At the 2024 Olympics in Paris , the American women's 3x3 team earned 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 Aug. 12, Hamby filed a lawsuit in federal court against the WNBA and the Las Vegas Aces alleging, among other things, that the organizations discriminated and retaliated against her for 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 suit alleges that Hamby "experienced notable changes in the way she was treated by Las Vegas Aces staff" after revealing her pregnancy . This included the alleged withholding of tuition relief for her daughter's school and reported forced removal from team-provided housing.
Per the suit, Aces coach Becky Hammon "questioned Hamby's dedication and commitment to the team" during a January 2023 phone call and "did not deny the accusation that Hamby was being traded because she was pregnant." As a result, Hamby says she endured "a loss of reputational prestige and brand value" and "loss of marketing and/or endorsement opportunities" after she was traded to the Sparks.
"The WNBA is, at its core, a workplace, and federal laws have long shielded pregnant women from discrimination on the job," Hamby's lawyers said in a statement, per USA Today . "The world champion Aces exiled Dearica Hamby for becoming pregnant and the WNBA responded with a light tap on the wrist. Every potential mother in the league is now on notice that childbirth could change their career prospects overnight. That can’t be right in one of the most prosperous and dynamic women’s professional sports leagues in America."
Now with Hamby back on U.S. soil, the Los Angeles Sparks will face off against the New York Liberty on Aug. 15.
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