Indiana Fever Player Makes Painful Admission Amid Temporary Leave
Damiris Dantas is heading back to the Indiana Fever with a broken heart but with her head held up high.
Advertisement
On Sunday, Dantas and the Brazil National Team suffered a painful loss to the United States, 92,84, in the 2025 FIBA Women's AmeriCup final. It marked the first defeat of the entire tournament for Dantas and Co., but there's no denying that it came at the most inopportune time.
Dantas, who has been on temporary leave from the Fever due to her international obligations, took to social media on Monday to share her honest reaction to the loss.
"Not the result we wanted," Dantas started, as translated to English by Instagram. "The truth is, it's very difficult to digest so many emotions after not winning the final. Put a movie in your head, you know? Every effort, every workout, every sacrifice, every drop of sweat shed... And yet, sometimes the scoreboard doesn't reflect everything we put on the field."
Indiana Fever forward Damiris Dantas (left) helped Brazil finish in second place at the FIBA AmeriCup.Grace Hollars/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images
Dantas went on to express her love to everyone who supported her and the team throughout the tournament. The 32-year-old veteran also sent a heartfelt message to her teammates on the national squad.
Advertisement
"I am genuinely proud of the delivery of this group," she continued. "Proud of the fight, the grit and the way each one gave until the last second. We gave it all we had, and even if the result we dreamed of did not come, I am sure that we are on the right path.
"Defeats hurt, but they also teach. And I know that this group has the strength to get up, learn, and come back even stronger. Nobody lets go of anyone here."
Dantas admitted that she's hurting right now, but the pain is somewhat alleviated by her pride in what they have accomplished, as well as what the future holds for Brazil.
View the original article to see embedded media.
Dantas dropped a tournament-high 35 points in the gold medal game against the Americans. She finished the tournament as the leading scorer, averaging 21.4 points, which also led to an All Star 5 selection for the 6-foot-4 forward-center.
Advertisement
Dantas will now head back to Indianapolis to rejoin the Fever, where she hopes to play in their next game on Wednesday against the Golden State Valkyries.
Related: Indiana Fever on Temporary Leave Suffers Painful Blow on Sunday
Related: Fever Player on Temporary Leave Gets Message From Indiana GM
Related: Lexie Hull Reacts to Indiana Fever News on Sunday
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 8, 2025, where it first appeared.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
10 minutes ago
- Yahoo
USC women's basketball lands top recruit Saniyah Hall. Why she picked Trojans
Southern California women's basketball team has landed another top recruit. Saniyah Hall, the top female high school basketball recruit in the class of 2026, according to ESPN's rankings, has committed to play for USC after receiving offers from nearly 30 schools, including UConn, UCLA, South Carolina, North Carolina and LSU. The 16-year-old made the announcement on ESPN's "NBA Today" on Friday, saying, USC "felt like home." "It's such a blessing to be in this position, but I think I truly found my home, and I'm ready to tell the world where I'm going," she said before revealing a Trojans shirt underneath her jacket. "I am headed to the University of Southern California. Go Trojans! Fight on." Hall's announcement comes on the heels of her gold medal win with Team USA at the FIBA Under-19 World Cup. She was named MVP after averaging 19.9 points and 6.4 rebounds, shooting 52.6% from the field and 39.3% on 3-pointers. She scored 25 points vs. Australia in the gold-medal game. Her 19.9 points per game may have set a USA U19 record, but Hall said she's proudest of her defense: "I had a lot of steals that game and a lot of blocks." She'll join a Trojans squad that is assembling elite talent under coach Lindsay Gottlieb. McDonald's All-American Jazzy Davidson, the third overall recruit in the 2025 class, who competed alongside Hall on the USA U19 team, also committed to play for USC. The Trojans were 31-4 last season and lost to UConn in an Elite Eight game after superstar Juju Watkins went down with an ACL injury during the second round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Hall said Gottlieb and her teammates led to her choice to commit to USC. On Friday, she said, "I love all my teammates. The girls there are so fun to be around definitely Lindsay (Gottlieb)... she's definitely there to support me and I've built a relationship with her. She's a great coach." The Ohio native will finish her senior season of high school basketball at SPIRE Academy in Geneva, Ohio. Last season, she played for Montverde (Florida) Academy and averaged 20.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.8 steals and 1.4 blocks. Hall signed an NIL deal with Jordan brand earlier this month. During her announcement, Hall said, "I don't have anything to prove. I just go out, play basketball. I let my game do the talking. Actions speak for themselves." The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fastDownload for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Saniyah Hall commits to USC women's basketball as top recruit in 2026
Yahoo
40 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Indiana Fever vs. Chicago Sky: Will Caitlin Clark play this weekend?
