![\"2025](\"https:\/\/platform.swishappeal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/154\/2025\/12\/gettyimages-2225446282.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100\")
<\/a><\/p>\n2025 WNBA All-Stars. NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n
This one\u2019s simple. There\u2019s no room for any other WNBA wishes\u2014from free agency signings to draft picks to top teams to award winners to a champion\u2014without a season.<\/p>\n
That said, the burden is not on the players to eventually cave to the league in order to satisfy fans\u2019 desires. It seems like the league might be content with trying to run out the clock, refusing to engage with many of the players\u2019 asks and hoping that, when the clock strikes midnight on the final CBA deadline, the players will give in.<\/p>\n
Players getting what they deserve\u2014from higher salaries to an appreciating revenue sharing model to other quality of life benefits\u2014is the prerequisite to a season. So, after the players secure the CBA win that they are worthy of, we\u2019ll start dreaming of all the free agency fireworks, rookie debuts, stat-stuffing play from stars, clutch-time heroics and, for better or worse, unnecessary antics to come.<\/p>\n
Unrivaled: More rivalries<\/p>\n
Skylar Diggins. Getty Images<\/p>\n One of the bigger unknowns entering the first season of Unrivaled was whether players would approach games with seriousness. Would the league assume more of a pick-up vibe, with most players choosing not to go all out? Or, would a culture of competition develop, where players exhibited a feistiness and fire?<\/p>\n The latter, fortunately, materialized more often than not. The full court 3×3 setting, where players\u2019 mistakes are amplified, resulted in engaged and intense basketball. The care factor and competitive desire were evident, particularly through the chippiness not that emerged between Lunar Owls and Rose. Furthermore, it was encouraging to see players demonstrate that off-court camaraderie could coexist with on-court animosities.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s have more of all that in Season 2! What new rivalries will develop? What opponents will Lunar Owls be hootie hoo-ing at? And which opponents will be hooting back at Owls? How will Rose project their championship swagger? Will the newbies, Breeze and Hive, look to stir up new dramas?<\/p>\n NCAA: March Madness chalk<\/p>\n Sarah Strong and Lauren Betts.<\/p>\n Yes, March Madness is supposed to be about upsets. Busted brackets! Cinderellas! Unexpected heroes!<\/p>\n And sure, all that\u2019s fun. But oftentimes, early-round upsets reduce later-round drama. The underdog that pulls off an improbable win or two eventually falls in uncompetitive fashion to a clearly superior opponent.<\/p>\n This women\u2019s college basketball season thus far has been defined by a clear top five: No. 1 UConn, No. 2 Texas, No. 3 South Carolina, No. 4 UCLA and No. 5 LSU.<\/p>\n Four of those five squads need to compose the Final Four in Phoenix. The best must go through the best in order to win it all. Of course, as the above picture reminds, matchups between the teams considered to be the top dogs also do not always deliver. In the 2025 Final Four, No. 2-seed UConn routed No. 1-seed UCLA before doing the same to another in No. 1-seed South Carolina.<\/p>\n However, seeing the Huskies repeat the feat in 2026 or witnessing one of the Longhorns, Gamecocks, Bruins or Tigers push them to the brink, or even topple them, will be the ideal outcome for this college season.<\/p>\n Athletes Unlimited: A Tina Charles throwback<\/p>\n Tina Charles. NBAE via Getty Images<\/p>\n Rather than a wish, this might be a guarantee.<\/p>\n In her 14th WNBA season at age 36, Tina Charles played in 43 of 44 games for the Connecticut Sun, averaging 16 points as she logged almost 30 minutes per game, all while adding to her all-time ranking on the league\u2019s scoring (second) and rebounding (first) lists. She also further established herself as the W\u2019s ultimate vet, consistently sharing in-game secrets and postgame praise for the league\u2019s up and comers.<\/p>\n Now, Charles takes all those talents to Nashville, making her Athletes Unlimited debut. It not only will be fun to see Charles show off her timeless scoring touch, but also bless AU youngsters with her wizened and tested insights. And, it won\u2019t be too surprising if TC adds AU Champion to her illustrious resume!<\/p>\n EuroLeague Women: Just\u0113 Jocyt\u0113 keeps growing for Girona<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n