A man who allegedly sent Las Vegas Aces guard Chelsea Gray a profane message that included a racist slur has been fired after social media users figured out where he worked.
On Monday, the former Sparks player posted a screenshot on her Instagram Story of a DM she said she received following her team’s loss to the Indiana Fever on Sunday.
“People act like we make this s— up,” Gray wrote. “And the audacity to tell us as athletes to ‘shut up and dribble.’”
Her post included the sender’s user handle. Folks on social media discovered that the man worked for Hilton Grand Vacations and pressured the company to punish him for his alleged misdeed. Initially, the company wrote on X that it was investigating the matter and would “take appropriate action based on the findings of our review.”
Hours later, Hilton Grand Vacations posted that the person allegedly responsible for the racist message “is no longer with the company.”
“His behavior was in violation of multiple company policies and does not reflect our company’s values in any way,” Hilton Grand Vacations stated.
The Aces posted a statement Wednesday on X condemning the messages directed at Gray and offering support for those who stand up against such attacks.
“We stand behind those who have the courage to speak up for themselves,” the organization stated. “We are united with anyone who has been targeted by this type of unacceptable behavior.
“We stand with organizations, like Hilton Grand Vacations, that hold individuals accountable for racist conduct. We commend them for the swift manner in which they acted in addressing this manner.”
The WNBA reposted the Aces’ statement and said it “stands with Chelsea and every member of our league.”
“We unequivocally condemn racism and all forms of hate,” the league wrote. “There is no place for this behavior in sports or anywhere, and we remain committed to protecting the players and fostering an environment built on respect and inclusion.”
As part of the collective bargaining agreement reached in March, the WNBA introduced a no-hate campaign that included a stronger fan code of conduct that specifies punishments for online abuse of players and other inappropriate behaviors.
Still, Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas told reporters last month that she received death threats and racist abuse after an on-court incident in which her fist pressed into Fever star Caitlin Clark’s throat while they were scrambling for the ball. No foul was called at the time, but the WNBA later assessed Thomas a Flagrant 2 foul and suspended her for a game.
Speaking to reporters June 30, Thomas called out the league and commissioner Cathy Engelbert for not doing more to protect players off the court.
“Time and time again, players are going through this and the league remains silent,” Thomas said. “I’m sick and tired of it. It’s time for them to step up and have our backs.”
Engelbert released a statement following Thomas’ comments.
“We are aware of Alyssa Thomas’ comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community,” the commissioner said. “The league and our security team have been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization and remain committed to protecting all players.”
During last weekend’s Fever-Aces game, Gray drew a foul on Clark while driving to the basket, but her elbow also appeared to make contact with the Indiana star’s stomach. Clark doubled over after the whistle in what some said appeared to be an attempt to get a foul called on Gray, but none was called.
The racist message received by Gray did not appear to mention Clark or any specific incident.
Man is fired after allegedly sending Aces’ Chelsea Gray racist message
A man who allegedly sent Las Vegas Aces guard Chelsea Gray a profane message that included a racist slur has been fired after social media users figured out where he worked.
On Monday, the former Sparks player posted a screenshot on her Instagram Story of a DM she said she received following her team’s loss to the Indiana Fever on Sunday.
“People act like we make this s— up,” Gray wrote. “And the audacity to tell us as athletes to ‘shut up and dribble.’”
Her post included the sender’s user handle. Folks on social media discovered that the man worked for Hilton Grand Vacations and pressured the company to punish him for his alleged misdeed. Initially, the company wrote on X that it was investigating the matter and would “take appropriate action based on the findings of our review.”
Hours later, Hilton Grand Vacations posted that the person allegedly responsible for the racist message “is no longer with the company.”
“His behavior was in violation of multiple company policies and does not reflect our company’s values in any way,” Hilton Grand Vacations stated.
The Aces posted a statement Wednesday on X condemning the messages directed at Gray and offering support for those who stand up against such attacks.
“We stand behind those who have the courage to speak up for themselves,” the organization stated. “We are united with anyone who has been targeted by this type of unacceptable behavior.
