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I’ve seen the name chennedy carter around for some time now, and I recently seen that’s she’s signing with the aces for this upcoming W season. I’m curious if you know what happened back then with her?

hi friend! as someone who has been there for chennedy's entire WNBA career arc, i am happy to explain her background :) i couldn't stop thinking of things to mention, soooo this became a full lore post, LOL. enjoy!

were the lights too bright?: chennedy "hollywood" carter's complicated history in the wnba

chennedy "hollywood" carter, an incredibly skilled point guard, was an absolute standout at texas a&m from 2017 to 2020. despite only playing three seasons and leaving early to join the wnba, she is one of the most decorated aggies of all time.

per her texas a&m player bio:

"Three-time All-American and three-time First Team All-SEC selection … Was the only player returning for 2019-20 that averaged over 20.0 points for her career … In just three seasons, reached Texas A&M’s career top 10 in points (1,983, 2nd), 10+ point games (87, 3rd), 20+ point games (62, 1st), 30+ point games (13, 1st), field goals made (732, 3rd), field goals attempted (1,698, 3rd), 3-pointers made (148, 6th), 3-pointers attempted (428, 6th), free throws made (371, 3rd), free throws attempted (496, 3rd) and free throw percentage (74.8, 8th)"

in chennedy's last season, she put on a show in the november 2019 exhibition game between texas a&m and team usa. she scored 34 points (which broke a scoring record for national team exhibition games), "scorched the USA defense", and played so hard that she even threw up on diana taurasi's shoe. the performance was so impressive that sue and DT sung her praises on their famous four-hour lockdown livestream, with sue insisting that chennedy would be the best player in the 2020 draft class.

chennedy was selected fourth overall by the atlanta dream—and she stated quite plainly that she had a chip on her shoulder about it. nicki collen, the dream's head coach at the time, corroborated the sentiment.

“They have always slept on me,” Carter said, referring to coaches and others who she felt overlooked her ability. She added, “Listen, I can be young, I can be a rookie, but I also can accomplish anything.” “I came in here with a chip on my shoulder,” Carter said, “even with being picked fourth, and I feel like that chip has been there my entire life.” ... “I think Chennedy is misunderstood,” Dream Coach Nicki Collen said. “I think she wants to win and she wants to be the best, but I also think she felt a little bit overshadowed by Sabrina in the draft, and it’s very hard in that scenario. “Don’t get me wrong — that kid earned everything she received, and Oregon had the better record, but I think this is a stage that Chennedy can shine on and I think she can be a Hall of Fame player.” —Terrika Foster-Brasby, "Chennedy ‘Hollywood’ Carter Shines Brightest When the Lights Are On", The New York Times, Aug. 28, 2020

whether chennedy's feeling of being snubbed was warranted or not, it made her work even harder to prove herself in her rookie year. all players were faced with the unique challenge of playing an accelerated season in a "bubble" (affectionately called "the wubble") during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. if that weren't enough, the resurgence of the black lives matter movement—due to many horrific incidences of police brutality—weighed heavily on players, the majority of whom are black.

despite the pressure, she showed up to the wubble ready to put in work. sabrina's rookie season ended abruptly with a left ankle injury in the third game of the season, which left the floor open for rookie of the year candidates. chennedy was already living up to the bright lights of her nickname, "hollywood", by scoring 35 points in her sixth wnba game ever against the seattle storm (which also broke the record for youngest player in WNBA history to score 30+ points).

she was the centerpiece for atlanta's rebuild after the dream had gone 8-26 in the 2019 season. even though the dream were still losing, her impact was felt: when she was sidelined with her own ankle injury from august 10th to august 27th, the dream went 1-5.

being out for 6 games of a 22-game season took her out of the running for rookie of the year (which eventually went to crystal dangerfield of the minnesota lynx), but everyone was certain that chennedy was here to stay.

