"Letting everybody go" - WNBA fans react to Connecticut Sun waiving corner All-Star in fire sale

The Connecticut Sun made a surprise roster cut on Thursday, waiving All-Star guard Diamond DeShields. The move comes just a day before the start of the 2025 WNBA season, which was set to be DeShields's first year with the team.

The Sun signed the veteran guard during the offseason to a one-year, $115,000 contract, per Spotrac.

At the time, she was hailed as "a great fit" by the Connecticut Sun's general manager, Morgan Tuck. When the deal was announced on Feb. 3, Tuck praised her, saying:

"We are thrilled to welcome Diamond to the Connecticut Sun... As a veteran in our league with championship experience, she brings a level of leadership, versatility, and competitiveness that will be invaluable both on and off the court. We believe this is a great fit for Diamond as she continues to elevate her career and for our team as we work towards our shared goals."

However, despite the praise from the Connecticut Sun, the WNBA star was still deemed surplus to requirements. This left many fans shocked, and they reacted on X (formerly Twitter).

"Damn they letting everybody go," one fan wrote.

"It’s people getting waived who’ve never even been in a waivable tax bracket before. The W is wild right now, history being made in the most chaotic way possible," another fan commented.

"Wait what??? WTH is going on," wrote another fan.

Reactions varied widely.

"injuries ruined Deshields career," commented another fan.

"Take those flagrant fouls to Europe! Byeeeeee," another fan wrote.

"Yup injuries. That darn ankle got her. 😢," one fan added.

DeShields is a six-year veteran with a previous stint at the Chicago Sky. It would be interesting to see how her career pans out following her latest setback with the Connecticut Sun.

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Diamond DeShields reflected on how tumor surgery threatened her career with early retirement

Diamond DeShields opened up in a Mar. 18 interview with the Boston Globe about how a tumor surgery could have ended her career prematurely in 2020. Reflecting on the experience, the 30-year-old said:

"There was this emotional phase that I was going through where I welcomed all the sympathy because it kind of wrapped me up in a soft blanket, essentially. Where I was already beating myself up and feeling defeated, it was really nice to have somebody say, ‘Aw, poor you.'

"I’m a hooper. Yeah, I went through this terrible thing, like this really hard thing, but I refused to become the pain of that experience. Because if I do that, then I won’t be able to accomplish my dreams."

DeShields eventually returned to the Sky that season and was part of their championship-winning team in 2021.