Dearrica Hamby knew it would be a tough return to Las Vegas, where the Sparks forward had only visited a few times since being traded by the Aces to Los Angeles.
But the most recent visit – the Sparks vs. Aces game on Aug. 18 – was decidedly different.
That's because this comes just days after she filed a federal lawsuit detailing the “repeated intimidation, discrimination and retaliation” she suffered after telling the Aces and head coach Becky Hammon she was pregnant, which she claims ultimately led to the trade. 18-page lawsuitHammon explained that she had been promised special benefits by the Aces, such as covering their daughter's private school tuition fees, but lost those promises when her pregnancy was revealed. A full explanation of the allegations can be found here.
This was not the first time the allegations against Hamby Ace and Hammon had been investigated. WNBA When we conducted a survey last year, Hamon suspended He was suspended for two games and the team was stripped of its 2025 first-round draft pick.
But this time Hamby sought financial damages, the lawsuit escalated to the federal level, and a new wave of media coverage followed.
So when Sparks visited the Aces on Aug. 18 for the first time since the federal lawsuit was filed, Hamby knew the return to Las Vegas could be a difficult experience.
“The irony is, in some ways, I tried to understand it and prepare for it, but you can't really prepare for it until you've experienced it,” Hamby said on a recent podcast. Great match with Sara Spain.
When the Aces-Sparks game began, she was reportedly booed every time she touched the ball.
(Dearrica Hamby gets booed every time she touches the ball. Loudly. That's… awesome.)
— Nekias (New Kentucky) Duncan (@NekiasNBA) August 18, 2024
“I was holding back tears the whole game,” Hamby said. “It was really sad, but people don't fully understand it, they just take it as a sport, and I get that.”
Hamby, a three-time All-Star, played for the Aces for eight years before the trade, winning Sixth Woman of the Year honors in 2019 and 2020 and helping the franchise win its first title in 2022.
But as boos rang out around the Michelob Ultra Arena, her illustrious career with the Ace Organization was not the issue and the lawsuit came to the forefront. On the podcast, Hamby told Sarah Spain she suspects a lot of the hostility is coming from new fans.
“I don't know if they were new fans, but I think a lot of the old fans probably weren't in it,” Hamsby said, “but I just put my love and my heart into being a part of it, so to speak, and I didn't ask to leave.”
Speaking to reporters after the Sparks' 87-71 victory over the Aces on Aug. 18, Hammon denied any wrongdoing.
“That didn't happen. I'm sorry about the bullying. I spoke to her every day,” Hammon said. “When she wanted to practice, she practiced. When she didn't want to practice, she didn't. It was actually an over-the-top thing. It was an over-the-top thing. That's the truth.”
Nearly a month has passed since the two teams faced off in front of a rabid Aces crowd. With the Sparks' season all but over and the Aces on their way to a playoff berth, and a federal pregnancy discrimination lawsuit still unresolved, this story is far from over and could have other ramifications.
For now, Hamby is just hoping for a positive outcome.
“I was feeling extremely overwhelmed and anxious leading up to that moment,” she said, “and that process has passed. I'm just looking forward to the right thing being done.”
