Aces, WNBA file motions to dismiss ex-player's federal lawsuit

[RandySF]

The Aces and WNBA filed separate motions on Wednesday to dismiss Los Angeles Sparks player Dearica Hamby’s federal lawsuit against them.

Hamby’s lawsuit, which was filed a month ago in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas, alleged “repeated acts of intimidation, discrimination and retaliation” leading up to and following the former Aces player’s trade to the Sparks in January 2023 when she was pregnant with her second child.

The WNBA and Aces’ motions of dismissal, obtained by the Review-Journal, state that Hamby’s filing failed “to state a claim upon which relief can be granted,” as Hamby is seeking undisclosed damages due to the loss of “reputational prestige” associated with playing for the back-to-back WNBA champions.

Her filing also claimed she lost marketing and endorsement opportunities by being forced to move from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Hamby alleged the WNBA pulled her marketing contract with the league as a form of retaliation and failed to punish the Aces sufficiently following their investigation into her claims. She is looking for compensation for emotional damages as well.


https://www.reviewjournal.com/sports/aces/aces-wnba-file-motions-to-dismiss-ex-players-federal-lawsuit-3167643/

[moniss]

1. Skylar Diggins-Smith

went through hassles with the Wings. I can remember her talking about it and it got to the point where, despite being signed, they wouldn't let her workout at the practice facility or use the equipment etc. As I recall she was also not allowed locker room/facility access when her teammates would be there. Really weird crap because apparently they didn't like how she handled timing of pregnancies etc. Now with the huge growth from CC in the W the money rolling in to teams/the NBA should give the women more leverage to make starting/having families easier for the players since the management/owners aren't going to want to look like they are being punitive around these issues for players.