Los Angeles Sparks

Cam Brink is fired up to play alongside Kelsey Plum on the Los Angeles Sparks.

"She's a real one," Brink said during a conversation with Sydel Curry-Lee on Tuesday's episode of the Wave Original Straight to Cam (39-minute mark). "She's so fun, too. … I got a PG. Thank goodness because we needed that."

Brink explained that she already knows Plum because they trained together even before she entered the league.

"She's probably one of the hardest workers I know," she added.

Plum came to the Sparks this offseason in a blockbuster trade that also sent Jewell Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces. The addition of Loyd will help the Aces account for the loss of Plum and should keep them in the championship picture with A'ja Wilson leading the way.

As for the Sparks, they now have a veteran leader for a team that is filled with young talent.

The future was already bright with Brink (No. 2 overall pick of the 2024 WNBA draft) and Rickea Jackson (No. 4 overall pick of the 2024 WNBA draft) as foundational cornerstones, but Plum is a championship-winning player with a resume that includes two WNBA titles, an All-WNBA selection and three All-Star Game nods.

She can work in pick-and-rolls with Brink and is accustomed to playing alongside a star forward considering she worked with Wilson when they were together on the Aces.

Plum is the type of point guard who can help Brink reach her own potential, which will set the Sparks up for even more success down the line.

Cameron Brink's rookie season was cut short after the Los Angeles Sparks suffered a torn ACL in June.

The injury also meant missing out on the Olympics in Paris, where she was supposed to be on the United States 3-on-3 team. Now, she's having to miss another event in Unrivaled, which began earlier this month.

On her Wave Original digital series, Straight to Cam, she expressed that she regrets having to miss Unrivaled, but ultimately didn't want to rush her return to the court.

"I just don't feel ready yet," she said (1:02:00 mark). "I was watching a sports documentary recently and it was an injured athlete who was just so desperate to get back while injured and I'm kind of not like that in a sense... I'm afraid to get hurt again. I'm just trying to take as much time as possible to just feel fully ready."

While it's obviously hard to watch from the sidelines, taking her time in recovery will likely be the smartest move for Brink in the long run. She's coming off a strong start to her career, averaging 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game in 15 contests for the Sparks.

The No. 2 overall pick will look to continue her rehab and come back stronger in Year 2.

A major proposed WNBA trade could hold up free-agency activity, according to Annie Costabile of the Chicago Sun-Times.

Per Costabile, the move is a three-team swap that would send Jewell Loyd to the Las Vegas Aces, Kelsey Plum to the Los Angeles Sparks and "assets" to the Seattle Storm. Until the trade is finalized, other deals "will not be made."

The current sticking point in talks is finding the "right pieces" to package for Seattle, via Costabile.

Loyd signed a two-year supermax extension with Seattle in Sept. 2023, but she eventually requested a trade from the team on Dec. 4. The six-time All-Star has spent all 10 years of her career with the Storm.

While the 31-year-old dealt with shooting struggles in 2024—she shot just 27.4 percent from three-point range—she still managed to average 19.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game.

Plum hasn't officially requested to be moved from Las Vegas, but Sabreena Merchant of The Athletic reported on Tuesday that there are "indications" she wants a "fresh start."

The Aces designated Plum as their "core" player on Jan. 11, which comes with a one-year supermax qualifying offer worth $249,244 before immediately coming off the books (via Callie Fin of the Las Vegas Review-Journal).

Plum made her third consecutive All-Star appearance in 2024, averaging 17.8 points and 4.2 assists per game. She continued to show off her long-range accuracy, shooting 36.8 percent from three-point territory while attempting a career-high 7.9 shots from behind the arc each night.

It's easy to see why her presence would be beneficial for a Sparks roster that features rising stars such as Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson.

Costabile noted on Saturday that the Storm and Aces are working with an "abstract salary cap" until the trade is completed due to the contract situations of Plum and Loyd, limiting their ability to make other moves.

In order for the offseason activity of both teams to progress, a deal may need to materialize.

Los Angeles Sparks star Cameron Brink announced Thursday she's partnering with Sydel Curry-Lee, sister of Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry for a new weekly series, Straight to Cam.

The show will be produced by Wave Sports & Entertainment, whose offerings include the Kelce brothers' New Heights podcast and Paul George's Podcast P show.