then, the 2021 season came... and it felt doomed from the start. though the dream picked up aari mcdonald in the 2021 draft, the team would learn that head coach nicki collen was leaving to coach baylor. to make matters worse, they learned this news two days after their first preseason game and only hours before the news broke officially on may 3rd. atlanta wouldn't hire a new head coach that season: mike peterson became the interim head coach, but had to step down halfway through the season due to health issues, so darius taylor took over for the remainder of the season.

tensions were high. though the dream had a strong 4-2 start through may, chennedy suffered an elbow injury on the may 29th game at new york and missed 6 games while recovering. 2021 all-star courtney williams and other dream vets like tip hayes and odyssey sims were giving it their all, but the team still went 1-5 in chennedy's absence.

chennedy's return on june 23rd was much anticipated, but it wasn't a quick fix. she'd been struggling with her three-point shot, shooting only 16.6% (1-6) compared to 2020, where she shot 37.5% (12-32) from three. the dream would lose twice before eking out a win against the liberty. then, they'd just barely lose to seattle. their strong start was long gone. the dream was now 6-10.

their next game at las vegas would change everything.

chennedy played a little over five minutes in the first quarter of the game. she had hit a two pointer, gotten two assists, missed a three pointer, and picked up two fouls within the first few minutes of the game. when she was benched, she was visibly frustrated—as any passionate player would be. during a timeout, courtney williams said something to chennedy, which they seemed to argue about. chennedy stayed on the bench for the rest of the half, then didn't leave the locker room for the second half of the game.

her absence was shrouded in mystery, and rumors started to fly. the popular theory was that courtney had threatened to fight chennedy (she'd previously gotten in trouble for fighting former sun teammate alex bentley in 2018). reporter khristina williams received a tip about a dream player being a locker room cancer.

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the day after the game, atlanta would announce that chennedy had been suspended until further notice "due to conduct detrimental to the team". what had happened? the dream wasn't interested in sharing details. when asked for more details by the press, interim coach mike petersen would state: "She’s working through stuff with ownership to try to get a process where she can return."

atlanta was clearly trying to resolve things behind the scenes. amidst the fan panic, partial owner and former player renee montgomery would attempt to placate them:

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courtney williams and teammate elizabeth williams would also speak up to deny the rumors that courtney had instigated something with chennedy.

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over the next few days, inside sources would start to report what they knew about the situation—and it did not look good for chennedy.

During the first quarter of Sunday’s contest between the Atlanta Dream and the Las Vegas Aces, Atlanta guard Courtney Williams approached Chennedy Carter on the bench. Williams, who saw that Carter looked disengaged as other teammates cheered, went over to Carter and emphatically told her to improve her attitude. The two had an argument, and after checking out at the end of the first quarter, Carter did not play in the second quarter and remained in the locker room for the second half. After the game, Carter, who was upset about her playing time and the team’s success, approached Williams. After Williams told Carter that she wasn’t interested in hearing about playing time, Carter made noises about wanting to fight her teammate. Williams made it clear to the locker room that she had zero interest in fighting anyone, and immediately after Carter confronted her, she backed away and left the situation. ... Most teams would not suspend a player if this was an isolated incident, and sources tell The Next it is not the first time Carter has snapped at her teammates or made noises about fighting a teammate, which extends back to last season when she squared up with a player during a practice. Several sources familiar with the team said that she does not make the same effort as other leaders to encourage her teammates. Though it is not uncommon for players to disagree and hold each other accountable, Carter has a reputation for taking it further than her teammates. —Spencer Nusbaum, "How Chennedy Carter earned a suspension from the Atlanta Dream", The IX Sports, July 7, 2021

so... yikes (to say the least). despite the concerning reports about chennedy's attitude, it seemed that atlanta wanted to resolve the issues and keep her on the team. the dream record continued to get worse, and we didn't hear a thing about chennedy's possible return.

in the end, the dream would finish the 2021 season 8-24 (0.250) and chennedy would never play for them again.

