Leaving the Chaos Behind: How the FIBA World Cup Offers the WNBA a Welcome Reprieve

A three-week break with little time left in a regular season is unusual for any professional sports league, but it might be a welcome reprieve for the WNBA.The pause for the 2026 FIBA World Cup at Berlin, Germany, gives the league a chance to escape its ongoing controversies; unite players and fans under their flag; and celebrate the global growth of the women’s game.Young American stars like Caitlin Clark (Indiana), Angel Reese (Atlanta), and Paige Bueckers (Dallas) will join veterans Breanna Stewart (New York), A’ja Wilson (Las Vegas), and Napheesa Collier (Minnesota) on Team USA as the Americans seek their fifth consecutive FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup title.The American team that also includes Chelsea Gray (Las Vegas), Jackie Young (Las Vegas), Kahleah Cooper (Phoenix), Kelsey Plum (Phoenix), Rhyne Howard (Atlanta), and Aliyah Boston (Indiana) will face China, Italy, and the Czech Republic in pool play from September 4 to 13.“It’s always good when you compete for a gold medal, it’s a big honor,” Ms. Wilson, a four-time WNBA MVP, told reporters. “It’s something I don’t take lightly. Time to go there and have some fun and also win.”The WNBA regular season will resume on September 18 and end a week later in what will be a mad rush for playoff seeding. The break also halts a torrid stretch by Ms. Clark, who totaled 34 points and 12 assists in the Fever’s 111-91 victory Friday night over the Connecticut Sun at Indianapolis. It was the fifth time this season she posted 30-plus points and 10-plus assists in a game — the most ever in league history — and the sixth time in her career.“It was a battle for the first 20 games for me to really find my confidence again, mostly in my body,” Ms. Clark told reporters atin Indianapolis. “Now I feel like I’m just playing. I’m not thinking. It’s just next play, next play, next play.”Yet, she doesn’t mind the chance to represent TEAM USA for the first time in a major international competition. Sue Bird, the USA Basketball national team managing director, chose the American squad.“This is an incredibly talented group that has earned the opportunity to compete in Berlin,” Ms. Bird said. “Wearing a USA jersey is a privilege, and I know these 12 players will embrace that responsibility as we go after another gold medal. I can’t wait to see what this team accomplishes together.”Ms. Stewart is the third American player to compete in four World Cup tournaments, joining Ms. Bird, who played in five. Diana Taurasi played in four. The WNBA has been dogged this season by controversies over poor officiating, online harassment, and whether transgender athletes should compete in women’s sports.There have been rallies outside of arenas over political and social issues, while former NBA players Enes Kanter Freedom and Royce White protest the league’s gender eligibility rules inside arenas. And what exactly did DiJonai Carrington mean when she posted, “White Privilege,” after being ejected earlier this month after being called for a Flagrant 2 foul against the Fever’s Sophie Cunninngham?At Berlin, it should be all about basketball, and a showcase for the WNBA with many of its top players representing their respective countries. Look out for France, which lost the gold medal game at the 204 Paris Olympics, 67-66, to the Americans.The French are taunting their best roster in history led by Gabby Williams (Golden State), Pauline Astier (New York), Valariane Ayayi (Phoenix), Janelle Salaun (Golden State), Marine Johannes (New York), and Dominique Malonga (Seattle).Alanna Smith (Dallas), Miela Sowha (Golden State), Stephanie Talbot (Las Vegas), and Chloe Bibby (Minnesota) lead Australia.“For the USA, we need to continue to elevate our game,” Ms. Stewart said. “I think that France got very close and that should be a wake-up call for us to make sure that we’re ready every single night.”

Leaving the Chaos Behind: How the FIBA World Cup Offers the WNBA a Welcome Reprieve

Leaving the Chaos Behind: How the FIBA World Cup Offers the WNBA a Welcome Reprieve

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