On Tuesday, July 26th, the Los Angeles Sparks announced that WNBA All-Star Liz Cambage decided to leave the team.
During her 25-game tenure with the Sparks, the Australian center averaged 13 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks a game. This was her second lowest scoring season since joining the WNBA.
The current Head Coach, Fred Williams, was shocked by the departure and didn’t know what caused it. “A lot of it could have been things off the court, off floor, who knows. Having conversations with her afterward, it just felt it was good for her personally to make that move,” he said.
Joining the Sparks had been one of goals, saying when she signed with them three months ago that this was “where I want to be.” At that point, she had joined as a key piece for the Sparks rebuilding process as they failed to make the playoffs last year; the last time that happened was 2011. Currently, the Sparks are the sixth seed with a record of 12-15.
So far, Cambage’s WNBA career has been a rocky one. She was first drafted in 2011 by the Tulsa Shock, and later went on a break for 4 seasons, returning in 2018 to the Shock. At that point, the team had moved to Dallas and was renamed to the Wings. She signed a contract with the Wings, but would request for a trade only a year later in 2019.
Afterward, she joined the Las Vegas Aces and helped them make the WNBA playoff semifinals in both 2019 and 2021. During the Covid Pandemic, she chose not to play due to health precautions. In 2021, when her contract expired, she decided to leave the Aces as a free agent.
Throughout her journey in the WNBA, she has mentioned her struggles with mental health and depression. She said that these struggles caused her shaky start to her WNBA career.
While her WNBA career has not been ideal, off the court, she has been very successful. Currently, she has contracts with IMG and Wasserman Music, a model Adidas, and a D.J.
Following her departure with the Sparks, Williams said that he had to respect her decision as “it could be something else, could be something that’s not related to basketball.” He hopes that she can find another home in the WNBA and play for another team.
Link to Article: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/27/sports/basketball/liz-cambage-los-angeles-sparks.html
During her 25-game tenure with the Sparks, the Australian center averaged 13 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.6 blocks a game. This was her second lowest scoring season since joining the WNBA.
The current Head Coach, Fred Williams, was shocked by the departure and didn’t know what caused it. “A lot of it could have been things off the court, off floor, who knows. Having conversations with her afterward, it just felt it was good for her personally to make that move,” he said.
Joining the Sparks had been one of goals, saying when she signed with them three months ago that this was “where I want to be.” At that point, she had joined as a key piece for the Sparks rebuilding process as they failed to make the playoffs last year; the last time that happened was 2011. Currently, the Sparks are the sixth seed with a record of 12-15.
So far, Cambage’s WNBA career has been a rocky one. She was first drafted in 2011 by the Tulsa Shock, and later went on a break for 4 seasons, returning in 2018 to the Shock. At that point, the team had moved to Dallas and was renamed to the Wings. She signed a contract with the Wings, but would request for a trade only a year later in 2019.
Afterward, she joined the Las Vegas Aces and helped them make the WNBA playoff semifinals in both 2019 and 2021. During the Covid Pandemic, she chose not to play due to health precautions. In 2021, when her contract expired, she decided to leave the Aces as a free agent.
Throughout her journey in the WNBA, she has mentioned her struggles with mental health and depression. She said that these struggles caused her shaky start to her WNBA career.
While her WNBA career has not been ideal, off the court, she has been very successful. Currently, she has contracts with IMG and Wasserman Music, a model Adidas, and a D.J.
Following her departure with the Sparks, Williams said that he had to respect her decision as “it could be something else, could be something that’s not related to basketball.” He hopes that she can find another home in the WNBA and play for another team.
Link to Article: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/27/sports/basketball/liz-cambage-los-angeles-sparks.html