Met Gala 2026: WNBA's Paige Bueckers Explains Masterpiece Painted SuitCome Oct. 21, NBA center Wendell Carter Jr. will be facing quite the double-team. Because an hour after his Orlando Magic are set to tip off against the Atlanta Hawks in Florida, his real-life MVP Angel Reese will be pressing her way down the court some 440 miles away in Georgia. So, while it'd take more than a little, uh, magic for the 27-year-old to huddle up with his girlfriend, 24, in game three of the Atlanta Dream's WNBA finals campaign against the Golden State Valkyries, he provided quite the assist in his off-season. "A lot of hard work, a lot of relaxation, a lot of support for my girl," the Duke alum recently told Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson of his game plan. "It's been a great summer all in all." And while he can't go full-court press for Reese—who's competing for the Dream after two seasons in Chicago—he's always on her proverbial bench. "We're both competitors," Carter explained of their shared mindset. "Before games, after games, we tell each other what we should do night in and night out and not to pay too much attention to the outside noise. We call it the white noise." Of course, Reese, who earned an NCAA championship while at Louisiana State University, isn't the only athlete with a key teammate in her corner. Before DeWanna Bonner joined the Dream in August, she was competing for the Phoenix Mercury alongside fiancée Alyssa Thomas. And while the two certainly like to dunk on each other ("She's not getting a bucket," Thomas cracked before they faced off during the 2024 WNBA All-Star festivities), such rivalries only up their game play. "I love playing with Alyssa," Bonner detailed in their 2024 cover interview for SLAM Magazine. "She's one of the hardest working competitors in the League, so it kind of makes me want to go harder." And, no doubt, as she hits the hardwood with her squad, no one will be cheering louder than her future bride. We've got the stats on their partnership and the real-life teammates other WNBA stars spend their time huddled up with. ESPN/TikTokAngel Reese"I think the next time I'll post I'm in a relationship is when I'm married," WNBA standout Angel Reese shared during a January 2025 episode of her Unapologetically Angel podcast, explaining a newfound desire for privacy. "You might see me on a date. You gonna have to catch me though. Like, I’m not gonna post a man on my page." Still, there have been definitive clues that the Bayou Barbie has found her Ken in Orlando Magic center Wendell Carter Jr. "That’s a sign," the Atlanta Dream power forward captioned a TikTok showcasing an impressive arrangements of roses, "that’s a signnnn." And it was certainly a big play when the Duke alum turned up to the 2025 WNBA All-Star game sporting a t-shirt baring Reese's visage. The NCAA champ—set to appear on season two of The Hunting Wives—returned the favor, attending a December 2025 Magic game in a jersey emblazoned with the words "My Man." Steph Chambers/Getty ImagesA'ja WilsonGame recognizes game, and three-time WNBA champion A'ja Wilson has found her ace of hearts in Bam Adebayo. The low-key couple first sparked dating rumors in the summer of 2024, and Wilson confirmed their romance with a bit of a pump fake when she showed up at NBA All Star Weekend in February 2025. "My NBA All-Star is not here," the Las Vegas Aces center told People, acknowledging that the Miami Heat center hadn't made the roster. But Adebayo was busy "getting the rest he needs," she added, "and that's the best Valentine gift that I can truly give him, is just the rest." And they're only heating up, Adebayo showing up to support Wilson—who made her fifth straight All-Star team—during the WNBA All-Star festivities in July 2025. Months later, in her TIME Athlete of the Year cover story, she revealed they'd actually been huddled up way longer than fans realized, making that first move at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Next up: Adding to their squad. "That is always a dream," she said of having kids with Adebayo. "This is my life partner. Honestly, what on earth was my world before you? That’s how much he’s impacted my life, my family’s life." Sabrina Ionescu/InstagramSabrina IonescuSabrina Ionescu has racked up an impressive haul of trophies playing for