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While Hall of Fame classmates Sue Bird and Sylvia Fowles played a combined 34 WNBA seasons, Moore’s résumé is her stellar four-year tenure at UConn and eight dominant Minnesota seasons. That’s plenty.
“I played so much basketball, I can’t be greedy,” Moore said Friday. “I did everything I could have possibly done and then did it again either from an individual standpoint or a team standpoint. I don’t have that thirst or desire. I’ve been to the mountaintop.
“I have no regrets with what I was able to enjoy and experience as a player. And then there’s every now and again where you’re just like, ‘If I get back out there I could’ . . . but that’s just the mind talking, not the body talking.”
Coming out of the Atlanta area, Moore caused a recruiting war between nearby Tennessee and UConn. She won 54 awards during her four years with the Huskies, including being named a four-time first-team All American, and the Naismith, Wooden, and AP Player of the Year as a senior. She was the prototype small forward with grace and strength, making the game look easy against overmatched opponents.
For Minnesota, she was seven-time All-WNBA, a six-time All-Star, 2014 MVP, and was named one of the top 25 WNBA players in the league’s first 25 years. And yet, she left her faithful thirsting for more because she departed during her prime to a bigger calling.
“Our communities are in need of help in life and thriving and mind shifts, system shifts,” Moore said. “Just the mind-set of everybody eats. It’s not the mind-set of using you to get what I want. We’re going to do what we need to do for each other and it’s going to be great. That’s what I love about sports and you still see that. You look at the teams like OKC and the UConns and they just love each other. I love that team sports are able to show that because it’s supposed to lead us to that.
“Stepping away from the game and the long haul of the justice system, it’s not set up to bring justice quickly. It gave me the endurance to realize this is a season. We’re going to get through this. Jonathan lost 11 appeals. I don’t know where I would have been without the person who I have become through competitive, hard, long hard, grueling, grinding seasons to be able to bring that same mind-set.”
When asked if she ever catches highlights of herself, the dominant player she was, the physicality and brilliance, she laughs because it’s not often. That was a different Maya, in a different headspace with one mission.
“I do recognize that person but I am so different, I’ve grown in my evolution as a person,” she said. “From stepping away from the game, my playing [career] seems like such a blur. There was so much basketball in a short amount of time but I also see pictures of myself at a clinic or at a camp and just remembering those pockets, those bigger-than-basketball moments. It is really cool to watch those magical moments with my teammates and the connection that we had.
“I worked really hard to show off the skills that I was able to have.”
This weekend gives Moore a window to reflect on when her life was perhaps simpler, when she was Maya the hooper, the basketball role model, the perennial All-Star. She has used those titles and her influence to transition into Maya the social activist, wife, mother, and pioneer.
“Sports is such a wonderful place to be able to become and to show the best who you are as a humanity,” she said. “It can also show some of the worst if we don’t do it well. But to be able to give opportunities to be seen and to celebrate and to show the skills, the personality, the voice of everybody who is a human being, we can do that through sports. As long as you have a little bit of skill. You can show that and demonstrate that. Being a part of a legacy that shows the fullness of the diversity of the human beings that play the sport. Whether it’s the color of your skin, all the different ways we’re diverse.”
Maya Moore teaches a Black History Month workshop at Lewis and Clark Middle School, where she attended in her youth, in Jefferson City, Mo.NINA ROBINSON/NYT
Root problem
Clippers’ woes could grow
According to a report from journalist Pablo Torre, Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard signed a sponsorship agreement with a tree-planting service that could have garnered him $28 million in addition to the $176 million extension he signed in 2021.
Marketing deals are a viable additional source of income for a plethora of athletes, but the question is whether the Clippers buoyed Leonard with an additional $28 million via the Aspiration endorsement deal to create a competitive advantage in free agency and circumvent the salary cap.
Generally, NBA teams don’t offer endorsement deals in addition to contracts with players. The players have agents and marketing representatives to search out opportunities. But Torre reported Aspiration was mandated to pay Leonard in $7 million increments despite the fact he did not endorse the company at all.
The NBA is investigating the transaction while the Clippers are in complete denial, basically saying owner Steve Ballmer was defrauded by the company and they reneged on the endorsement deal with Leonard, but those transactions were separate.