the situation was puzzling. people were disappointed with the abrupt stop of chennedy's budding career, whether they agreed with the suspension or not. some fans felt that the suspension was excessive and unfair. those opinions were only exacerbated when the news broke in october that courtney williams and crystal bradford, her dream teammates, had gotten in a fight back in may outside of a food truck in atlanta. if the situation wasn't bizarre enough, their agent shared that the dream had known about the fight at the time and didn't discipline courtney or crystal for it. there seemed to be a double standard, and disgruntled fans wanted better for chennedy.

in february 2022, chennedy was traded to the los angeles sparks in free agency, along with the rights to li yueru. in exchange, the dream got erica wheeler, the 2022 #15 pick (which was used on naz hillmon), and a 2023 first-round pick (which was later traded away).

many fans were excited that chennedy was getting a second chance and thought there was no place better for "hollywood" than the sparks.

however, the sparks were going through their own rough patch. the 2021 season was difficult due to losing franchise player candace parker, fighting a long stretch of injuries that required four hardship contracts over the season, and enduring head coach derek fisher's infamous coaching "style". chennedy was one of several players they sought out to prepare for the upcoming season, determined to have a better showing this time.

to put it plainly, the 2022 la sparks season was a nightmare—and, believe it or not, chennedy was not the cause of it.

in summary:

the first round pick, rae burrell, was out for the season due to a knee injury/surgery

liz cambage was exposed for telling the nigerian national team members to 'go back to your third world country' during a pre-olympic scrimmage, which caused a media circus and locker room issues

derek fisher was fired as head coach and GM of the sparks on june 7th (interim head coach fred williams took over for the rest of the season)

liz left the sparks a few weeks later due to the fallout of her controversy and insisting that she was the victim in it, which hurt the sparks further because she was a key player

the sparks finished the season 13-23 (.361), 6th in the western conference, and 11th in the league (the only team performing worse was the fever, which had finished in 12th place for the last two seasons)

though chennedy had played the most games in a season of her career thusfar, she was no longer the piece that a franchise was building around. she started for only two games and averaged roughly 16 minutes per game (compared to 26 MPG in atlanta). her best game was a win on may 9th against minnesota where she started and led the team in scoring (20 pts), rebounds (8), and assists (4). in a brutal season for the struggling sparks, she proved that she could be an asset—with the right attitude. so why wasn't she getting more minutes?

as the sparks were suffering from the liz cambage fallout, chennedy was benched for four games between august 3rd and august 9th due to a nonspecific coach's decision. interim coach williams said that he decided to bring her back for the august 11th game against the sparks due to a "change of heart".

The move to acquire [Liz Cambage] came after a controversial trade that sent Erica Wheeler and the team’s 2022 second-round pick and 2023 first-round pick to Atlanta in exchange for Carter. While some members of the Sparks’ leadership team opposed the trade for Carter, Fisher “convinced them to go for it,” The Athletic reported. Carter had played just 11 games with the Dream during the 2021 season, with the team suspending the star guard following a locker-room confrontation. In Los Angeles, Carter has averaged 15 minutes per game, taking the court for 21 minutes Thursday after being held out of the team’s previous four matchups. Ahead of the game, Williams cited a conversation he had with Carter in his decision to put her on the floor. “There are certain things that her and I talked about at shootaround that we both came to a comprise on and so it’s time to move on,” he said. “I felt that she’s a player who has shown the last few games to support her teammates and everyone so we will get her out there and see what she can do.” After the game, while Carter declined to comment on Williams’ decision-making process, her teammate Brittney Sykes had some thoughts on the matter. Sykes shared her takeaways while sitting next to Carter in the postgame press conference. “I’m very proud of (Chennedy Carter) and the adversity that she’s been through this season,” Sykes told reporters. “She’s a great player, so let’s just leave it that. There is no secret. There is no nothing. That is between coach and that’s between (Chennedy).” In Williams’ postgame press conference, the coach also declined to give details of his conversation with Carter. “For me, it’s important for that because those are personal things that Chennedy Carter and I talked about that savors her to continue on her career and so I protect her on that end and probably you’ll never know,” he said. “But all I know is she was out there playing basketball today and having fun.” —Clare Brennan, "Sparks' Chennedy Carter returns after Fred Williams' change of heart', Just Women's Sports, Aug. 12, 2022

was chennedy's attitude improving? apparently not.

