WASHINGTON (7News) — Time to say goodbye to 2024!
But before we bid farewell to the calendar year, let’s take a look back at the top five stories in the DMV sports world.
Coming in at number 5: Listen, the wizards were really bad in 2024. But the one bright spot was winning the 2nd pick in the draft lottery and selecting Frenchman center Alexandre Sarr. General Manager Will Dawkins also drafted Bub Carrington, and Kyshawn George making Washington one of the youngest lineups in the NBA. The trio already logging the most minutes in the league among rookies. So don’t be surprised if there are growing pains as we enter 2025.
Number four: Washington Spirit making the NWSL championship game. D.C. definitely caught the spirit this season. Croix Bethune won the Rookie of the Year and Midfielder of the Year. Bethune, Trinity Rodman, Casey Krueger, and Hal Hershfelt all won gold medals at the Paris Summer Olympics. The only thing that went wrong for the Spirit was coming up one goal short in the NWSL title game against the Orlando Pride.
Number three best sports story in the DMV Washington selecting quarterback Jayden Daniels with the second pick in the NFL Draft. The misery of the 2023 season and the previous regime brought in an era of hope with the selection of the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner. And the Louisiana State University quarterback didn’t disappoint winning 10 NFL Rookie of the Week awards throughout the season.
Our runner-up to the top sports story of the year DMV athletes took the Paris Summer Olympics. Just like Kevin Durant’s movie documentary: There is definitely something “In The Water.” Not only did ‘KD’ win a gold with the USA men’s basketball team, but so did, Masai Russell in the 100m hurdles, Quincy Wilson in the 4x400m relay, and the world’s fastest man, Noah Lyles taking the 100m gold. Don’t forget the numerous swimmers like Torri Huske winning five total medals and legend Katie Ledecky winning another gold, making her the all-time leader in individual gold medals. In all, 30 athletes competed in Paris, with 22 DMV natives bringing home gold medals.
And our top sports story of 2024 was the resurgent Commanders winning 11 games and making the playoffs. The Commanders hired Dan Quinn as head coach, add Jayden Daniels in the draft, and suddenly the fortunes changed for the franchise. Washington with four game-winning drives this year, including, arguably the most dramatic one in the league this season, the Hail Mary against the Chicago Bears.
There you have it! 2024, a year of change, and promising beginnings. Here’s to 2025 where we can see some historical stories.