“We stand with organizations, like Hilton Grand Vacations, that hold individuals accountable for racist conduct. We commend them for the swift manner in which they acted in addressing this manner.”
The WNBA reposted the Aces’ statement and said it “stands with Chelsea and every member of our league.”
“We unequivocally condemn racism and all forms of hate,” the league wrote. “There is no place for this behavior in sports or anywhere, and we remain committed to protecting the players and fostering an environment built on respect and inclusion.”
As part of the collective bargaining agreement reached in March, the WNBA introduced a no-hate campaign that included a stronger fan code of conduct that specifies punishments for online abuse of players and other inappropriate behaviors.
Still, Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas told reporters last month that she received death threats and racist abuse after an on-court incident in which her fist pressed into Fever star Caitlin Clark’s throat while they were scrambling for the ball. No foul was called at the time, but the WNBA later assessed Thomas a Flagrant 2 foul and suspended her for a game.
Speaking to reporters June 30, Thomas called out the league and commissioner Cathy Engelbert for not doing more to protect players off the court.
“Time and time again, players are going through this and the league remains silent,” Thomas said. “I’m sick and tired of it. It’s time for them to step up and have our backs.”
Engelbert released a statement following Thomas’ comments.
“We are aware of Alyssa Thomas’ comments, and what she and her teammates have experienced is completely unacceptable and not representative of the WNBA community,” the commissioner said. “The league and our security team have been in contact with the Phoenix Mercury organization and remain committed to protecting all players.”
During last weekend’s Fever-Aces game, Gray drew a foul on Clark while driving to the basket, but her elbow also appeared to make contact with the Indiana star’s stomach. Clark doubled over after the whistle in what some said appeared to be an attempt to get a foul called on Gray, but none was called.
The racist message received by Gray did not appear to mention Clark or any specific incident.
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Poor shooting sinks Sparks in loss to Aces
Coming off a dreadful loss in Connecticut to the worst team in the WNBA, the Sparks needed a strong response.
In their first home game after the road trip, that did not happen until far too late.
The Sparks were always just out of reach in their 79-69 loss to the Las Vegas Aces on Tuesday night, despite Rae Burrell’s career-high 22 points and a late comeback bid. It was the fewest they have scored in a game since Aug. 9 of last season when they scored 59 points.
Last time the Sparks faced the Aces on May 23, they went into Las Vegas and scored 29 points in the fourth quarter for a tremendous road win, powered by Kelsey Plum.
But Plum, who leads the WNBA with 26.8 points per game, is still out with a right ankle sprain, and the Sparks (4-5) offense suffered for it. Other than Burrell’s scoring, the rest of the Sparks offense combined to shoot 12-for-51.
They also entered the night with the league’s worst defense. It’s always going to be difficult to stop A’ja Wilson (25 points), but the Sparks had few answers for Jackie Young (16 points, nine assists) who spaced out the Aces (6-3) offense.
It still was far from their worst defensive showing of the season, and mostly they couldn’t claw their way back with a paltry 30.8% from the field. In fact, the Aces scored just 15 points in the fourth, giving the Sparks a window to come back, but they shot 29.4% in the frame.
The Sparks fell into a 15-point hole in the second after going nearly three minutes without scoring. Burrell scored seven of her points in that frame, though, to ignite a 20-point quarter and the Sparks trailed 37-30 at the half.
But the Aces quickly earned a 13-point lead early in the third and stayed up double digits until near the end of the fourth when Burrell made it a seven-point game.
Plum missed her fourth consecutive game since injuring her right ankle in practice. She participated in shootaround Tuesday even after being ruled out, and head coach Lynne Roberts said she was day-to-day.
But the Aces were also shorthanded, without Dana Evans, Jewel Loyd and Chennedy Carter, who is second on the Aces in scoring despite coming off the bench. That forced the Aces to run some sets with Wilson at small forward and a much-larger front court in front of her before NaLyssa Smith ran into foul trouble.
The Sparks forwards struggled with that, with Dearica Hamby, Nneka Ogwumike and Cameron Brink combining to shoot six-for-27, including an 0-for-7 night from Hamby.
The Sparks next host Dallas (6-3) on Friday night.
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