks this offseason. While it won’t fix all of the team’s problems, it could be a step in the right direction for the team.

Tennis governing body finalized its elite 2025 WTA Finals field on Friday, with the sport's eight top-ranked players gearing up to kick off the tournament in Saudi Arabia this weekend, each aiming to claim the the final major trophy of the 2025 season.

World No. 6 Elena Rybakina became the last player to qualify for the Finals, with the 26-year-old Kazakhstani star clinching her spot by reaching the Japan Open semifinals last week — beating out No. 9 Mirra Andreeva in the race to reach Riyadh.

Rybakina joins the previously qualified finalists No. 8 Jasmine Paolini, No. 7 Madison Keys, No. 5 Jessica Pegula, No. 4 Amanda Anisimova, No. 3 Coco Gauff, No. 2 Iga Świątek, and No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Capping a banner year for the States, US stars populate a full half of the end-of-season tournament, with Keys, Pegula, Gauff, and WTA Finals debutant Anisimova comprising the largest US contingent at the competition in more than 20 years.

Gauff enters the round-robin tournament as its reigning champion, with 2023 winner Świątek as the only other title-holder in contention this year.

Where to watch the 2025 WTA Finals

The 2025 WTA Finals start this Saturday and run through November 8th.

Live coverage of the tournament will air on the Tennis Channel.

FIFPRO dropped its 2025 Women's World XI shortlist on Monday, with the worldwide organization representing pro footballers taking heat for snubbing more than a few standout athletes.

The 26-player lineup featured zero USWNT players, continuing a two-year streak of the award omitting US athletes, despite the USWNT winning Olympic gold at the 2024 Paris Games.d

Reigning Champions League winner and 2025 Euro runner-up Mariona Caldentey also failed to make the cut — a significant snub considering the Arsenal and Spain attacker came in second in at the 2025 Ballon d'Or last month.

Notably, soccer players exclusively vote for the FIFPRO World XI — the only global football award to do so — with this year's nominations ruled by the Euro-winning Lionesses, who snagged 11 overall nods.

Spain saw the second-most nominations — including reigning three-time Ballon d'Or winner Aitana Bonmatí — while goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger (Gotham/Germany), right back Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash/Nigeria), attacker Debinha (Kansas City Current/Brazil), striker Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride/Zambia), and forward Marta (Orlando Pride/Brazil) repped the NWSL.

The final Best XI roster will drop on Monday.

Full 2025 FIFPRO Women's World XI shortlist

Goalkeepers: Ann-Katrin Berger (Gotham/Germany), Mary Earps (PSG/England), Hannah Hampton (Chelsea/England)

Defenders: Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash/Nigeria), Ona Batlle (Barcelona/Spain), Millie Bright (Chelsea/England), Lucy Bronze (Chelsea/England), Olga Carmona (PSG/Spain), Ellie Carpenter (Chelsea/Australia), Alex Greenwood (Manchester City/England), Leah Williamson (Arsenal/England)

Midfielders: Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona/Spain), Ghizlane Chebbak (Al Hilal/Morocco), Debinha (Kansas City Current/Brazil), Patri Guijarro (Barcelona/Spain), Vicky López (Barcelona/Spain), Alexia Putellas (Barcelona/Spain), Ella Toone (Manchester United/England), Keira Walsh (Chelsea/England)

Forwards: Michelle Agyemang (Arsenal/Brighton/England), Barbra Banda (Orlando Pride/Zambia), Linda Caicedo (Real Madrid/Colombia), Athenea del Castillo (Real Madrid/Spain), Chloe Kelly (Arsenal/England), Marta (Orlando Pride/Brazil), Alessia Russo (Arsenal/England)

Five WNBA stars became cover stars this week, as Glamour Magazine named Minnesota Lynx forward Napheesa Collier, Indiana Fever guard Lexie Hull, Phoenix Mercury forward Satou Sabally, and New York Liberty centers Jonquel Jones and Nyara Sabally as the 2025 Women of the Year on Monday.

In the feature story, the players discussed the ongoing CBA negotiations, how they manage the WNBA's booming popularity, and other key issues.

"This is the best women's league in the world for a reason," said Jones. "The best athletes and the best competition, and people are seeing that now… It's time that we're paid like that."

Though the interview occurred weeks before her now-viral exit interview calling out WNBA leadership, Collier was already pointing out the disparities between player success and compensation.

"The amount of money that Caitlin Clark has made the league is insane, and she's getting 0% of it because we have no rev share," Collier said in her Glamour interview. "She gets less than $80,000 a year, and she's bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars. It's insane."

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Hull also made waves, speaking to Clark's popularity with the Fever going on to battle injury adversity all the way to the 2025 WNBA semifinals.

"I think there is a level of jealousy when it comes to the Fever, just because of the media attention and the fans that have shown up for us ever since Caitlin got here," she told the magazine. "We've heard people and players and teams talking in their locker room about, 'We can’t let the Fever win.'"

With the October 31st WNBA CBA deadline just days away, more than 70 elected officials are weighing in, sending a letter voicing support for the WNBA Players Association (WNBPA) to league commissioner Cathy Engelbert and NBA commissioner Adam Silver last Friday.

"This new CBA deal is an opportunity to set the record straight that women are valuable workers who deserve to be paid accordingly and treated fairly," the letter states.

The lawmakers also urge the league to "bargain in good faith to reach a fair CBA" before the current agreement expires.

Mayors, council members, and assembly members from seven WNBA markets signed the document — including New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani — as WNBA leadership continues facing increased scrutiny.

"We all want to be able to take in a full season, but we know...what [the players] deserve to earn," said New York City council member Tiffany Cabán, a longtime NY Liberty fan who spearheaded the effort.

The action represents a growing number of politicians applying public pressure to commissioner Engelbert, with the letter's 70 lawmakers joining the 85 members of the Democratic Women's Caucus and House Democratic Caucus, who penned their own letter last month.

As external pressure builds, hope is dimming for an agreement by Friday, with WNBPA senior advisor and legal counsel Erin D. Drake telling The Athletic on Tuesday that "it takes two to tango, and it has been difficult to find a beat, to find a rhythm, and to find the same sense of urgency [from the WNBA]."

As all eyes turn to the WNBA this week, the question remains whether a new CBA or deadline extension will be on Friday's docket.

"We're still going to be negotiating until [it's] done," promised Drake. "We just don't know how long that is going to take, unfortunately."