Let’s groove tonight
From The GIST (hi@thegistsports.com)
Leveling The Playing Field
Let’s boogie!
Olympic gold medal–winning gymnast Jordan Chiles made her flippin’ fantastic Dancing with the Stars debut last night, and we’re channeling that fiery energy straight into this Wednesday. Time to groove.
— WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert, presenting Dallas Wings star Paige Bueckers with her nearly unanimous Rookie of the Year award after Bueckers grooved through the iconic Jennifer Hudson Show spirit tunnel. Obsessed is an understatement.
WNBA Playoffs
🏀 Double teamed
The GIST: Time flies when you’re having fun…and when the first round is only a best-of-three series. Just a few short days after the WNBA playoffs tipped off, all four series could be decided before our next newsletter with tickets to the best-of-five semifinals on the line. Let’s hoop to it.
🥵 No. 6 Indiana Fever force series-deciding Game 3: If your back’s against the wall, find yourself a Kelsey Mitchell. The dynamic Fever guard dropped 19 points to lead Indy to a convincing 77–60 win over the No. 3 Atlanta Dream and stave off elimination last night. The dub sets up what should be a spicy decisive Game 3, tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. ET.
⛈️ There’s a (Seattle) Storm coming after the No. 7 squad kept their season alive with last night’s 86–83 upset win over the No. 2 Las Vegas Aces. Skylar Diggins made it rain for Seattle, who forced a winner-take-all Game 3 back in Vegas tomorrow at 9:30 p.m. ET.
🗽 No. 5 NY Liberty’s success could hinge on Breanna Stewart’s left knee: The reigning champs (up 1-0) dodged a bullet when Stewie’s MRI came back “relatively clean” yesterday, but the three-time champ is still a game-time decision for tonight’s 8 p.m. ET Game 2 tilt against perennial MVP candidate Alyssa Thomas and the No. 4 Phoenix Mercury.
🐱 No. 1 Minnesota Lynx look poised to sweep: Fresh off Sunday’s dominant 29-point Game 1 win over the No. 8 Golden State Valkyries, Minny looks virtually unstoppably ahead of tonight’s 10 p.m. ET Game 2. That said, the Lynx will have to silence a displaced Ballhalla crowd, not to mention the league’s Most Improved Player, Veronica Burton.
World Athletics Championships
👟 History has its eyes on her
The GIST: The World Athletics Championships (aka, track & field’s most prestigious biennial international event) is underway in Tokyo — and American sprinter Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone is on the precipice of history.
- Yesterday, McLaughlin-Levrone broke the 400m American record in the semis, all the more impressive considering she’s competing in this event at Worlds for the very first time. Here’s what to know about the decorated vet before the 400m final tomorrow at 9:24 a.m. ET.
💨 The McLaughlin-Levrone lore: Just 26 years old, McLaughlin-Levrone’s career is already beyond impressive. She’s a two-time Olympic champ in the 400m hurdles, an event she’s broken the world record in six times. “Dominant” doesn’t do it justice.
- But the sprinter is stepping out of her comfort zone this season, opting out of the 400m hurdles to focus on the 400m flat. Yesterday, she finished the quarter-mile race in 48.29 seconds, breaking a 19-year American record held by the legendary Sanya Richards-Ross.
📝 History’s on the line in Tokyo: Only two women have ever broken 48 seconds in the 400m. But here’s the thing: With a finals berth clearly secured, McLaughlin-Levrone appeared to ease up a bit at the end of her semis race, and it was still the fastest 400m time run by a woman this year. All to say, the longstanding world record (47.60 seconds) could be within reach. On your mark, get set…
⚾ Toronto Blue Jays’ magic number reaches three in playoff hunt
The Jays are knocking on the door of a return to the postseason with their magic number (aka the combined Toronto wins and opponent losses) sitting at three following last night’s 6–5 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. That’s right, they could potentially clinch by the next time we chat as the Rays series continues tonight at 7:05 p.m. ET. How’s that for baseball IQ?
- However, the push for the playoff berth will have to go on without shortstop Bo Bichette, who’s out for the rest of the regular season with a knee injury but eyeing a return in time for October baseball.
📺 NWSL expands media deal for 2026, 2027 seasons
Midway through their landmark four-year, $240M deal, the NWSL announced broadcasting changes yesterday, increasing the number of games airing on both ESPN and CBS while adding Victory+ as a free streaming partner. It’s a crucial move to increase access to the 14-team league and comes with two new squads (Boston Legacy FC and Denver Summit FC) set to debut in 2026.
