Skip to content

Diggins-Smith rejects 'quitter' label, reveals battle with postpartum depression

Joshua Huston / National Basketball Association / Getty

Dallas Wings point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith took to Twitter on Saturday to detail some of the challenges she's faced relating to the birth of her son last spring, including the revelation that part of her year-long absence during the 2019 WNBA season was due to postpartum depression.

Diggins-Smith first hinted at her discontent Friday evening, tweeting, "Having no support from your organization is unfortunate." She appeared to add context to that broad criticism Saturday, though exactly which "organization" she was initially referring to remains unclear.

Diggins-Smith led the league with 34.1 minutes per game in 2018 and ranked fourth in total minutes. She appeared in all but two of the Wings' 34 games, averaging 17.9 points, 6.2 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. An All-Star nod and an All-WNBA Second Team selection underscored her efforts.

Despite entertaining the possibility of a return in 2019, Diggins-Smith ultimately didn't appear in a game as she continued to work herself back into form. But the 29-year-old remained a consistent presence around both the Wings and USA Basketball's senior women's national team, expressing a desire to continue playing for Dallas as recently as September.

"I'm going to be playing basketball next year. I'm not a part of the expanded national team just for fun," Diggins-Smith said after the conclusion of the Wings' 2019 campaign, according to Selby Lopez of the Dallas Morning News. "It's really a huge goal of mine to represent the Dallas Wings in the Olympics. That's what I'm shooting for."

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox