Ep. 04: Napheesa Collier: A Basketball Journey from UCONN to Motherhood in the WNBA

[00:00:00] Who's the best trash talker on Team USA? Diana Tarasi.

[00:00:04] I don't need 30 seconds.

[00:00:06] Welcome to the Champion This with Brianna Salvatore Duick and Chelsea Poppins, where

[00:00:21] we share the incredible stories of athletes and entertainers who are using their platforms

[00:00:26] to create positive change in the world and the communities they live in.

[00:00:29] Welcome to the podcast, Nefisa. We are so excited to have you here. For our listeners

[00:00:33] out there, Nefisa Collier is an absolute champion in every sense of the word. She is the

[00:00:38] captain of the Minnesota Lynx. She's also a bucket on the court. She's achieved accolades

[00:00:44] across the WNBA, achieving all the accolades including Rookie of the Year, Three-time WNBA

[00:00:50] All-Star and First Team All-WNBA last year. She's also a member of Team USA Basketball.

[00:00:56] She's gotten a gold medal in Tokyo 2020 and looking to repeat this here in Paris 2024.

[00:01:02] She's a Yukon Huskies alum and she's also a wife and a mother to the cutest daughter,

[00:01:08] Mila, who has been making the WNBA highlight reels over the last couple of weeks during media day.

[00:01:14] We're really excited to have you here on the pod, Nefisa.

[00:01:17] Thanks for having me.

[00:01:18] So we usually start by digging into your background. So we would really like to hear

[00:01:24] a little bit more from you on your journey as a Hooper. How did you discover your passion

[00:01:28] for basketball and what drew you to the sport initially?

[00:01:32] So my whole family is a really big sports family. I've played sports ever since I can remember.

[00:01:37] I played soccer, volleyball, I ran track, I played softball and then when I was about in fourth grade

[00:01:42] my first basketball coach saw me pitching a softball and she's like, hey you're really tall,

[00:01:46] do you want to join my basketball team? And it's kind of like, you know, history from

[00:01:50] there. So I played all these sports growing up and then finally when I got to high school

[00:01:54] I had to pick one and I thought about which one I love the most and it's always been basketball.

[00:01:58] So that's kind of how I got into that one.

[00:02:01] Was it because you were good at it? Is that why you really fell in love with it or was

[00:02:05] it the camaraderie of it or like what particularly taught the sport made you love it?

[00:02:10] Yes, that I was good at it. That's always really fun. I was always taller than everyone.

[00:02:14] So that like I think definitely played a part. But then also the team aspect of it and how

[00:02:19] aggressive I think it is as well because you don't have the same with volleyball and with

[00:02:24] soccer like it's not as close to quarters and of course track is like basically a solo sport.

[00:02:29] So I really liked how you're competing against someone in close quarters like that with your team.

[00:02:34] I feel like I had never experienced that in the other sports that I played and I love that

[00:02:38] team bonding like such a small tight-knit group aspect of it.

[00:02:43] You really just like throwing people down, huh?

[00:02:45] Yeah, I guess so. I'm just aggressive and that's how I get it out I guess.

[00:02:48] I love that. Well we heard actually an interesting story I think on another pod you were on but you

[00:02:54] actually when you went to try out for the local AAU team when you decided that basketball was kind

[00:03:00] of you wanted to give it a go the local AAU team parents didn't let you try out for the team.

[00:03:06] So your parents started their own club team. Can you talk to us about that? Like what how

[00:03:12] did that come about?

[00:03:13] Yeah so I'm from a pretty small town in Missouri and mom was from a town outside of this

[00:03:20] this town my dad's from Africa so we were kind of like in plans so we didn't they didn't grow up

[00:03:25] there so they didn't have like that family history and so by the time I started playing

[00:03:29] everyone had kind of had their cliques in a sense and they were already on their teams

[00:03:33] they'd been on their team since they were young and I wasn't a part of that and so when

[00:03:37] I tried to try out they had no space on the team for me and so we gathered a bunch of people from

[00:03:42] the surrounding towns and we made this team and then all of a sudden you know when we got good

[00:03:47] they had space for us on the team there but it was too late because we had already started

[00:03:50] our own too late yeah it was too late sorry thank you next bye yeah it was really my first

[00:03:56] experience with travel basketball and being on a really good team we had a we had a really

[00:04:00] good team we found the best people in those surrounding areas so it was really like my

[00:04:04] first experience with competitive basketball yeah that is the that is the very small towny

[00:04:10] thing because I grew up in a small town in Iowa and I think we only had one team to be on too

[00:04:16] so it is so difficult I had to travel like an hour and a half for all iowa attack I don't know

[00:04:19] if you ever if you played against them or anything they were kind of I don't think so

[00:04:24] off with that Chelsea's like let me put my my AU team on from the eighth grade just gotta

[00:04:29] really quick no they have like a monopoly across Iowa they're like an AU team that everybody just

[00:04:34] goes to nowadays it's crazy right it's crazy when I look back at like our parents i'm like

[00:04:40] they were the real MVPs for real though I know my dad driving like an hour and a half sitting

