Detroit native Rickea Jackson shares her emotional connection to the WNBA's long-awaited return, highlighting its significance for the next generation of hometown talent.
As the WNBA prepares to return to Detroit for the first time in more than a decade, Rickea Jackson sees the moment as both overdue and deeply personal.
Jackson, a Detroit native and one of the most decorated players in Michigan girls basketball history, welcomed the league’s planned return to the city in 2029 while reflecting on what the expansion means for a community that shaped her career. Now a forward for the Los Angeles Sparks, Jackson has emerged as one of the league’s young stars, but her roots remain firmly tied to Detroit.
The topic surfaced during a recent visit to her alma mater, Detroit Edison Public School Academy, where Jackson returned for the retirement of her high school jersey. The ceremony celebrated her past achievements, but the conversation quickly shifted toward the future — specifically, the WNBA’s decision to bring professional women’s basketball back to Detroit.
“I was super excited to see Detroit get a new team,” Jackson told the Detroit Free Press. “I’m excited to see what their name is going to be, just my hometown have something I feel they deserve.”
Detroit last hosted a WNBA franchise when the Shock relocated after the 2009 season. Since then, the city’s absence from the league has been a recurring point of discussion among players, fans and basketball stakeholders. For Jackson, the announcement represents more than expansion news — it signals renewed investment in a basketball city with deep ties to the women’s game.
Jackson’s own path underscores that connection. She starred at Detroit Edison from 2015 to 2019, leading the Pioneers to three consecutive MHSAA state championships and finishing as the program’s all-time leading scorer with 1,771 points. Her dominance made her a statewide icon long before she reached the professional ranks, and her success has continued at every level since.
After high school, Jackson played three seasons at Mississippi State before transferring to Tennessee, where she earned first-team All-SEC honors in 2023 and 2024. She entered the 2024 WNBA Draft and was selected fourth overall by Los Angeles, becoming the first Michigan charter school alumna to play in the WNBA.
Now averaging 14 points per game through her first two professional seasons, Jackson represents the type of player Detroit hopes to inspire when the new franchise tips off in 2029. She understands firsthand what visibility and opportunity can mean for young players growing up in the city.
“I’m excited to see what that looks like for the next generation,” Jackson said, referring to the league’s return. “Just my hometown have something I feel they deserve.”
For Jackson, the timing is symbolic. Her jersey retirement marked a full-circle moment — recognition from the same community that supported her early development. The WNBA’s return adds another layer, offering Detroit’s next wave of players something she never had growing up: a hometown professional team to watch, aspire to, and eventually play for.
That sense of continuity matters to Jackson, who often emphasizes foundation and consistency when speaking to young athletes. The presence of a WNBA team, she believes, strengthens both.
“Start with a foundation and repetition is key,” Jackson said. “Whatever it is, just have that set foundation and the repetition will get you to where you need to be in life.”
As Detroit prepares to reenter the WNBA landscape, Jackson’s excitement reflects a broader sentiment — one rooted in pride, opportunity and the belief that the city’s place in women’s basketball has always been waiting to be reclaimed.