The WNBA is probing All-Star Dearica Hamby’s claim that her former team, the Las Vegas Aces, bullied and manipulated her for being pregnant.
It was the first time the league acknowledged it was looking into the situation. The players’ union had pushed for an inquiry into whether Hamby’s rights under the league’s 2020 labor agreement were violated, as well as state and federal laws.
Hamby made her allegations after being traded January 21 to the Los Angeles Sparks. The Aces were trying to clear up salary-cap room to sign two-time MVP Candace Parker, who agreed to a deal January 28.
Hamby agreed to a two-year contract extension with Las Vegas in June. After she was traded, she posted on Instagram: ‘Being traded is a part of the business. Being lied to, bullied, manipulated, and discriminated against is not.’
Hamby, who is pregnant with her second child, stuck by her words in her introductory news conference with the Sparks.
The WNBA is probing All-Star Dearica Hamby’s claim that her former team, the Las Vegas Aces, bullied and manipulated her for being pregnant
Aces President Nikki Fargas responded to Hamby’s comments Tuesday during Parker’s introductory news conference, but didn’t use Hamby’s name in saying that ‘our players and their families will always be in the forefront of who we are as a franchise.’
‘We are here to assemble the best team possible, and when putting together a team, there are times when trades will happen,’ Fargas said. ‘But that’s for us to also remain competitive. The moves we’ve made, obviously, have given us the flexibility we needed to sign [those] players.’
The WNBA players’ union said Saturday it will review Hamby’s complaints.
Specifically, Hamby took issue with the Aces’ claim that she signed her latest contract knowing that she was already pregnant. Hamby says she made the team aware of her pregnancy,
‘This is false,’ Hamby wrote. ‘I was told that I was a ‘question mark’ and that it was said that I said I would ‘get pregnant again’ and there was a concern for my level of commitment to the team.’
She also said the Aces were concerned Hamby wouldn’t be ready for this season. Hamby said she plans to play this season.
‘I remained transparent with everyone within the organization, and yet, my honesty was met with coldness, disrespect, and disregard from members of management,’ Hamby wrote. ‘I have only put this organization first since day one before any of them were here.’
The Women’s National Basketball Players Association said it would ‘ seek a comprehensive investigation ‘ to ensure that Hamby’s rights under the league’s 2020 labor agreement as well as state and federal laws were not violated.
Las Vegas Raiders owner and managing general partner and Las Vegas Aces owner Mark Davis (L) and head coach Becky Hammon of the Aces are introduced during the team’s WNBA championship victory parade and rally on the Las Vegas Strip on September 20 in Las Vegas
The Sparks also received the Aces’ first-round pick in 2024 in exchange for the exclusive negotiating rights to Amanda Zahui B., plus the Sparks’ 2024 second-round pick.
‘Adding Dearica to our roster plus a future first-round pick was a solid move for us,’ Sparks GM Karen Bryant said in a statement. ‘We’re excited to have another key piece in place as we start free agency.’
Hamby spent her first eight WNBA seasons with the same franchise, dating to the Aces’ days in San Antonio as the Silver Stars. The 6-foot-3 forward was the sixth overall pick in the 2015 draft.
Hamby was the WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year in 2019 and 2020. Hamby averaged 9.3 points and 7.1 rebounds for the Aces last season when they won their first WNBA championship. She was limited in the playoffs due to a knee injury.
‘Dearica has dedicated eight years of her career to this organization, and played a big role in our success since the team moved to Las Vegas,’ Aces general manager Natalie Williams said in a statement. ‘We’re going to miss her as a teammate, and are grateful for all of her contributions to the Aces over the years.’
Hamby announced at the Aces’ championship parade last September that she was expecting her second child. Hamby’s 5-year-old daughter Amaya accompanied her mother during the 2020 season, which was played in a bubble in Florida because of the pandemic. They were among those featured in the documentary ‘144.’
Zahui B. did not play in the WNBA last season after the Sparks placed her on the suspended list. She is averaging 6.2 points in seven seasons.
The Aces’ first home game of the 2023 season will be May 27 against the Sparks.
Dearica Hamby of the Las Vegas Aces hugs her eldest daughter after a game against the Los Angeles Sparks at Staples Center on June 27, 2019 in Los Angeles
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