At the 2024 Olympics in Paris, the American women's 3×3 team won the bronze medal thanks to the hard work of Dearica Hamby, Cierra Burdick and Hailey Van Lith. Now that they're back home, Hamby wasted no time in taking the WNBA and her former team to task.
On August 12, Hamby filed a lawsuit in federal court against the WNBA and Las Vegas Aces, alleging, among other things, that the organizations discriminated against her and retaliated against her because of her pregnancy. The Aces, then the league's champion team, traded her to the Los Angeles Sparks in January 2023, a few months after Hamby went public with the news of her second pregnancy.
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The lawsuit alleges that Hamby “experienced notable changes in the way she was treated by Las Vegas Aces personnel” after announcing her pregnancy, including the alleged withdrawal of tuition assistance for her daughter's school and the reported forced removal from team-provided housing.
According to the lawsuit, Aces coach Becky Hammon “questioned Hamby's loyalty and dedication to the team” in a January 2023 phone call and “did not deny Hamby's claim that she was traded because she was pregnant.” As a result, Hamby says she suffered “loss of reputational prestige and brand equity” and “loss of marketing and/or endorsement opportunities” after being traded to the Sparks.
“The WNBA is, at its core, a workplace, and federal law has long protected pregnant women from discrimination in the workplace,” Hamby’s attorneys said in a statement. USA Today“The world champion Aces exiled Dearica Hamby for getting pregnant, and the WNBA responded with a tap on the wrist. Every potential mother in the league is now warned that childbirth could change her career prospects overnight. That can't be right in one of America's most prosperous and dynamic women's professional sports leagues.”
With Hamby back on U.S. soil, the Los Angeles Sparks will face off against the New York Liberty on August 15.