Lexie Hull and Kayla Thornton (Photo via WNBA)
Cameras caught Kayla Thornton (accidentally?) bouncing the ball off the head of Lexie Hull during Thursday night’s game between the Golden State Valkyries and Indiana Fever.

Kayla Thornton had a field day for the home team on Thursday night, tallying a team-high 16 points and six rebounds as the Valkyries defeated Caitlin Clark’s Fever 88-77. The result pushed both teams to 6-6, placing them in a tie for sixth in the WNBA standings.

This game was certainly less eventful than the Fever-Connecticut Sun game two nights earlier, where Sophie Cunningham (Indiana), Lindsay Allen and Jacy Sheldon (Connecticut) were ejected following heated scuffles.

Earlier in that game, Sheldon and teammate Marina Mabrey were called for fouls after the former poked Caitlin Clark in the eye. As the two exchanged words, Mabrey came from behind and delivered a cheap shot to Clark.

Yes, it was a much cleaner game on Thursday night. But cameras caught one hilarious moment where Kayla Thornton bounced the basketball off Lexie Hull’s head as they fought for a rebound:

@brwsports KT didn’t know what to do after accidentally bouncing the ball off Lexie 😂 #wnba #goldenstatevalkyries #indianafever ♬ original sound – B/R W Sports

We’d like to think Thornton didn’t mean to do that, but there appeared to be a bit of a staredown at Hull after the ball was corralled, so who knows if it was intentional or not?

The Valkyries will try to move above .500 when they host Connecticut on Sunday (8:30 p.m. EST) while Clark and Indiana head to Las Vegas to continue their road trip for a Sunday tilt with the Aces (3:00 p.m. EST).

Kayla Thornton Is Having An Excellent First Year In Golden State

Kayla Thornton (Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images)
Golden State drafted Thornton with the No. 9 selection in the 2024 WNBA expansion draft, after she led the New York Liberty to a league championship.

Thornton has taken her game to another level since joining Golden State, averaging a career-high 14.8 points per game. That’s double her career average of 7.4, and well above her previous career-high of 10.4 PPG (in 2019).

Houston Texans star Azeez Al-Shaair has admitted regrets over his illegal hit to Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence and the ensuing brawl between the teams in a lengthy statement on social media.  

Al-Shaair’s statement comes as his three-game suspension as a result of the incident has ended and he is slated to return to the field for the Texans on Sunday against the Tennessee Titans.

On December 1, an Al-Shaair hit to the head of a sliding and defenseless Lawrence caused chaos in Jacksonville. The defensive back needed to be restrained by several coaches and Lawrence has not played since taking the barbaric contact.

‘While so many jumped at the first opportunity to hop on the false narrative – that l’m a dirty player or bad person – the messages from all who stood by me were the only things keeping me mentally afloat during a time of isolation,’ Al-Shaair said on social media.

‘I’ve learned so much from this entire experience. Seeing myself on video – letting my emotions get the best of me to the point where I completely lost it – was an embarrassing and eye-opening moment for me.’

‘I’ve had to earn everything in my life. I never want to allow anyone to get me to a point where I jeopardize everything that I’ve worked all my life to obtain. That was not the way I want to represent myself or my family and I will continue to learn and grow from that moment.’

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Azeez Al-Shaair has admitted regrets over his hit to Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence

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The Texans defensive back was suspended for three games as a result of the hit to Lawrence

Al-Shaair said during his three-game ban, he met with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and other league executives for the first time, taking issue with how he was characterized in the official announcement of his suspension.

The defender said he thought his character and integrity were ‘unjustifiably smeared’ in the release but the meeting with Goodell and others was ‘productive’ and gave him hope it would not happen again.

‘In that conversation – man-to-man – I owned and acknowledged that my actions following my ejection were careless and, in that moment, I didn’t think about the responsibility I have been blessed with to represent the shield,’ Al-Shaair continued.

‘I also stated that the letter, and specifically the language used in the letter, was equally as careless and conveyed that the context of the words used were not a reflection of my character, nor my career, as I have not been warned multiple times for my play on the field.’

Al-Shaair’s hit on Lawrence was not the only controversial incident he was involved in this season.

During the Texans’ game against the Bears in September, he punched Roschon Johnson, who wasn’t even in the game at the time of another sideline confrontation.

Al-Shaair ended his statement by saying his view is that everyone in the league office and on the field are on the same team to represent the NFL in the best nature possible, something he failed to do earlier this month.

‘Lastly, I’ll say that this world is full of negative people who can’t wait to tear you down, but if you move with love and compassion, the seeds of good you planted in others’ lives can grow into the very tree that shades you with comfort and compassion when you need it most,’ Al-Shaair concluded.

‘I am a man of God, I am a leader, a warrior and a lover. I am also a hell of a football player and I’m grateful to be back doing what I love.’