Kelsey Plum Reveals How Public Divorce With Darren Waller 'Broke' Her
Given how cheery and seemingly carefree Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum appears to always be on the court and in front of cameras, it's easy to forget that this year has been extremely difficult for her emotionally.
This is due to her divorce with now-retired NFL tight end, Darren Waller. Waller and Plum were married on March 4, 2023, but their marriage lasted less than 14 months as they filed for divorce on April 23, 2024.
Soon after, Waller released a song called "Who Knew" that seemed to be about his relationship with Plum and featured a female actor that many believe was meant to be a lookalike of the Aces guard.
Giants player Darren Waller dropped a music video about his divorce with Kelsey Plum.
— Women’s Hoops Network (@WomensHoops_USA) May 30, 2024
Some things are best kept to yourself 💀🫣
pic.twitter.com/tsVYnEm4pS
While the divorce was very public as it happened, Plum elected to keep quiet about the matter while it was ongoing. But she decided to open up and detail how trying this time was for her when speaking with ESPN's Michael Voepel for an article that was released on October 4.
"Going through a very public divorce is something I was not expecting," Plum said of the divorce to Waller in the ESPN article. "It felt like the rug got taken out from under me. I think people may look at me like, 'Oh, she's super tough.' But this one really broke me.
"I deleted social media off my phone. I got a new phone, and don't have very many people's numbers," Plum continued. "I turned off TV and just got into reading my Bible. I'll just say that emotionally, I'll be feeling this for a long time."
She then went on to discuss how she has leaned on her Aces teammates throughout this season to keep her afloat emotionally.
"I'm just grateful I have really great people around me to help pick up the pieces," Plum said. "But what I'm most proud of is, all throughout the ups and downs, it hasn't taken away my joy."
Much respect for Plum for opening up in this way and for remaining joyful in what has clearly been a dark period of her personal life.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.