The Seattle Storm drew the ire of their fans after posting a tweet about Nika Muhl’s fashion sense moments after the rookie guard went down with a serious knee injury.
Muhl was playing basketball with Besiktas in Turkey when she tore her ACL – ending her European season early.
But later in the day, her WNBA team posted a montage of various outfits that Muhl wore throughout the season with a graphic that read ‘2024 Rookie of the Year All-LeagueFits First Team & All-Rookie Team’.
LeagueFits is a design-centric platform that highlights the fashion sense of basketballers both male and female.
While the team took the time to celebrate the recognition for their budding point guard, fans blasted the Storm for the poor timing of the post.
The Seattle Storm sent out this tweet celebrating Nika Muhl after a horrific knee injury
Social media slammed the team for their lack of awareness surrounding Muhl’s injury
One reply read, ‘This is not the time dawg,’ while another said, ‘not the time buddy’.
‘This feels distasteful, idk,’ wrote another user.
Another person replied, ‘They really don’t give a f*** do they,’ while another account responded, ‘Admin can’t read the room eh’.
‘Gang no way she just tore her knee up hours ago and this what’s on yall dome rn,’ another response read.
One well-thought-out response said, ‘Meantime, neither Nika nor anyone else in the WNBA (certainly not the rookies) are making enough money to have an actual offseason to rest and are forced to play overseas, making events like today all but inevitable. Best wishes to Nika on a complete and speedy recovery.’
Playing overseas after the WNBA season ends has become common practice for WNBA stars – especially because salaries are considerably better in Europe.
In the third quarter, Muhl went up to get a rebound and landed awkwardly on her leg, collapsing to the ground and wailing in pain.
She returned to join her teammates on the bench and didn’t play again. In a team photo she was seen with a heavy bandage on her leg.
Muhl was heard wailing in pain as she lay on the court before being stretchered off it
Muhl arrived in Seattle after being selected 14th overall by the Storm in this year’s draft
Besiktas Basketball CEO Ozkan Arseven confirmed the terrible news that Muhl will be out for the rest of the season.
‘We have learned from the MRI and check-ups that there is a rupture in her anterior cruciate ligaments… I wish her a speedy recovery.’
Following the game, Fenerbahce players – including Seattle teammate and fellow UConn Husky Gabby Williams – went over to Muhl to offer their condolences.
Prior to her injury, Muhl had recorded 11 points, three rebounds, nine assists, and two steals through three quarters.
Despite being one of the more heralded rookies in the 2024 WNBA Draft Class, Muhl fell to 14th overall and the Storm – who only played her for 57 minutes throughout this entire season.
Muhl was a starter as a freshman at the University of Connecticut, where she helped lead the Huskies to the Final Four in her freshman and senior years. She was named a two-time Big East Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2022 and 2023 and holds UConn’s records for career assists, single-season assists, and single-game assists.
It’s common for WNBA players to play overseas after their season ends – as salaries in the league are low compared to those in Europe.
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