Tag: Lexie Brown

Gilbert Arenas’ and Lexie Brown’s ignorant comments are a reminder that the WNBA needs more inclusive stories

The WNBA is full of athletes that represent different people groups. If you haven’t seen it, you haven’t been paying attention.

Despite tremendous growth, the WNBA still faces perception and discrimination hurdles that have undercut the stories of individuality the league has tried to lean into for several years.

The WNBA’s rise in popularity is virtually interconnected with the growth of women’s sports and has been highly palpable. As young stars like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese ascend in the college ranks and consider the WNBA as their next destination, more eyes are on the league. Naturally, that will inevitably spark conversations about representation and reliability.

On a recent episode on Gilbert Arenas’ podcast, Gil’s Arena, Arenas and current WNBA player Lexie Brown shared their thoughts on what they believe to be the challenges of connecting the bridge between young athletes to current WNBA Players. Arenas and Brown can be seen responding to previous comments made by Michael Porter Jr. about the WNBA’s pay wage gap and its athletes.

Throughout the conversation, they express who they believe the WNBA is made for, why it is or isn’t exciting and why it may be hard for girls who watch the WNBA to see themselves in the current players. (See the clip below and the 59:12 mark of the video.)

While their conversation speaks to a much more complicated and inaccurate perception of WNBA athletes, it reminded us of a recent interview For The Win conducted with Bethany Donaphin, the WNBA’s Head of League Operations.

We asked her what the most challenging part of her job was. Here’s what she said:

We still have headwinds. We still have barriers that we’re breaking down. We’re still a league that is full of women, women of color and representatives of the LGBTQ+ community. So, we have things that we are up against that we feel certainly capable of pushing through, and we’re seeing this league push through it right now. I think that’s really disheartening considering that there are haters and trolls and things stacked against us. But, we are persevering, and we’re seeing tremendous growth in spite of those things.

The main takeaway from our time with Donaphin was the importance of telling inclusive athlete stories in a way that serves them positively, shares their humanity with fans and provides representation for all athletes and fans who watch or want to play in the WNBA.

The foundation for doing so is there. The record viewership numbers by fans of all walks of life and the companies lining up to partner with the league reflect that. Arenas and Brown mustn’t lose sight of the progress made simply because the product is still transforming.

Aliyah Boston sees ‘the game in a different way’ as a studio analyst

Boston believes being an analyst for the Big Ten this season will enable her to see the game in a different way.

Indiana Fever forward-center Aliyah Boston will be a studio analyst for Big Ten women’s basketball coverage this season on Peacock. She was also announced as one of the members of the new cohort of WNBA marketing and promotional agreements, which will keep her stateside this offseason.

“I am super excited to be working with the Big Ten,” Boston said on NBC Sports. “I think the Big Ten as a whole is just a talented conference. Being a top athlete allows for me to be comfortable with this in the sense that I see the game in a different way versus just being on the outside looking in. I’ve been able to play against some of these girls. I’ve been playing basketball since I was 9 years old, so really just to be able to see what’s happening and be able to understand it like this, I think, is really going to help me.”

She joins other players with studio jobs, including Los Angeles Sparks players Chiney Ogwumike and Lexie Brown. Former No. 1 overall pick Rhyne Howard also recently announced an offseason job in collegiate basketball with her hire at the University of Florida as the assistant coach and director of player personnel. She will also be joining Boston as one of the players selected for the WNBA marketing and promotional agreements.

Players are starting to have more choices when it comes to staying stateside for the offseason or playing abroad. It was recently announced that Rutgers alum Kahleah Copper will also stay in the United States this offseason as the Director of Athletic Culture and Professional Development on the Scarlet Knights women’s basketball staff for the 2023-24 season.

Olympic gold medalist and two-time WNBA All-Star Ariel Atkins will be joining Michigan’s staff as the assistant coach for player development.

“I’m excited to be joining the Michigan staff, working next to Coach Arico, being on the other side of the ball and sharing my knowledge and experience with the players,” Atkins said.

Each season, players of the WNBA are provided more opportunities to earn income while also being able to rest their bodies in the offseason. Brands and organizations seem to finally understand the value and insight these players can bring off the court.

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WNBA players invited to Fanatics business immersion program

Fanatics invited a mix of WNBA and MLB players to participate in their week-long business immersion program.

Fanatics invited a mix of WNBA and MLB players to participate in their week-long business immersion program. Six WNBA players were invited including: Marie Ferdinand-Harris (retired), Essence Carson (free agent), Lexi Brown (Los Angeles Sparks), Rebekah Gardner (Chicago Sky), Diamond DeShields (Dallas Wings) and Isabelle Harrison (Sky).

“Athletes are going to be non-athletes way longer than they actually are athletes,” said Orlando Ashford, chief people officer at Fanatics. “What do they do with that second or third chapter of their life? We want to help create that chapter. It’s great for the athlete, but it’s also great for our company. We see some of these people becoming employees, becoming executives or being a part of the sports ecosystem in other roles. As they do those roles and jobs, they’ll also be friends of Fanatics.”

Players who participated also had positive things to say about the experience. “To have this opportunity, especially as a woman and Black athlete, I just feel like it’s going to make the difference for my next step as a professional,” Harrison said.

Brown shared about the experience on social media: “Just had the most amazing week with Fanatics. I was able to learn so much from some of the most impressive and intelligent people I’ve ever met. I’m so grateful for this life!!!!”

The program initially launched six years ago and only included NFL players, but now the company has expanded to include other sports. In the future, Fanatics is looking to expand the program and “include retired players and offer a longer, six-month co-op-like experience.”