🏀 WNBA legend Tina Charles commits to Athletes Unlimited (AU) Pro Basketball league
At 36 years old, the ageless Charles continues to dominate women’s pro hoops, averaging 16.3 points and 5.8 rebounds for the Connecticut Sun this season. Now, she’s taking her talents to innovative AU for the offseason, joining an All-Star–caliber roster that also features the Chicago Sky’s Ariel Atkins and a fan favorite, the Valkyries’ Kaitlyn Chen. Buckets.
🏈 Cincinnati Bengals quarterback (QB) Joe Burrow sidelined for three months
Look away, Ohioans, fantasy football managers, and Joe Cool fanatics — Burrow’s impending toe surgery is expected to sideline him until Week 15 or 16. Notably, the Bengals have averaged less than 20 points in the 14 games they’ve played without Burrow since 2020. Someone give backup QB Jake Browning an emotional support water bottle; he has big cleats to fill.
- And the Bengals aren’t the only squad relying on a backup signal caller: Minnesota Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy could miss two to four weeks with a high ankle sprain, paving the way for backup Carson Wentz’s return to a starting role.
Together With FanDuel
Phoenix Mercury standout Alyssa “The Engine” Thomas lets her game do the talking. When the stat sheet screams triple-double, words simply aren’t necessary. Case in point? The quiet but deadly hooper has been breaking records all season long, like this one and this one.
👏 Why we’re a fan: Come for her playmaking brilliance, basketball IQ, and clutch gene; stay because her trash talk hits just as hard as her game.
🚨 You don’t need to be the W’s triple-double queen to talk smack though: Head to FanDuel and walk the talk to snag a win, all for less than the cost of your daily oat milk latte.
Odds in Her Favour, supported by FanDuel, invites fans to hop on the bandwagon of rising female athletes and shift the spotlight to women’s sports in a meaningful way.Peep our squad’s MVPs (Most Valuable Picks):
🏈 What to look forward to
The Fanatics Flag Football Classic, a 2026 exhibition tournament with a star-studded roster, including seven-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady and his partner-in-touchdowns Rob Gronkowski. Reunited and it feels so good.
🏅 Who’s golden…again
Canadians Camryn Rogers and Ethan Katzberg, who successfully defended their hammer throw gold medals at the World Athletics Championships earlier this week. Thor, who?
🧢 What to appreciate
Josh Allen's custom hats. The Buffalo Bills quarterback is rocking special hats before each of the team's nine home games this season, each designed by a patient from a local children's hospital and later auctioned off to benefit the hospital. Truly incredible.
🎷 Who to know
Kent Broussard, the 66-year-old retired accountant who just realized his lifelong dream of joining the LSU marching band as a freshman. Age really is just a number.
The GIST's NFL Pick'em Challenge
🎉 Three cheers for Emily, the Week 2 winner of our free-to-play NFL Pick’em Challenge. Emily will receive $100 of GIST swag for choosing all 16 games correctly in Week 2. Talk about a touchdown.
- So, what is Pick’ems? Glad you asked. It’s a weekly challenge where you (yes, you) choose which team will win each of the 16 NFL matchups that week. Pick with your head, your heart, or using jargon-free NFL insights from yours truly.
💌 Didn’t play last week? No problem. There’s always an open seat at The GIST’s NFL table. Just pull up a chair and make this week’s picks before tomorrow’s 8:15 p.m. ET Thursday Night Football kick off. It’s really that easy.
Question of the Day
Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel already has his inspirational locker room speech dialed up ahead of his Fins’ Thursday Night Football clash with the juggernaut Buffalo Bills. With that in mind, what’s your preferred pre-game ritual? Vote below or reply and let us know.
On Monday, we asked which player you thought will be named WNBA MVP. 45% voted for Napheesa Collier, 40% voted for A'ja Wilson, and 15% voted for Alyssa Thomas.Today’s email was brought to you by Alessandra Puccio, Lisa Minutillo, Lauren Tuiskula, Rachel Fuenzalida, Grace DePaull, and Briana Ekanem. Editing by Katie Kehoe Foster. Fact-checking by Marga Sison and Mikaela Perez. Ops by Briana Ekanem and Marga Sison. Ads by Katie Kehoe Foster, Alessandra Puccio, and Lisa Minutillo. Managing edits by Lauren Tuiskula and Alessandra Puccio. Head of content Ellen Hyslop.