NaLyssa Smith, the Indiana Fever’s star forward, just packed her bags for China, signing with Zhejiang in the WCBA to secure that sweet offseason payday. But while she’s set to cash in overseas, Smith isn’t just thinking about basketball (or dumplings) right now. Nope, she’s already feeling those long-distance relationship blues, missing her girlfriend, DiJonai Carrington. And yes, she’s making sure the world knows it.
On Sunday, Smith turned on her feelings—and Rod Wave’s song “Fall Fast in Love”—to post a heartfelt (and maybe a little sappy) Instagram photo of her and Carrington, complete with the caption, “miss’n my old ladyyy.” That’s right, Smith is out here making sure Carrington knows she’s missed, even while chasing her basketball dreams halfway across the globe. And who wouldn’t? These two Baylor Bears turned WNBA ballers have been inseparable since 2022. Teammates-turned-lovebirds, now forced to FaceTime through multiple time zones. If this doesn’t give you “The Notebook” vibes with a basketball twist, nothing will.
For those needing a refresher, Carrington was drafted in 2021 by the Connecticut Sun, and Smith followed a year later as the No. 2 pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft. Now, fast forward to 2024, and Smith is part of a loaded Indiana Fever team alongside Caitlin Clark, Kelsey Mitchell, and Aliyah Boston—basically the WNBA equivalent of assembling the Avengers. The Fever even broke their playoff drought with a 20-20 record, their first postseason appearance since 2016.
But just when you thought this was a fairy tale, here comes the twist: Smith and Carrington went from lovers to enemies (on the court) when Indiana faced off against Connecticut in the playoffs. Spoiler alert: Carrington’s Sun team sent Smith’s Fever packing. Ouch. Talk about an awkward post-game dinner date.
Smith isn’t new to the overseas grind either. She’s already put in work with Galatasaray in Turkey, playing 31 games in the Turkish league and EuroCup. So, yeah, she’s no stranger to stamping her passport and chasing buckets across the globe. But this time around, it seems like missing home—and a certain someone—is hitting a little different.
In a recent video posted on the Indiana Fever’s X account, the 24-year-old opened up about how tough the past season was. Between all the highs, lows, and everything in between, Smith credited her girlfriend, family, and teammates for keeping her head straight. “My family, my girlfriend, my friends, my teammates. That is probably the biggest thing that helped me this year…those are my big support group,” she said.
Now, with the WNBA season on pause until May 2025, Smith has plenty of time to perfect her Mandarin and binge-watch rom-coms to fill that Carrington-shaped void in her heart. Don’t worry, though; she’ll be back on Indiana’s court next season to finish out the final year of her rookie contract.
So, for now, while Smith’s lighting up courts in China, we’ll all be here, waiting for the inevitable “reunion post” that will probably involve roses, hugs, and an Instagram Story set to some painfully emotional R&B track.