This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Have feedback? Leave your questions, comments and concerns through this brief reader survey! Now, here’s Mike Sykes.
Good morning, Winners! Welcome back to the Morning Win. Thanks so much for rocking with us today. We appreciate you for reading today.
Sorry for being so late today! A lot went down this morning. As I’m sure you’ve heard by now, ESPN’s NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski abruptly announced his retirement, hitting us with the ultimate Woj Bomb.
This is quite a shock.
In the immediate aftermath, my first thought was about who’d replace him at ESPN. The obvious answer was Shams Charania. We’ll see if that actually comes to fruition, but it feels possible at this point.
The more I thought about this situation, though, the less it became about the transactional nature of what Woj provided us in his reporting. Instead, for me, it was more about what he meant to me as an NBA fan sentimentally.
I don’t want to wax too poetic about an NBA reporter I don’t claim to know. And it’s already awfully hard to understate his work’s importance to this business. I mean, the guy’s scoops have their own name included in the Urban Dictionary, for crying out loud.
But I’ve got to say, when I think about his retirement, I get a little sad.
Of course, I’m happy for him. He’s worked hard and has earned the right to enjoy the fruits of his labor.
But at the same time, Woj was one of the defining characters of the NBA basketball era I loved the most. His reporting shaped the zeitgeist. He didn’t just break news stories – he changed how the league was covered. Nobody scooped things the way he scooped things.
For so long, in the early aughts going into the 2010s, following Woj on Twitter was like being an NBA insider yourself. The platform was still young — everyone in real life wasn’t on it. But Woj used the platform as a news-breaking forum, so you’d have the scoop before all your friends did. It was almost like you were breaking the news yourself.
It’s not hyperbole to say that the NBA doesn’t become the league it currently is without the work Woj did covering it. He’s an essential character in the league’s story over the last decade and change in the same way an NBA superstar would be.
Was he always perfect? No. Absolutely not. There was the occasional column where he’d rip LeBron James for no reason at all. He also clearly had his favorites around the league and wasn’t that great at hiding it. There’s also the whole thing about shouting out agents in his reporting that doesn’t sit right with me.
But for everything he’s done wrong during his career, there are a million other stories that he got right. He gave us moments we’ll never forget. For some of them, you just had to be there. Like that time David Stern nixed the Chris Paul-Lakers deal or the time the Rockets and Clippers were about to use secret tunnels to fight. Remember when the Nets made a clean sweep? And Wizards fans, specifically, will always remember that “there was a time Al Horford preferred Washington’s talent over Boston’s.”
That’s why he is who he is. This is why the term “Woj” is trending on Google this morning and why I’m writing this piece right now.
He was great at his job and he’ll be sorely missed.
Happy trails, Woj. Enjoy retirement.
The WNBA is growing
The WNBA is getting bigger and it’s happening really, really fast.
The league announced this morning that it’d be adding a new team in Portland. The team will officially play starting in 2026.
PORTLAND, OREGON 📍 #WelcometotheW pic.twitter.com/SZlvcHn42H
— WNBA (@WNBA) September 18, 2024
So, if you’re counting, in just under two years, we’ll be seeing a 15-team league. The Golden State Valkyrie will come next season in 2025. After that, the Toronto expansion team will come in 2026, along with the new Portland team.
That’s a lot of teams in a bit of time, which could be a bit concerning from a roster balance point of view.
The league will have to have three expansion drafts within the next two seasons to build its new teams. Depending on the draft rules, there could be a lot of shakeups coming for the current teams around the league.
We don’t know what these drafts might look like and what the rules will be, but in, 2008 when the W added the Dream, teams were only allowed to protect six contracts on their rosters.
If the league chooses to go that route again, that each team might have half of its roster available to the expansion organizations coming into the W. Teams might be able to keep their All-Stars, but the depth they’ve enjoyed for years now will slowly, but surely, fade away. It makes you wonder about the possibility of watered-down play.
Either way, this is still a good thing for the league. Three more teams means 36 more roster spots are available for these talented women to take. There will be more slots for players to be drafted and more space for them to grow moving forward.
That’s what exactly what the league has needed for so long. I’m glad it’s finally happening.
READ MORE: The WNBA has needed to expand for a long, long time
Bryce Young still has at least one fan
I know things probably don’t seem great for Bryce Young right now.
He’s been benched for Andy Dalton, which is not great. Nobody seems to have confidence in him anymore. It’s indicative of a troubling trend for some first-round quarterbacks in the NFL these days.
But even if the world is ready to give up on Young, he still has at least one fan who hasn’t: LeBron James.
The NBA star tweeted his support for Young, saying he was rooting for the former Alabama QB.
Bryce Young hold ya head Young 🤴🏾!! Rooting for you and know this ain’t on you! Continue to put the work in and it shall prevail! 🙏🏾🫡👑
— LeBron James (@KingJames) September 18, 2024
Old LeBron is the best LeBron. This is such a kind thing to do. Young has probably lost a lot of confidence in the last few days. I don’t know how much of that this tweet will get back for him, but seeing this certainly can’t hurt.
Here’s to hoping Young finds a way to turn it around.
Quick hits: WNBA playoff scenarios … The biggest Woj bombs ever … and more
— Here’s Meg Hall with WNBA playoff scenarios for the 8th seed.
— Blake Schuster has more on the greatest Woj Bombs ever here.
— Travis Kelce is trolling Jason Kelce for his ridiculously bad dance moves. Charles Curtis has more.
— A’ja Wilson not being aware of the rebound record is so ridiculous. She is the MVP by far.
— Here’s Cory Woodroof with 7 players who could be traded this NFL season.
— Jose Altuve getting ejected for showing his foot is hilarious.
That’s a wrap, folks. Thanks so much for reading. Have a fantastic day. Peace.
-Sykes ✌️