"Wave's reputation as a leader in athlete-driven storytelling makes them the perfect partner to share my journey and bring fans closer to my world on and off the court," Brink said. "With Straight to Cam, we're not just talking about sports—we're creating a space to celebrate the culture, community, and candid moments that make life in the W so unique. I can't wait for everyone to come along for the ride."

The show will premiere on Jan. 28 and release episodes weekly.

The fact that Brink will headline her own podcast is a sign of how quickly she has become a major star in the WNBA.

The 23-year-old arrived with high expectations after winning a national championship and being a two-time Pac-12 Player of the Year at Stanford, and she proceeded to live up to the hype.

In 15 games with the Sparks, she averaged 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks before suffering a season-ending torn ACL. Particularly on defense, the 6'4" forward looked far advanced for a first-year player.

There's no question Brink will be a cornerstone for the Sparks' future and has the potential to be a face of the WNBA for a long time to come.

As part of the 2025 WNBA schedule release on Monday, the Los Angeles Sparks unveiled their slate with a unique video on social media:

The Sparks will open the season on May 16 against the league's newest expansion team, the Golden State Valkyries. A matchup against the Chicago Sky on May 25 will pit star second-year players Cameron Brink and Angel Reese against one another, which would surely excite fans.

Los Angeles will also face early tests from veteran-laden teams like the Minnesota Lynx and Phoenix Mercury. The team won't face reigning Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever until a road matchup on June 26. Clark's first visit to Hollywood will be on Aug. 5. The Sparks will have their first meeting against the reigning WNBA champion New York Liberty on July 3, and they will close out the regular season against the Las Vegas Aces on Sept. 11.

Brink's rookie season was cut short by a torn ACL suffered on June 18. She had started all 15 games for the Sparks at that time and averaged 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks. The injury also forced her to withdraw from the Team USA women's 3x3 squad for the Paris Olympics this past summer.

Without Brink, Los Angeles finished the 2024 season with an 8-32 record and failed to qualify for the playoffs for the fourth straight year. Former head coach Curt Miller parted ways with the team after the season and was replaced by Lynne Roberts, who most recently coached at Utah.

The Sparks will have the No. 2 pick in the 2025 WNBA draft, giving them the chance to add more talent around Brink and the talented frontcourt duo of Dearica Hamby and Rickea Jackson.

The Los Angeles Sparks have their next head coach.

Los Angeles announced Tuesday it hired Lynne Roberts as head coach. The position was vacant because the Sparks and former head coach Curt Miller mutually agreed to part ways after the 2024 campaign.

"First and foremost, Lynne's leadership and integrity stand out," general manager Raegan Pebley said in the team's announcement. "Her ability to partner with players while creating a winning culture will translate as we continue our path toward championship contention.

"Lynne has a dynamic and forward-thinking offensive mind, and her up-tempo style fits perfectly with the way we want to play. We love how she maximized her talent at Utah in one of the nation's strongest conferences. We are honored to welcome Lynne and her family to Los Angeles."

Los Angeles is in the middle of a rebuild and was just 8-32 last season.

While that was the worst record in the WNBA, it also dealt with a number of injuries throughout the campaign. In all, the Sparks started 13 different players with only Dearica Hamby, Rickea Jackson and Kia Nurse starting more than half the games.

The most notable injury was to No. 2 overall draft pick Cameron Brink, who suffered a torn ACL and was limited to just 15 games. Having a healthy Brink back in the rotation should elevate expectations during Roberts' first season at the helm.

Roberts has found plenty of success at the college level and led Pacific for nine seasons from 2006 to 2015 and Utah for the last 10 campaigns. She was the 2012-13 Big West Coach of the Year, 2014-15 WCC Coach of the Year and 2022-23 Pac-12 Coach of the Year.

The Utes were 9-21 in 2014-15 the season before Roberts took over and developed into one of the best programs in the country by the end of her tenure. They went to each of the last three NCAA tournaments and advanced to the Sweet 16 in 2023.

Their offense stood out the most, as the Sparks' announcement highlighted.

"The past three seasons, Roberts' teams have displayed historic efficiency, ranking No. 1 in the nation in field goal attempts from beyond the three-point line and at the rim, second in overall offensive rating, and third in effective field goal percentage," it said. "Collectively, these squads rank fifth among all DI schools in three-pointers made across the last three campaigns."

Los Angeles fans will surely love to see that type of offensive efficiency on display as the team takes the next step and eyes potential playoff runs in the future.

Roberts will be introduced during a Thursday press conference.