The Indiana Fever will visit the United Center for a nationally broadcast game against the Chicago Sky this Sunday. The afternoon game will air on ABC and will stream live on ESPN+ with a 3 p.m. ET tipoff. While fans might be anxious to see a showdown between two of the league's most popular players, Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark, Clark has been dealing with a groin injury for the past week and the team revealed Thursday that there is no timetable for her return. Reese has also been dealing with an injury and is also not confirmed for Sunday (yet). Here's what you need to know about how to watch the Chicago Sky vs. Indiana Fever game, and find out how to watch every other WNBA game this season, too. How to watch the Indiana Fever vs. Chicago Sky: Dates: Sunday, July 27, 2025 Time: 3 p.m. ET Location: United Center, Chicago, IL TV channel: ABC Streaming: ESPN+, Fubo, DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV, and more What channel will the Sky vs. Fever game be on? The Sky vs. Fever game will be broadcast nationally on ABC. Where to watch the Fever vs. Sky game without cable: You can stream the Sky vs. Fever game on ABC which is available on Fubo, DirecTV, and Hulu with Live TV. The game will also stream on ESPN+, and it will be available on WNBA League Pass after it concludes. 2025 WNBA season schedule: You can check out the full WNBA season schedule (complete with which channel every game is airing on) here. More ways to watch the Sky vs. Fever game :
Yahoo
40 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Sixers waive ex-Arkansas standout Ricky Council IV after two seasons
Aside from selecting VJ Edgecombe with the third overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, the Philadelphia 76ers have had a relatively quiet summer after finishing with a 24-58 record last season. Philadelphia opened up another roster spot Friday, trimming the team down to 13 players. To clear that second-to-last spot, the Sixers waived swingman Ricky Council IV, according to Adam Aaronson of Council's salary for next season was set to become guaranteed Jan. 10, and despite a lackluster sophomore season with Philadelphia, it wouldn't be surprising to see him garner interest on the open market. MORE: Former 76ers guard drawing interest from Golden State in free agency After going undrafted in 2023, the 23-year-old began his NBA career on a two-way contract with the 76ers. However, he was eventually promoted to a four-year, $7.38 million standard deal in April 2024. Council saw inconsistent playing time in the 2024-25 campaign but stepped into a larger role at times due to several injuries to key contributors, especially in the latter half of the year. He averaged 7.3 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists across 17.1 minutes per game, though he shot just 38.2 percent from the field and 25.8 percent from three-point range in 73 regular-season appearances. The 6-foot-5 wing will now explore other opportunities in the NBA. Council played his final collegiate season at Arkansas where he earned AP All-SEC Second Team honors while averaging 16.1 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.1 steals across 34.1 minutes per game in 36 outings. MORE NBA NEWS: NBA executive predicts breakout season for ex-Nuggets forward Ex-Bucks star Damian Lillard shares daughter's hilarious reaction to Portland reunion Bucks' blockbuster three-team trade proposal lands $160 million forward Ex-Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic looking to put conditioning concerns to rest Josh Giddey reportedly growing frustrated with Bulls amid contracts talks