There have been penalties for teams that circumvented the cap. The most infamous was in 1999, when Minnesota signed former No. 1 pick Joe Smith to a below-market deal and then promised to sign him to more lucrative deals once they obtained his Bird Rights. The NBA docked the Timberwolves five first-round picks, levied a $3.5 million fine, and suspended owner Glen Taylor and general manager Kevin McHale for a year.
The league and players association have tried feverishly to ensure that salary cap circumvention would be nearly impossible. The Leonard marketing deal is similar to college athletes 30 years ago who would agree to a scholarship, only to be set up with a paying job that amounted to watering grass for 10 minutes or clocking into a factory and then going back to the dorms.
The question the NBA will have to determine is whether Ballmer or the Clippers arranged that endorsement deal for Leonard. If they did, it could have serious repercussions for the franchise.
Here is the clause in the circumvention section of the collective bargaining agreement:
“It shall constitute a violation of Section 1(a) above for a Team (or Team Affiliate) to enter into an agreement or understanding with any sponsor or business partner or third party under which such sponsor, business partner, or third party pays or agrees to pay compensation for basketball services (even if such compensation is ostensibly designated as being for non-basketball services) to a player under Contract to the Team. Such an agreement with a sponsor or business partner or third party may be inferred where: (i) such compensation from the sponsor or business partner or third party is substantially in excess of the fair market value of any services to be rendered by the player for such sponsor or business partner or third party; and (ii) the Compensation in the Player Contract between the player and the Team is substantially below the fair market value of such Contract.”
If the league finds the accused team guilty of circumvention, it could (per the CBA) levy a $4.5 million fine and dock one first-round pick.
The CBA also says the league, if it finds the accused team guilty of circumvention, could fine the club $4.5 million and dock one first-round pick. That pales in comparison to the Timberwolves penalty but perhaps commissioner Adam Silver could impose heavier penalties if urged by the league’s governors.
The timing of this couldn’t be worse. The Clippers are hosting the 2026 All-Star Game at their sparkling new Intuit Dome, while the franchise is banking on Leonard, James Harden, and the newly acquired Bradley Beal to foster at least one more legitimate playoff run in the Western Conference.
The signing of Leonard was mostly a failure. Not only has Los Angeles failed to reach the NBA Finals in the six-year span, it also made the regrettable trade of 2025 MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to the Thunder for the fading Paul George. Playing with George was a mandate of Leonard’s to sign with the Clippers.
George and Leonard couldn’t stay healthy simultaneously and never paired to meet the lofty expectations. George was eventually not re-signed and agreed to a max contract in Philadelphia, where he spent his first season mostly injured and ineffective.
The NBA usually takes its time with investigations, but this one needs to be wrapped up by the beginning of the regular season. There is a sense of urgency and curiosity from the league’s governors as to whether the Clippers actually facilitated a marketing deal that added salary to Leonard’s contract extension.
AT for MVP has ring to it
Another campaign for Thomas
At the beginning of the WNBA season, Caitlin Clark was one of the favorites for the MVP along with A’ja Wilson, Napheesa Collier, and Breanna Stewart. Alyssa Thomas, who finished third in the voting last season, was beginning a new life with a new team in Phoenix. Two things have happened for Thomas: She’s led the Mercury to a renaissance despite the retirement of Diana Taurasi and departure of Brittney Griner, and she’s continued her crusade as the league’s most versatile player.
While Collier appeared to be the cinch pick in helping the Lynx cruise to the No. 1 seed, she missed 10 games — or about 25 percent of Minnesota’s — with an injury, giving Thomas perhaps a better opportunity to win her first MVP award. Thomas is averaging 15.9 points, 9 rebounds, 9.2 assists, and 1.6 steals.
The former Sun standout leads the WNBA in assists, plus is third in rebounding and sixth in steals. She plays with a relentless, workmanlike style that has made her an indispensable piece for the Mercury, who clinched home-court advantage for the first round of the playoffs with a win against Washington on Thursday.
Phoenix coach Nate Tibbetts, a candidate for Coach of the Year, said he has been thoroughly impressed with Thomas.