the following march, in the midst of 2023 free agency, the sparks waived chennedy. with how poorly the 2022 season had gone, the trade to retrieve her the previous year was thought to be one of derek fisher's final mistakes in his last few months with the sparks. when the new head coach curt miller and general manager karen bryant were deciding how to structure the sparks' rebuild, chennedy was not a player they wanted to keep. her reputation was preceding her.

chennedy didn't play in the wnba at all in 2023. instead, she played overseas like she'd already been doing between wnba seasons. she finished out the turkish league season with bursa uludag in the spring, where she averaged 21.9 points on 63.6% shooting and 5.7 assists per game. in the fall, she joined the heilongjiang dragons of the women's chinese basketball association (WCBA), where she was the league's leading scorer, averaging 28.9 points and 8.4 rebounds a game at the beginning of february 2024. she also scored a record-breaking 51 points vs shandong on november 20th, 2023. despite her flaws, she was still balling out, and an important person took notice of it.

in february 2024, chennedy was signed to a training camp contract with the chicago sky. the new head coach and wnba legend teresa weatherspoon saw her potential and was willing to give her another chance.

chennedy didn't take it for granted: when she was named to the final sky roster, she cried tears of joy. she opened up to journalist chris kwiecinski with fox 32 chicago about how difficult her journey had been and how much this new chance meant to her.

"I'm finally somewhere where somebody wants me and they'll put me in the best position and it made me feel amazing," Carter told FOX 32 on Tuesday. "I literally cried when she told me I made the team. I cried for sure." ... "I love that kid," Weatherspoon said. "She's an incredible talent. We're just trying to let the world see what she's about." It goes beyond the coaching staff, too. "Her teammates love who she is," Weatherspoon said. Carter isn't shy to admit the Sky have her playing out of position, but that's okay. Carter is learning different ways she can affect the game and help the Sky win. It might have been uncomfortable to start, but Carter is learning more about herself. That's another victory in her eyes. "I'm thankful for (coach Weatherspoon) for putting me somewhere and making me uncomfortable because now I'm seeing what all I bring to the table," Carter said. "It's sure not just scoring." —Chris Kwiecinski, "'The best version of me': Why being wanted in Chicago means the world to Sky guard Chennedy Carter", Fox 32 Chicago, May 29, 2024

chennedy embraced her role as a sixth player for the sky, and things were going well.

then, chennedy committed a flagrant foul against caitlin clark in a game at indiana on june 1st, 2024.

the entire game had been physical, and chennedy was clearly taking a cheap shot because she was frustrated. the hard foul was unnecessary and would be controversial against any player, any day of the week. however, it's no secret that a loud and unfortunate majority of caitlin's fans are eager to attack anyone that they decide is against her, whether justified or not. (for example, take dave portnoy, barstool sports founder, berating angel reese any chance he gets for the last three years.)

the moment blew up. emotions were already high from the people involved, but caitlin's fans expressed their newfound hatred of chennedy in droves. for reference, i did a simple twitter search for tweets involving the word "chennedy" on the days surrounding this game. these are a few screenshots of the first tweets that appeared in the results, but trust that there are many, many, many more.

in addition, sports media made a spectacle of the moment because of caitlin's involvement. (in fact, the reporting on this was so extensive that it made my research for this post difficult. for several of my searches, any older articles about chennedy's career were buried under dozens of stories about this.)