the New York Liberty, WNBA All-Stars and U.S. Olympic team, but the day she married NFL player Hroniss Grasu is especially close to her heart. "March 10, 2024. The day I got to marry my best friend, my other half," she captioned her Instagram wedding photo. "The best day of my life."Taylor Hill/FilmMagicMarta Xargay Casademont & Breanna StewartThree-time WNBA champion Breanna Stewart met her love match with Spanish basketball player Marta Xargay Casademont. They connected as teammates on a Russian professional women's basketball team in 2018 and got engaged and married in 2021. They welcomed their first child Ruby in August 2021, followed by their son Theo in October 2023. Xargay Casademont retired from the sport in 2021, but continues to support her wife's career, writing on Instagram after Stewart's New York Liberty won the 2024 Finals, "So freaking proud of you!" InstagramCaitlin ClarkIndiana Fever megastar Caitlin Clark has been dating basketball player and former Butler University assistant coach Connor McCaffery since April 2023. The pair haven't been shy about celebrating their love on social media, with McCaffery posting a sweet birthday tribute for his girlfriend's January 2025 birthday: "You have an incredible ability to inspire and lift up those around you, and I am lucky to learn from you every day. Thank you for always being you. I love you."Kevin Mazur/Getty ImagesBetnijah LaneyNew York Liberty shooting guard and 2021 WNBA All-Star Betnijah Laney is married to fellow basketball player Jordan Hamilton, who started for the Denver Nuggets, New Orleans Pelicans, and Houston Rockets during his NBA career. In an Instagram tribute for their second wedding anniversary in 2023, Laney wrote, "Your arms are my favorite place to be."Barry Gossage/NBAE via Getty ImagesDiana Taurasi & Penny TaylorAfter dating for eight years, Diana Taurasi married her Phoenix Mercury teammate Penny Taylor on May 13, 2017. Now both retired from the sport, the iconic WNBA couple have more time to spend with their children, Leo and Isla.The Hapa Blonde/GC ImagesAzzi Fudd & Paige BueckersAfter a few weeks of speculation, Dallas Wings point guard Paige Bueckers confirmed in July 2025 that she was dating Azzi Fudd, her former teammate on the UConn’s women’s basketball team. And with Fudd selected first overall by the Wings in the 2026 draft, the two were thrilled to pair up on and off the hardwood. "I'm excited to play again with Paige," Fudd told ESPN during draft night April 13. "She's an incredible person. An incredible player, and it's gonna be a lot of fun."Katie Lou Samuelson/InstagramKatie Lou SamuelsonPrior to playing for the Indiana Fever in 2024 and re-joining the Seattle Storm in February 2025, Katie Lou Samuelson was busy with her life off the court. She married basketball player Devin Cannady in April 2023 and the couple announced the birth of their daugher Aliya in August 2023.Taylor Hill/FilmMagicNapheesa CollierWNBA superstar Napheesa Collier can add devoted wife and mom to her long list of achievements (which includes two Olympic gold medals and 2025 All-Star Game MVP). In October 2019, the Minnesota Lynx forward got engaged to basketball skills coach Alex Bazzell and they were married three years later. In 2022, they welcomed daughter Mila Sarah Bazzell.Ethan Miller/Getty ImagesAllie Quigley & Courtney VanderslootThen-Chicago Sky teammates Allie Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot were married in December 2018 and share daughter Jana, who was born on April 8, 2025. The winning pair are not only the first married couple to win a professional sports championship together (the 2021 WNBA Finals), but in May 2025, a month before Quigley announced her retirement, Vandersloot surpassed her wife's record as the all-time leading scorer for the Chicago Sky.Quinn Harris/Getty ImagesDeWanna Bonner & Alyssa ThomasIn March 2021, Alyssa Thomas shared on social media that she was dating her then-Connecticut Sun teammate, DeWanna Bonner. The pair got engaged in 2023 when Thomas proposed during the WNBA All-Star Weekend. Bonner is also mom to Cali and Demi, the twins she welcomed in 2017 with ex-wife and former Phoenix Mercury teammate Candice Dupree.
See Who the WNBA's Angel Reese & More Athletes Have Teamed Up With IRL
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