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Opinion: Athletes can choose to share personal details with the public or not

Athletes are public figures, but they don’t owe the general public or the media the specifics of their personal lives.

The sports ecosystem is a business, but when your employees are treated poorly, how can the ecosystem be expected to thrive?

Multiple players in the WNBA, including Los Angeles Sparks’ Lexie Brown and Phoenix Mercury’s Skylar Diggins-Smith, have shared on social media strange experiences regarding their personal well-being.

Brown shared that she was taking some time away from basketball and fans, along with the media, have questioned what was wrong. However, it didn’t seem to be out of genuine concern, but rather from a sense of entitlement. Athletes are public figures, yes, but they don’t owe the general public or the media the specifics of their personal lives, including their own personal health.

Imagine if shareholders in a company demanded to know why an employee took a mental health day or why an employee was in the hospital. What if every Tom, Dick and Harry demanded an explanation on social media for your recent decision to step away from work for a few weeks? In reality, most health information is legally protected, and demanding an answer could violate state and federal law.

Why do people change their perspective when it comes to athletes? Why are people demanding answers from Brown? It truly is not their business and even if it was, demanding answers via social media is short-sighted and frankly disrespectful.

Diggins-Smith recently shared troubling news about the team’s reaction to her pregnancy.

It bears repeating: Athletes are humans first. Employees have protections when it comes to things like pregnancy. If employers are treating employees differently because they are pregnant or recovering from pregnancy, they should expect to hear from the employee’s attorneys.

This is not to say there aren’t people who are strong advocates for athletes because most certainly are, but there simply aren’t enough. More people should be advocating for athletes and recognizing they are human beings with lives outside of their jobs.

The next time you feel the need to demand answers from a player, remember they don’t owe you anything. Whether they choose to share private details about their lives or health with the public is up to them. The general public is not entitled to their personal details.

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Lexie Brown drops 26 points in Los Angeles Sparks’ overtime win

She is averaging 14.5 point per game, 2.8 rebounds per game and 2.8 assists per game.

Los Angeles Sparks guard Lexie Brown is a WNBA champion, an Athletes Unlimited basketball player and was drafted ninth in the 2018 WNBA draft, but she is just getting started.

Brown dropped 26 points to help the Sparks defeat the Phoenix Mercury, 99-93, in overtime on Friday. The 26 points were a career high for Brown and included a much-needed 3-pointer with 1:03 left in overtime.

She is averaging 14.5 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game and a little less than 30 minutes per game.

Brown, however, is more than an athlete and worked with the ACC Network as a college women’s basketball analyst during the 2022-23 season. She is also a member of Athletes Unlimited’s player executive committee. If she wasn’t playing basketball, she would want to be a general manager of a sports team, which makes sense since she has an undergraduate degree in sociology and a master’s in business administration.

She’s a student of the game of basketball and learned directly from her father, Dee Brown, who played 14 seasons in the NBA and coached two franchises in the WNBA. She is entering her sixth season in the league and seems to be hitting her stride both on and off the court.

Her 26-point game caused quite a stir on social media with people acknowledging her impeccable play.

The Sparks are in action again on June 3 when they take on the Seattle Storm at 7 p.m. PT at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The game is available nationally on CBS Sports Network.

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Athletes Unlimited: First women’s sports league to be named among ‘World’s Most Innovative Companies’ by Fast Company

Athletes Unlimited, a professional sports league, is the first women’s sports league to earn this Fast Company honor.

Fast Company put out its list of 10 most innovative companies in sports of 2023. Athletes Unlimited, a professional sports league focusing on elite women athletes, is the first women’s sports league to earn this Fast Company honor. In addition, Athletes Unlimited is the first professional sports league to be organized as a Public Benefit Corporation and the first U.S.-based pro sports league to be committed to carbon neutrality.

The league was founded by Jon Patricof and Jonathan Soros on March 3, 2020, and has four women’s professional sports under its umbrella: softball, volleyball, basketball and lacrosse. In 2021, it added volleyball and in 2022, it added basketball. The power is in the hands of the players and there are no owners for the teams. Players make decisions both on and off their field of play, which gives the entire league a player-centric ethos. Each league has a player executive committee that meets weekly with Athletes Unlimited staff to work on all aspects of the league, from adding players to the roster to establishing the rules and scoring system.

Players in all sports, including basketball, compete under a point system where players and teams are rewarded for individual and team performance. Each week the four highest-ranked players are appointed as captains and redraft teams for the following week’s competition. This not only allows fans to see different matchups each week, but it also allows the players to get a feel for different schemes and teammates. The league has big-name sponsors including Nike, Gatorade, Topps, Caesars, Sportradar and GEICO.

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Prominent international and WNBA players play in the league, which does not conflict with their seasons. WNBA stars such as Las Vegas Aces guard Sydney Colson, Los Angeles Sparks guard Lexie Brown and Washington Mystics guard Natasha Cloud bring the heat each week on the court. The WNBA only has 144 roster spots, so leagues such as Athletes Unlimited allow athletes to play domestically and not have to pursue opportunities overseas.

WNBA players playing abroad were put in the international spotlight when WNBA champion and Olympic medalist Brittney Griner was detained in  Russia while she was playing overseas. But things are changing for the better and women’s college basketball fans are able to follow the careers of their favorite players past college with easier access thanks to leagues like Athletes Unlimited.

The games are fan and athlete-focused, including free autograph signings at the end of each game along with free swag and custom posters for each week. Dallas is the home for Season 2 of Athletes Unlimited Basketball and one ticket allows entry to two games.

Tickets start at $15 for the games.

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