Layshia Clarendon - The Leader

BASKETBALL - WNBA - WNBPA

ARCHETYPE: THE LEADER

Day 82/135

Athletic Accomplishments

(For those unfamiliar, Layshia Clarendon is trans and nonbinary, and prefers using all pronouns interchangeably. It’s not at all difficult to accommodate this preference.)

In high school, Layshia Clarendon was the 2009 California Ms. Basketball Girls State Player of the Year and led Cajon High to the CIF title. They finished as the school’s all-time leader in points (2,875) and assists (944) before heading to the University of California at Berkeley.

At Cal, Clarendon was an electric scorer, finishing her career as the fourth leading scorer of all-time, first team All-Pac-12, and the Pac-12 women’s basketball scholar athlete of the year. Most impressively, in 2013, Clarendon led the Bears to their first ever Final Four appearance.

In the 2013 WNBA Draft, Clarendon was selected 9th overall by the Indiana Fever, where he played until 2018. In 2017, he was selected as an All-Star and started playing with USA Basketball.

In 2018, Clarendon was traded to the Connecticut Sun. In 2020, they were traded again to the New York Liberty, where they’ve played an increasing leadership role on the young team and throughout the WNBA.

Last week, the New York Liberty cut Clarendon to make room for Natasha Howard, returning to the W from her time playing overseas. As a tremendous leader on and off the court AND a dish-first point guard, it's possible or likely that Clarendon will get signed by another WNBA team this season. But losing quality players like Clarendon points to something fans have been screaming for since last year: expansion. With only 144 roster spots available throughout the WNBA, there are tons of quality players being left off rosters, denying them the chance to play, fans the chance to get invested, cities the chance to build a franchise, and the league a chance to grow.

Character Archetype: The Leader

Whether as point guard or as First Vice President of the WNBPA (the players association for the WNBA), Layshia Clarendon is used to calling the shots.

She helped negotiate the 2020 landmark collective bargaining agreement that improved salary and compensation, free agency, and maternity leave for WNBA players.

They were also one of the most prominent voices in dedicating the WNBA’s 2020 season to Breonna Taylor and the #SayHerName campaign, and the continued push for racial justice.

Clarendon has also been a longtime advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, and was selected in 2015 as Outsports “Female Hero of the Year” award. In 2020, Queerty named him among the 50 most important heroes "leading the nation toward equality, acceptance, and dignity for all people.”

Recently, Clarendon became the first openly trans nonbinary person to play in the WNBA, and went public about the decision to have top surgery.

“It’s hard to put into words the feeling of seeing my chest for the first time free of breasts, seeing my chest the way I’ve always seen it, and feeling a sense of gender euphoria as opposed to gender dysphoria,” they said on Instagram.

With 33 states introducing anti-trans legislation in 2021, Clarendon’s decision to live and play as openly trans is a game-changer. The support they’ve received from players and leadership in the WNBA has been huge. But it’s just the start of something better, safer, and more inclusive.