The Los Angeles Sparks "would have been" the preference of UConn star Paige Bueckers in the 2025 WNBA draft lottery, according to ESPN's Michael Voepel.

The Dallas Wings wound up winning the lottery, with the Sparks getting the No. 2 pick. As a result, the Wings are in position to take Bueckers, who's universally considered the best prospect in the class.

Playing in Los Angeles comes with obvious commercial advantages. A player as notable as Bueckers is going to get big endorsements anywhere she goes, but it's simply a different ballgame to be in L.A.

The Sparks are also a little more attractive than the Wings in basketball terms.

The franchise has fallen on hard times. Hiring Derek Fisher as head coach in 2019 was a massive miscalculation that had a big ripple effect as a roster that once boasted Candace Parker, Chelsea Gray and Nneka Ogwumike was steadily dismantled.

But now the Sparks have a young cornerstone in Cameron Brink, who averaged 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game before suffering a season-ending torn ACL in 2024. Rickea Jackson exceeded expectations as well with 13.4 points per game on 45.6 percent shooting.

The Wings, meanwhile, have been unable to find any consistency from year to year since relocating to Texas in 2016. The last two seasons sum up the franchise's run.

Dallas won 22 games and reached the second round of the playoffs, an achievement that caused head coach Latricia Trammell to get emotional. It looked like the team was on an upward trajectory.

Instead, the Wings lost 31 games and fired Trammell in October.

Hiring Curt Miller a two-time Coach of the Year and the 2017 Executive of the Year, as the general manager is a sign of intent from Dallas. However, its general reputation will continue to precede the organization until it starts winning with regularity.

Perhaps the arrival of Bueckers will be the thing to make that happen.

Los Angeles Sparks forward Cameron Brink provided a peek behind the curtain of her photoshoot for Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Issue.

In an Instagram post from Thursday, the 2024 No. 2 overall pick updated fans on how her offseason is unfolding. A few of the shots were taken from her upcoming Swimsuit Issue debut.

Sports Illustrated announced Tuesday that Brink will be among the athletes featured. She had previously said on Paul George's Podcast P show being in the Swimsuit Issue was a goal of hers because she believes it's "super empowering" for female athletes to embrace their physiques.

A torn ACL ended Brink's rookie season in the WNBA after just 15 games, but her performance in the first half offered plenty of encouragement. She averaged 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 21.9 minutes per contest.

Brink's defensive impact was something you typically don't see from a first-year player.

Los Angeles has the best odds of landing the No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft lottery, and going first overall would mean getting to add UConn star Paige Bueckers.

Regardless of whether that comes to fruition for the Sparks, they already have one cornerstone in Brink.

Los Angeles Sparks star Cameron Brink was announced Tuesday as the newest athlete to be featured in Sports Illustrated's annual Swimsuit Issue in 2025.

During a May episode of Paul George's Podcast P show, the 6'4" forward said she "always loved" the Swimsuit Issue and called it "super empowering"

While a lot of attention was paid to Caitlin Clark going into the 2024 WNBA draft, Brink was also considered to be a potential franchise cornerstone for whichever team picked her. Her massive potential was on clear display before a torn ACL abruptly ended her rookie campaign.

Brink averaged 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks in 15 appearances. Her 35 total blocks before the knee injury were the second-most in the league.

As a franchise, the Sparks are in a state of flux. They posted the WNBA's worst record (8-32) and have the best odds (44.2 percent) of winning the 2025 draft lottery. Los Angeles hasn't replaced outgoing head coach Curt Miller, either, after letting him go this offseason.

Whatever the organization's future looks like, it's at least clear Brink will be a big part of it.

Cameron Brink won a national championship ring during her collegiate career at Stanford.

But she got a different kind of ring Monday.

The Los Angeles Sparks forward has announced her engagement to boyfriend Ben Felter. The couple got engaged in Paris, and she showed off the new jewelry in a social media post:

Gillian Telling of People noted Felter surprised Brink, who was in the French capital for fashion week, and proposed to her at the Shangri-La Paris Hotel. The couple met when they attended Stanford together.

This comes after Brink's first season in the WNBA.

Los Angeles selected her with the No. 2 overall pick of the 2024 WNBA draft, and she quickly established herself as a star interior defender while averaging 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.1 steals a night through her first 15 games.

However, her season was cut short when she suffered a torn ACL in June.

Brink will look to continue taking strides in the WNBA when she returns to the court next season after an offseason that included an engagement.