WhileWNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is under fire over her interpersonal management and officiating concerns amid the league’s growth, some off-court drama has eclipsed the All-Star weekend festivities.
DiJonai Carrington dropped a shocking update on Sunday, accusing her former girlfriend, Las Vegas Aces forward NaLyssa Smith, of infidelity. The accusations made by the Chicago Sky guard named multiple players.
WNBA Community Reacts to DiJonai Carrington – NaLyssa Smith Accusations and Fallout
The timeline of Carrington and Smith’s relationship makes the sudden allegations surprising. The two crossed paths at Baylor University in 2020, played together in Waco, and began dating during their collegiate careers.
They remained a high-profile couple as they entered the WNBA, and it was in 2025 that they announced their breakup, with Carrington informing the media that the split was “on good terms”.
The chapter was assumed closed without any lingering animosity. But a Threads post made by Carrington called that narrative into question. “Since [expletive] wanna be funny today ima be hilarious! yes , nalyssa cheated on me with Deja Kelly and Aaliyah Nye +++ many more,” she wrote.
The specific naming of Kelly and Nye inevitably turned the private dispute into a public spectacle, with the WNBA community sharing their reaction to Carrington’s claims.
“THE WNBA IS NOT REAL 😭😭😭Dijonai just accused her ex-girlfriend and teammate of cheating on her with multiple WNBA players,” one account posted.
Smith also reacted to the allegations in a recent live stream.
“Whether she cheated on me and I cheated on her, why are we bringing that to the internet a year later when nobody did anything to anybody,” Smith said.
“That don’t even make sense. Then to bring it to the internet a year later is crazy,” she continued, addressing Kelly and Nye being named.
“That’s ridiculous, especially when you are in a happy, healthy relationship… Then to bring folks up that has nothing to do with anything. These folks is minding their business. That’s very weird…”
“lyss DID that [expletive]😭😭😭,” another user exclaimed.
Barstool Sports’ Jack Mac also shared a breakdown of the controversy, suggesting the league should ’embrace’ this drama.
“If I were the WNBA, I would embrace this. I would embrace this chaos. I would embrace this is this leak, all right. The NBA embraced its leak,” Mac said.
“Make a reality show. Imagine a ride for whatever that Netflix show is about, F1, but it involves the WNBA and all the dating stuff. It would be massive.”
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“Dijonai woke up this morning and chose violence,” one WNBA fan posted.
The situation draws sudden attention to the personal lives of active players in a league already in a whirlpool of drama and controversy, with the upcoming matchup between Carrington’s Sky vs Smith (Aces).
