The WNBA said on Tuesday that Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon has been suspended for two games without pay for breaking team and league workplace standards. Additionally, Las Vegas will forfeit its first-round draft pick in 2025.
After Dearica Hamby, a former forward for the Aces, claimed the team discriminated against her for becoming pregnant after she was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks in January, the WNBA launched an inquiry, which resulted in Hammon’s ban.
“Trading is an element of the business. Discrimination, bullying, deception, and lying are not. In a post from January on Instagram, Hamby stated, “I have had my work ethic and character assaulted.” “I signed my contract extension because I was promised things, but they were never delivered on.”
“The club infraction involved promises of improper incentives in conjunction with talks for an extension of then-Aces athlete Dearica Hamby’s player contract,” the league’s news release said. The remarks that Hammon made to Hamby on Hamby’s recent pregnancy constituted a breach of respect in the workplace.
In June, Hamby agreed to a two-year agreement with the Aces. The accusation against her, which she refuted in her essay, was that she signed the extension knowing she was pregnant.
“This is untrue,” wrote Hamby. “They called me ‘a question mark,’ claimed that I would ‘get pregnant again,’ and expressed doubts about my level of dedication to the team.”
Following the Aces 2022 WNBA Finals triumph in September, Hamby revealed her second pregnancy. She also stated that the team thought she wouldn’t be ready to play this season.
In January, Hamby declared, “I have stated my wish to play this season, and I planned to play this season.”
“I have exercised hard throughout my pregnancy, even on days when it was difficult to walk, and I have continued to work out (including basketball) both on my own and with team staff. However, I was misinformedly told that I was not taking my exercises seriously.”
“It is imperative that we respect the standards of integrity and fairness, which provide a level playing field for our clubs,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert stated in a statement.
Engelbert continued, “The Aces have been disciplined as a result of their failure to comply with league rules and regulations.”
The breach of our Respect in the Workplace principles also depresses us, and we’re resolute in our efforts to make sure that all WNBA teams get improved training and adhere to standards.
The Aces did not answer CNN’s request for comment right away.
‘Penalty is far from appropriate’
Meanwhile, the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA) said the WNBA penalties had missed “the mark.”
“Where in this decision does this team or any other team across the League learn the lesson that respect in the workplace is the highest standard and a player’s dignity cannot be manipulated?” said the WNBPA in a statement.
“Since incidents of wrongdoing by a team or team personnel are not always comparable, an honest assessment of the facts and recent sanctions levied by the League show that this penalty is far from justified.
Although it’s a big deal and has never happened before in the League’s history, losing a future draft pick deprives a player of the chance to compete for a job, which hurts the player in the long run.
“We will keep helping our member while she weighs the League’s ruling and looks into all of her options.”
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