“One stat that I did see, which I think is awesome, is obviously you know people love points when it comes to MVP, but she leads the league with points and assisted points combined, which I think is a pretty special stat,” Tibbets said. “It shows that she’s scoring, maybe not at the highest clip, but her assists kind of take that over. So anyway, I love the AT for MVP conversation. I think she deserves it. Obviously, there’s other people that are in the mix, too.
“She’s been overlooked probably her whole career, and it’s important for us to keep winning to keep that alive. In my opinion, she deserves all the credit that she’s getting, and I know she doesn’t want to talk about herself, but I know how much she appreciates the X-Factor (the Mercury fanbase), and what they bring and the love that they’ve given her each and every night.”
The Mercury retooled in the offseason, adding Thomas and Satou Sabally to Kahleah Copper for a dynamic trio. The Sun decided to completely rebuild, allowing their entire starting five to sign elsewhere. DeWanna Bonner signed with Indiana, then eventually joined Phoenix after being waived, while Brionna Jones signed with Atlanta.
Thomas instantly became a leader in Phoenix, which could emerge as the biggest challenger to the Lynx for the WNBA title.
“I’ve said this about AT, every night you can count on her and count on her in a big way, right?” Tibbetts said. “She’s gonna bring her best effort and that’s, of the many talents that she has, just knowing that she’s going to bring it each and every night … that gives you a sense of relief as a coach, because she cares, she cares at the highest level, and she’s going to bring it each and every day.”
Stewart has missed significant time this season for the Liberty with a bruised knee while Wilson, the three-time MVP, has led the Aces’ recent rise to the third seed. Thomas finished second in the MVP voting to Stewart in 2023 despite more first-place votes. This may be the 33-year-old’s best chance to take home the elusive award.
“Yeah, we keep talking about [her value],” Tibbetts said. “Just the plays that she made down the stretch were big time, right? She’s a winner. She cares about winning. She wants to win. And she has won, winning follows her because of her effort and fight and she’s a big, big part of what we’re doing.”
The Mercury retooled in the offseason, adding Thomas and Satou Sabally to Kahleah Copper for a dynamic trio.Ross D. Franklin/Associated Press
Layups
The Mavericks made an unexpected move to fit free agent Dante Exum on the roster for another season. The club waived former first-round pick Olivier-Maxence Prosper to make room to sign Exum, who has been a valuable backup point guard the past three years. Prosper played in 52 games over two seasons, but never emerged as a real rotation option. The decision is a testament to the lack of patience clubs are exhibiting over first-round picks. Prosper was not allowed to finish his rookie contract and is the third player from the 2023 draft to be waived or traded by his original team, joining Jalen Hood-Schifino and Cam Whitmore. Prosper was quickly snapped up by the Grizzlies on a two-way contract … The name of the 76ers’ arena has been changed from the Wells Fargo Center to Xfinity Mobile Arena. A new arena scheduled to open in 2031 will be built at the same South Philadelphia complex that also houses the Phillies, Eagles, and Flyers, after the club flirted with the idea of playing first in New Jersey, then in Philadelphia’s Center City … The Bucks are making it clear they want to keep Giannis Antetokounmpo. Milwaukee sent its coaching staff to Cyprus to watch the superstar play for Greece in EuroBasket, and signed Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Giannis’ brother, to a one-year contract after he missed all of last season with an Achilles’ tear. Thanasis, 33, played five seasons with the Bucks as a little-used reserve and cheerleader. Giannis hasn’t requested a trade but his future is in limbo depending on the success of the Bucks’ retooling. The club has brought back Taurean Prince, Gary Trent Jr., Kevin Porter Jr., and Bobby Portis, and acquired Myles Turner, Cole Anthony, and Gary Harris in hopes of making a run in the Eastern Conference … An encouraging sign for Celtics fans is the experience center Neemias Queta is receiving during Portugal’s run in EuroBasket. Queta led his home country into the knockout round, averaging 15 points and 7.4 rebounds, and even knocking down one 3-pointer … Former Celtic Shane Larkin, a first-round pick in 2013 who has become one of the top guards in Europe, is playing for Turkey in EuroBasket and has led the way to a 5-0 record. Turkey also has former NBA players Cedi Osman and Furkan Korkmaz along with Rockets center Alperen Sengun.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at gary.washburn@globe.com. Follow him @GwashburnGlobe.