A months-long investigation into WNBA star Dearica Hamby’s claims against her former team Las Vegas Aces has finally ended. The WNBA announced on Tuesday that head coach Becky Hammon will be suspended for two games without pay. The announcement comes days before the season starts on Friday.
The Aces were at the top of the WNBA world in September after winning their first WNBA title in franchise history, but now things have turned ugly for the franchise.
The Ugly Truth
Hamby took to her social media in January after she was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks. The sixth overall pick in the 2015 WNBA draft claimed the Aces bullied her after the team signed her to an extension before finding out she was pregnant.
Her Instagram post read in part, “I have had my character and work ethic attacked. I was promised things to entice me to sign my contract extension that were not followed through on. I was accused of signing my extension knowingly pregnant. This is false.
“I was told I was a ‘question mark’ and that it was set that I would ‘get pregnant again’ and there was a concern for my level of commitment to the team. I was told that ‘I didn’t hold up my end of the bargain’ (Because ‘no one expected me to get pregnant in the next two years’). Did the team expect me to promise not to get pregnant in exchange for the contract extension? I was asked if I planned my pregnancy.”
She continued the post by saying that the team questioned her commitment and told her that she “was not taking precautions to not get pregnant.”
Hamby was signed a two-year extension in June before she was traded in January. The players union reportedly pushed for the investigation to be launched to see whether Hamby’s rights were violated under the league’s 2020 labor agreement as well as state and federal laws.
League Dropped The Hammer
The WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert issued a statement in response to Hammon’s suspension.
“It is critical that we uphold the values of integrity and fairness, which create a level playing field for our teams,” said Engelbert in the WNBA statement. “The Aces failed to adhere to league rules and regulations and have been disciplined accordingly. We are also disheartened by the violation of our Respect in the Workplace policies and remain committed to ensuring that enhanced training is conducted and standards are followed across all WNBA teams.”
The league interviewed 33 people as well as reviewed text messages, emails, and other documents during the investigation.
In addition to Hammon’s suspension, the Aces also rescinded the Aces’ first-round pick in the 2025 draft for violating league rules for impermissible player benefits paid to Hamby in the contract extension.
Failed The Ladies
Hammon’s suspension not only speak volumes to the current state of the WNBA but also about the culture of women’s sports. Hamby might have thought it more likely to see this type of behavior to come from a male coach who wouldn’t understand the stress a woman endures while she is pregnant and still trying to work. Not only was it a female head coach, but Hammon also is a former player. Women have spoken out for years about how getting pregnant affects their careers.
Skylar Diggins-Smith revealed in 2019 that she played the entire 2018 season pregnant without the Dallas Wings’ knowledge.
Candace Parker also revealed how she was set to take over as the new face of the WNBA after the torched was passed down from Lisa Leslie, but it was delayed due to Parker being pregnant with her daughter Lailaa. Former WNBA commissioner Donna Orender told The New York Times in 2009 that Parker’s pregnancy was a “quiet sigh of resignation.”
In 1997, Sheryl Swoopes announced she was pregnant ahead of the WNBA’s inaugural season. Nike and the Houston Comets came together to market her as an athlete-mom hybrid.
