So much news to unpack on this week’s The IX Sports Podcast Women’s Basketball. On Wednesday the women’s basketball world learned that 11X WNBA All-Star Nneka Ogwumike will be retiring from the WNBA following the 2026 season. Jackie and Howard unpack what Ogwumike meant to the league in addition to reacting to the news that Azzi Fudd will be out for the season after the team announced she’s getting season ending right knee surgery. 

Also, don’t miss a one-on-one interview with Unrivaled General Manager Clare Duwelius where she shares with Jackie and Howard how much Unrivaled’s NIL deals with some of the best women’s college basketball players including Sarah Strong, Hannah Hidalgo and Madison Booker helps develop the next professional players. And for the duo’s court vision segment, Howard and Jackie discuss what they are watching for when the Indiana Fever come to Brooklyn to take on the New York Liberty on Saturday. Is Kelsey Mitchell the Fever’s MVP? And what do the Liberty need to do to prove they can still compete with the league’s best?

Thumbnail Photo Credit:

Left: Nneka Ogwumike looks on during a game on July 15th 2026 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Photo credit:  John McClellan | The IX Sports

Right: Azzi Fudd stands with her hands on her hips during the WNBA game between the Dallas Wings and the Connecticut Sun at People's Bank Arena, Hartford, Connecticut, USA on July 02, 2026. Photo Credit: Chris Poss | The IX Sports

Links to click that are referenced throughout the show: 

Howard’s story about how truly efficient Nneka Ogwumike has been: 

https://www.vice.com/en/article/nneka-ogwumike-is-the-most-efficient-shooter-ever-in-professional-basketball/

Jackie story about how the Dallas Wings don’t have enough wings: 

https://www.nbcsports.com/wnba/news/wnba-spotlight-why-the-wings-vs-valkyries-matchup-is-so-ironic

Follow us & Subscribe on: 

YouTube 

https://www.youtube.com/@TheIXSports

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/0vn5r287B0oS3wX2fHmLZ8?si=39f2fd261ec1467f

Apple Podcasts 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ix-sports-podcast/id1845604905

BlueSky

https://bsky.app/profile/theixsports.bsky.social

Instagram 

https://www.instagram.com/theixsports/

After losing Alina Müller to Hamilton, where will the Fleet find their offense this season?

The IX Sports and The Ice Garden's Boston Fleet beat reporter, Lydia Murray, joins host Maya Smith to talk about the state of the Boston Fleet. A new coach, new rink and some big losses in the expansion process will make this season very interesting for Fleet fans.

Maya also highlights the U-18 and Development Camp tournaments from last week, where Canada won both tournaments. In Future Considerations, Maya and Lydia discuss the Mark Walter Group investigation and what it means for the PWHL. Should fans be worried?

Follow Lydia on X: https://x.com/lydia_murray12

Follow Maya on X: https://x.com/mayaxeverysport

More about Mark Walter: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7517341/2026/08/17/mark-walter-lakers-sale-federal-investigation/

Photo Credit: PWHL

We’re joined this week by Sabreena Merchant from The Athletic to break down all things women's college basketball as the offseason starts to wrap up. We get into how UCLA is completely reshaping its identity after capturing a national title and sending six seniors to the league, what new transfer additions like Donovyn Hunter and Addy Brown bring to Westwood, and how Cori Close will utilize Sienna Betts in year two.

From there, we talk through the new-look Big Ten gauntlet, where the Bruins fit in our way-too-early Top 16 rankings, Sabreena’s First-Team All-American locks, and USC’s ceiling with a healthy JuJu Watkins back on the floor.

We wrap it all up with a fun rapid-fire round touching on life on the road, the continued growth of the women's game, and some of her favorite arenas around the country.

Photo Credit: Sabreena Merchant

Next in our summer check-in series is the Minnesota Frost. The Frost missed out on a three-peat last season, can they get back to the finals with the roster they have left after expansion? And what is going on with Kendall Coyne Schofield, still unsigned in August?

Host Maya Smith is joined by Reid Lemker from The Ice Garden to talk about the Minnesota Frost lineup, expansion losses, unsigned players and the draft. First, they talk about the U-18 and Development team rosters for Canada and the US, just in time for the mini tournaments this week in BC.

Lastly, they talk about the now-deleted Professor Puck video which brought up the question: What will the playoff format be with 12 teams? Reid and Maya share their thoughts on what the format could look like and their hopes for the 2026-27 season.

Watch Frost Bites on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ehEsf1af0U

Follow Reid on X: https://x.com/reidol15

Follow Maya on X: https://x.com/mayaxeverysport

Read Melissa's article on what the league could do with divisions: https://www.theixsports.com/the-ice-garden/pwhl/should-the-pwhl-explore-having-2-divisions-womens-hockey

Photo credit: PWHL

Did you hear what Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White said on Tuesday night before her team took on the New York Liberty? Well if you didn’t, you can hear it this week on The IX Sports Podcast Women’s Basketball Edition. Jackie Powell and Howard Megdal get into why her statement mattered as much as it did in addition to what it says about the bad faith actors that are trying to steal away the dignity away from the WNBA. Later on Howard and Jackie talk about the retired NBA players who are trying to declare for the 2027 WNBA draft in addition to what the WNBA is actually doing internally at the league office to discuss how to address some of these off-court storylines. And finally, Jackie and Howard look ahead during their court vision segment where the New York Liberty and the Washington Mystics continue to have fascinating paths ahead of them. 

Monumental Sports and Entertainment, the group that owns the Washington Mystics, holds a minority stake in The IX Sports. The IX Sports’ editorial operations are entirely independent of Monumental and all other business partners.

