In No Offseason, The Athletic follows the paths of women’s basketball players after their WNBA seasons’ end and their travels begin. From Turkey, Israel, Italy, Czech Republic, Mexico and even here in the U.S., our reporters tell the stories of these players as they chase their dreams and try to shape the future of the WNBA.
SAN LUIS POTOSÍ, Mexico — At Gate E1 inside George Bush Intercontinental Airport, men in black worn leather jackets, dusty boots and 10-gallon hats waited to board their flight on a recent Sunday morning. They held thermoses and had backpacks over their shoulders.
Old women with their hair pulled back in tight braids sat in seats at the same gate, wrapped in rebozos, or Mexican shawls. There was also a young married couple from Canada recording themselves on a cell phone held by a tripod, relaying their excitement to travel for a frisbee golf match to their dozens of followers on Instagram.
Without any fanfare or interruption, Ariel Atkins, a two-time All-Star, 2019 WNBA champion for the Washington Mystics and Olympic gold medalist, made her way to E1 and took a seat in the corner. So did Danielle Robinson, a three-time WNBA All-Star who was once considered the league’s “fastest player.”
Already seated and waiting for them was Taj…
