For most WNBA awards, fan discourse and team campaigns are normally in full swing well before votes are due in September.<\/p>\n
But one honor on the ballot is seldom discussed, and Aces guard Jewell Loyd is nominated for it this year: the Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award.<\/p>\n
Named for the Houston Comets guard who helped her team win back-to-back WNBA championships in the league\u2019s first two seasons before dying in 1999 after a battle with cancer, the award is annually presented to a player who \u201cexemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, including ethical behavior, fair play and integrity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Loyd is in familiar company as a nominee. Aces coach Becky Hammon won it as a player for the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2014. Sue Bird, Loyd\u2019s former Seattle Storm teammate, won it in 2017 and 2018.<\/p>\n
Hammon believes Loyd\u2019s candidacy is simple:<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s the ideal sportsman. She does it all right. The attitude\u2019s always right, the effort,\u201d Hammon said. \u201cEven how she treats her teammates, like her care factor. She\u2019s been so easy. With her, it\u2019s just: \u2018Whatever it takes, whatever you want me to do, I\u2019ll do.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n
Good sport on, off court<\/p>\n
Loyd was surprised to learn that she was nominated.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t even know about that,\u201d she said. \u201cI think it\u2019s pretty special because that\u2019s about more than just basketball, to me. It\u2019s how you carry yourself. And that goes a long way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Loyd\u2019s composure was tested this season following a 75-70 win over her former team of 10 years on June 1, when a former Storm assistant coach directed profane language toward her on the court.<\/p>\n
Hammon told the Las Vegas Review-Journal at the time that an assistant told Loyd \u201c(Expletive) you,\u201d leading the team to flag the issue to the WNBA. A league source did not deny the incident took place but downplayed it, saying that cursing is common in sports.<\/p>\n
This came after Loyd complained of bullying during the 2024 season with the Storm and requested a trade after an internal investigation found no wrongdoing.<\/p>\n
But even as the league opted not to pursue any punishment for the assistant, there were no signs that Loyd sought retaliation. She didn\u2019t use any media time to complain about it, either, pivoting her answers toward the Aces\u2019 progress when asked about it.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s how I was raised,\u201d Loyd said. \u201cIt always matters to me, just being about people, always investing in people. And I know that I didn\u2019t get here by myself. I had help.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hammon has been one of the people to help Loyd this year, she said, constantly texting her after games to point out things she did well \u2014 even if her stat line didn\u2019t jump off the page.<\/p>\n
\u201cI won\u2019t really feel like I did really well, and she\u2019ll remind me that I did something,\u201d Loyd said. \u201cThat\u2019s the biggest thing I\u2019ve noticed with (Bird) and (Hammon), just their perspectives on life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Selfless in aiding team<\/p>\n
An easy example of Loyd\u2019s sportsmanship is found in her decision to come off the bench after her first 25 games. Loyd said that Hammon struggled to accept the idea, worrying that it was mental or a result of Loyd feeling like the team didn\u2019t trust her.<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore we actually did it, she came in the locker room and was like, \u2018Are you sure?\u2019\u201d Loyd said of Hammon, who eventually accepted that Loyd simply believed the idea could work. \u201cShe\u2019s learning me as a vet. I don\u2019t really care about the individual stuff. I really just want to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
The shift came too late for Loyd to be considered for Sixth player of the Year but it coincides with the Aces\u2019 upward trajectory, which has seen them win 14 straight games.<\/p>\n
Loyd\u2019s game averages of 10.8 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists might not be the production some were anticipating when the Aces acquired the 2023 WNBA scoring champion in the process of granting guard Kelsey Plum\u2019s trade request. But three-time MVP A\u2019ja Wilson thinks Loyd\u2019s fit has been just right.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes it look like what people on the outside want it to look like? No,\u201d Wilson said. \u201cBut (what matters is) what we see in the locker room. \u2026 Jewell is always the first person in the gym. It\u2019s crazy. It goes to show how much she really wants to pour into the game and pour into us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Contact Callie Fin at cfin@reviewjournal.com<\/a>. Follow @CallieJLaw<\/a> on X.<\/p>\n Up next<\/p>\n * Who: Sky at Aces<\/p>\n * When: 7 p.m. Tuesday<\/p>\n * Where: T-Mobile Arena<\/p>\n * TV: KMCC-34<\/p>\n * Radio: KWWN (1100 AM, 100.9 FM)<\/p>\n * Line: Aces -17; 159\u00bd<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For most WNBA awards, fan discourse and team campaigns are normally in full swing well before votes are…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":143679,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[99,434],"class_list":["post-143678","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wnba","tag-sports","tag-wnba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143678","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=143678"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143678\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/143679"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=143678"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=143678"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=143678"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}