head coach spoon and chennedy both spoke about what happened, and it was clear that the personal attacks made by clark's fans were upsetting to chennedy:

"Physical play, intensity, and a competitive spirit are hallmarks of Chicago Sky basketball," Weatherspoon said in a statement released Monday. "Chennedy got caught up in the heat of the moment in an effort to win the game. "She and I have discussed what happened and that it was not appropriate, nor is it what we do or who we are. Chennedy understands that there are better ways to handle situations on the court, and she will learn from this, as we all will." When speaking to the media later Monday, Carter struck a little different tone than Weatherspoon did. "I'm seeing a lot of things -- players, fans not understanding who I am as a player," Carter said. "You have to understand me as a person, too. And don't just look at one tape and form an opinion about me. I'm truly a passionate person about the game, and I'm genuine. You can ask all my teammates, they've gotten to know me. They know the real Chennedy Carter. So I'm just saying, don't form an opinion off of one little clip. And you didn't even see the whole game and/or the play that led to that." —Michael Voepel, "Coach says Sky 'will learn' from flagrant on Clark, while Carter says she's more than 'one little clip'", ESPN, Jun 3, 2024

chennedy would also state that she's a competitive player and that it's "all love" off the court, and she did not regret the foul.

chennedy and the sky attempted to move on afterwards, but i must mention that cc's fans have not left chennedy alone since this happened, to the point that an article published about her two days ago has this headline:

Carter has a bit of a history.

the 2024 sky season was messy and difficult (as they are for most lottery teams), but it didn't appear to be any fault of chennedy's. in fact, fans valued her and wanted her to be used more—her lack of minutes during the july 13th game against the liberty caused fan outrage. she would end the season as the sky's leading scorer with 17.5 points per game.

though teresa weatherspoon was doing the best that she could with the cards that she was dealt, she was fired at the end of the season and replaced by tyler marsh. when the time came to send out qualifying offers in january 2025, chennedy didn't get one—despite how much she contributed to the sky in 2024. by this point, you might be able to guess the reason why.

According to multiple league sources, players were unhappy with the dynamic created in the locker room last year due to Carter’s behavior, which went unchecked by former coach Teresa Weatherspoon. There was concern within the team regarding how re-signing Carter would impact the Sky’s chances of landing other free agents. —Annie Costabile, "Chennedy Carter will be an unrestricted free agent after Sky decide not to extend a qualifying offer", Chicago Sun-Times, Jan 20, 2025

again, chennedy's attitude was hurting her despite her talents—at the time, she was having another dominant season in the WCBA. no other teams would pick her up.

instead of playing in the w in 2025, chennedy would take her talents to the liga nacional de baloncesto profesional (LNBP) femenil in mexico, joining adelitas de chihuahua. the LNBP runs at the same time as the wnba and is a popular destination for players that get cut from wnba training camps.

as she does, she would continue to dominate in mexico (and it seemed like she was having fun there, lol)

this brings us to a few days ago, when the aces signed chennedy to a training camp contract. due to her past, this signing is being widely discussed and questioned. she's talented, yes, but do you even risk it? the following article does a great job of explaining the aces' rationale here:

Carter, who has been out of the league since 2024, is with Las Vegas on a training camp contract

in summary, the aces currently have the same weak spots as they did last season (notably low production in the restricted area—they're consistently the lowest scoring team at the rim). chennedy isn't afraid to get to the rim, and she's quick and athletic enough to do it—check out these highlights linked in the article:

additionally, she's on a training camp contract, which guarantees nothing. they can see how she works with the team and get rid of her if they don't like it. if they do sign her, she's on a league-minimum salary, which is attractive for a franchise that has several high-salary players.

for now, the next stop in chennedy's career is a question mark. many people think that this could become another case of her losing a job due to her behavior, but there are also many people who want chennedy to succeed and hope that she's finally matured enough to do it.

i got really detailed with this and i hope that you (and any others who read this) find it helpful! 🫶

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