NFL
By: Nisey
Mark your calendars, because history is coming to Jacksonville. The UPSHOT League confirmed today that its first-ever Championship Game tips off Saturday, August 29, at 7:00 p.m. at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena — and one team will walk out as the league’s first champion, trophy in hand.
Commissioner Donna Orender set the tone early, returning to the phrase that’s guided this league since day one: “This is a league of opportunity; everyone deserves a shot to be their best.” WNBA, Hall of Famer, and VP of Basketball Operations Taj McWilliams-Franklin picked that thread up and ran with it, making clear this isn’t about competing with anyone else in the space. “The momentum is so amazing in women’s sports today that the UPSHOT League is here to be part of that,” she said — another stage, another door, as attendance and viewership across women’s basketball keep climbing.
And you could feel that in the players’ own words. Ariel Hearn talked about the chance to play stateside, close enough for her family to watch her live her dream of getting back to the WNBA — made sweeter by reuniting with her former coach, Jessica Bogia. Lindsay Pulliam felt that same pull: family, familiarity, and an offer from Coach Bogia she just couldn’t turn down twice.
On the court, keep an eye on Deja Kelly (Charlotte Crown), Ariel Hearn (Jacksonville Waves), Diamond Johnson (Greensboro Groove), and Lasha Petree (Savannah Steel) — four women carrying their teams into a postseason where nearly 70% of games have come down to 10 points or less. That’s the kind of parity that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
Championship weekend brings a coach’s clinic, a youth clinic, and “The League Emerge” panel conversations, plus fan fest and a women’s entrepreneur showcase. The season MVP award will carry the Olympian, the first women’s pro league, Hall of Fame named Ann Meyers Drysdale.
Behind the scenes: Dunkman (Shaquille O’Neal) provides uniforms for the players, Molten supplies the ball, Refology officiates, and Zawyer Sports and Entertainment has been a steady hand from day one.
Looking ahead, UPSHOT grows from four teams to six in 2027 with Nashville and Baltimore joining the fold. No formal WNBA deal yet — but the door’s cracked open, and everybody in the room seemed to feel it.
Tickets go on sale August 3. Images provided by NiseyPov and Khya Kimber.
