WNBA games will return Friday, but as Phoenix Mercury guard Skylar Diggins-Smith tweeted, "It is NOT 'business as usual' today."
After a two-day stoppage as players and the league reacted to the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a 29-year-old Black man, the WNBA will resume play, including the Sparks' game against the Connecticut Sun at 8 p.m. EDT. As opposed to calling the suspension of play a strike or a boycott, Sparks forward and players union president Nneka Ogwumike called it a "moment of reflection" Thursday as players who have already been at the forefront of social justice by championing the #SayHerName movement this season wanted to "recommit" themselves to the fight.
"The games resume tonight," the WNBA said in a statement that included a photo taken Wednesday when four teams, including the Washington Mystics wearing shirts that spelled out Blake's name, locked arms on the court on the first day of the stoppage. "The fight for justice and equality never stops.
The Minnesota Lynx and Atlanta Dream also play Friday at 7 p.m. EDT while the Mystics play the Mercury at 10 p.m. EDT. The Sparks (10-3) are playing for their eighth straight win and are in third place in the league standings.
The WNBA has not released information about the six games postponed during the stoppage, which included a Sparks matchup with the Minnesota Lynx.