Thumbnail Photo Credit:

Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White watches the game against the New York Liberty from the sideline on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026, during the game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. Photo Credit: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Links to click that are referenced throughout the show: 

Tony East’s story about Stephanie White and her comments: 

https://www.theixsports.com/features/indiana-fever-head-coach-stephanie-white-blasts-online-commentary-pregame/

Howard’s column on the Liberty and the Mystics: 

https://www.theixsports.com/newsletter/stakes-new-york-liberty-choices-continue-rise-kelly-graves-talks-ducks/

Jackie story about Betnijah Laney-Hamilton and Marine Fauthoux: 

https://www.theixsports.com/the-ix-basketball-newsroom/betnijah-laney-hamilton-waived-marine-fauthoux-two-year-deal-new-york-liberty/

Follow us & Subscribe on: 

YouTube 

https://www.youtube.com/@TheIXSports

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/0vn5r287B0oS3wX2fHmLZ8?si=39f2fd261ec1467f

Apple Podcasts 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ix-sports-podcast/id1845604905

BlueSky

https://bsky.app/profile/theixsports.bsky.social

Instagram 

https://www.instagram.com/theixsports/

Host Kathleen Gier discusses the latest NWSL headlines, including Olivia Moultrie's season-ending ACL injury and Portland's big win against Boston. She also updates listeners on NWSL standings, the WAFCON semifinals and the start of the NCAA women's soccer season.

https://www.theixsports.com/soccer-newsroom/

https://www.theixsports.com/the-ix-soccer/racing-louisville-wins-again-denver-and-utah-pull-out-all-the-stops-in-a-thriller/

https://www.theixsports.com/features/how-evelyn-ijeh-evolved-into-one-of-the-nwsls-most-dangerous-scorers/

https://www.theixsports.com/features/the-ix-sports-podcast-soccer-edition-2026-wafcon-preview/

Syracuse Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack joins Michael Waterloo and Melissa Triebwasser to talk building a competitive culture, developing returning talent like ACC Rookie of the Year Uche Izoje, and how the program approached the transfer portal this offseason.

In this episode, we dive into how Coach Legette-Jack is building early team chemistry with summer bonding trips to NYC, what's next for Uche Izoje in her sophomore campaign, and how the staff instills competitive toughness across the roster. We also break down key offseason transfer additions including Emely Rodriguez, Tyi Skinner, Jaleesa Molina, and Sarah Rambus, and discuss the foundation set by the returning core. Plus, Coach opens up about representation and retention for Black women in head coaching roles.

Photo Credit: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Howard and Jackie are back for yet another week of The IX Sports Podcast women’s basketball edition where the two hosts go over the official 12 player FIBA World Cup roster for the USA Women’s senior national basketball team. There were some pretty interesting snubs of stars like Sabrina Ionescu and Olivia Miles that Jackie and Howard get into. Why did those two in particular miss the cut? Later Howard and Jackie host a round table discussion with Sparks beat reporter Cameron Ruby and Mercury beat reporter Dylan Kane where the quartet discuss the ramifications of the Kelsey Plum trade to the Mercury. And lastly for our court vision segment, Jackie and Howard react and provide insights about the Cleveland Sirens being announced as the name of the next WNBA expansion team.Links to click that are referenced throughout the show: Dylan Kane the Kelsey Plum trade: https://www.theixsports.com/features/why-the-phoenix-mercury-traded-for-kelsey-plum/Jackie Powell on the Sirens and the Kelsey Plum Trade: https://www.nbcsports.com/wnba/news/wnba-notebook-team-usa-world-cup-roster-announced-sirens-unveiled-kelsey-plums-start-with-the-mercuryhttps://www.nbcsports.com/wnba/news/2026-wnba-trade-deadline-winners-and-losers-kelsey-plum-dealt-to-the-mercuryFollow us & Subscribe on: YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@TheIXSportsSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/0vn5r287B0oS3wX2fHmLZ8?si=39f2fd261ec1467fApple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ix-sports-podcast/id1845604905BlueSkyhttps://bsky.app/profile/theixsports.bsky.socialInstagram https://www.instagram.com/theixsports/

Next up in the off-season preview series, it's time to talk about PWHL Hamilton.

Host Maya Smith has two special guests to preview one of the league's newest teams. After talking about the Vancouver Goldeneyes' new head coach, Maya talks with former Ottawa Charge forward and current PWHL Hamilton player, Emily Clark. They talk about the off-season, her salary and her excitement for next season.

Then, Maya is joined by The Ice Garden's reporter covering PWHL Hamilton, Natalia Rachman. They talk about the expansion acquisitions, coaching choices and the PWHL Entry Draft.

#1 at the IX story: https://www.theixsports.com/the-ice-garden/vancouver-goldeneyes-name-former-general-manager-cara-garner-morey-head-coach/

Natalia's deep dive on Anna Shokhina: https://www.theixsports.com/the-ice-garden/pwhl/how-pwhl-hamilton-can-make-the-most-of-anna-shokhina

Follow Maya on X: https://x.com/mayaxeverysport

Photo credit: PWHL

Host Kathleen Gier recaps Wednesday's call with NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman, where she discussed the league's growth, updated schedule, and ongoing conversations about the salary cap. She also provides an update on league standings and the group stage of WAFCON.

(Photo credit: Kylie Graham | Imagn Images)

https://www.theixsports.com/the-ix-soccer/nwsl/north-carolina-current-wins-racing-lousville-san-diego-rain/

https://www.theixsports.com/the-ix-soccer/nwsl/kansas-city-current/vanessa-dibernardo-pregnancy-return-nwsl-cba/

https://www.theixsports.com/features/the-ix-sports-podcast-soccer-edition-2026-wafcon-preview/