[00:04:46] in traffic when he's like missing work hours to take me during the week exactly yeah yes

[00:04:53] it's so crazy a lot yeah it's a lot and it's even more now it costs way more now they travel

[00:04:59] even more like your whole summer is gone let alone the weekdays when you have to work

[00:05:03] like taking your kids to practice it's insane for sure for sure well you were absolutely crushing

[00:05:09] it from the get go you know you talked about being great at basketball but just to kind of

[00:05:14] give a little color to that you received your first college recruiting letter in the eighth

[00:05:18] grade which is wild I don't know unless I'm old and like that's how the recruiting process works now

[00:05:24] that to me is just so so crazy to get a college recruiting letter at 12 or 13 years old but talk

[00:05:30] to us about the recruiting process for you and eventually what made you ultimately decide

[00:05:37] to go to Yukon yeah it was actually my first college offer in eighth grade and it was for

[00:05:42] Mizzou which is like the University of Missouri and I wanted to commit right away because you know

[00:05:48] like you said it was a big deal back then um to get you know a full scholarship ride in eighth grade

[00:05:55] and you never know what's gonna happen I was young you know like 13 or 14 at the time

[00:05:59] and me and my mom were ready to go I was ready to sign on the dotted line and it's kind of my

[00:06:03] dad that pulled us back that he kind of brought us back to her senses like she's 13 years old

[00:06:08] we have yeah a lot of time to check out other schools um so he's the one that kind of pulled

[00:06:12] us back which coach penshaw still talks about that but so how I ended up at Yukon I actually

[00:06:20] didn't want to go there just because they've always been so dominant and I really wanted to

[00:06:24] go to a school that could compete with them and to beat them um but of course I had to take

[00:06:29] the visit because I'm like it's Yukon I have to see you see it for myself like I have to go

[00:06:34] and I went and honestly he just convinced me he hooked me in I mean my goal was to get to the WMA

[00:06:39] at that point and Yukon has run as such a business and I knew going there it would it was for a goal

[00:06:45] it was so that I could be the best basketball player I could be so I could reach you know that

[00:06:49] next level as a professional athlete and that's exactly what I got out of it so you know I'm

[00:06:54] really happy when there is definitely some of the most trying times in my life it was really

[00:06:58] hard but totally worth it and I think I got out everything that I wanted to from it

[00:07:04] did you have an understanding of the college scene did you watch college sports growing up did you

[00:07:09] know who was good who wasn't um when you were when you were actively looking for colleges

[00:07:14] and where you wanted to end up no so that was also like a problem yeah yeah figure out of school

[00:07:20] when I love sports I love playing sports but I didn't really watch a lot honestly growing up

[00:07:25] I was I was around sports so much that when I wasn't playing I wanted to do other things

[00:07:30] so I didn't watch a lot honestly and so I didn't I mean obviously I knew of Yukon and I knew of like

[00:07:36] some of the top top schools but I wasn't really watching games I wasn't anything like that I

[00:07:41] followed my Amor yeah because we're from the same hometown so I did know about her and I followed

[00:07:46] her yeah so I obviously I knew about Yukon I knew about them but that's I didn't watch it

[00:07:51] like a lot of like you're really supposed to honestly yeah same it was also low-key just like

[00:07:57] so much harder to watch it even in the last five years like the the tv viewership and coverage

[00:08:03] of women's sports the way that women athletes have utilized social media built brands you can watch

[00:08:09] clips and highlights just women's sports amazing you know women only focused platform that you

[00:08:14] had a podcast on prior to this is you know those things didn't exist when I was in when I was getting

[00:08:21] recruited I'm also older than you but nonetheless like the visibility of women was just less

[00:08:26] available so yeah you're gonna hunt it down it wasn't like you could just turn it on on tv and

[00:08:31] you could see a game yeah stuff but we're getting better for sure yes we are like a couple hours

[00:08:37] ago we're getting charter flights so that's a huge step I saw that I saw that

[00:08:43] leveling up yeah those knees it's rough out there so transitioning to from high school

[00:08:52] to your college career you had that incredible success at Yukon under the legendary Gino

[00:08:58] you guys won the national championship in 2016 and you were having a massive career where you

[00:09:04] dropped over 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds can you tell us what it was like being a part of that

[00:09:09] program uh and share maybe some funny stories of Gino whether that's the game or locker room or on

[00:09:17] off court whatever whatever you like like my freshman year was the hardest mentally I'd never

[00:09:21] lifted before going to college you know you're playing against grown women I'm 18 years old

[00:09:27] 17 years old coming in playing against people who are about to play in the WBA you know

[00:09:30] Brianna Stewart the best player in the world was my senior it was really great playing at Yukon like

[00:09:36] to start off it was definitely really hard I think it shaved to I am as a player just because

[00:09:41] mentally it was so difficult especially freshman year where he's trying to break you down he said

[00:09:46] that before he breaks players down to build them up in the way that he envisions so that

[00:09:52] breakdown process is just like so brutal mentally physically you know it's going to be hard but

[00:09:57] the mental side I think is something that I definitely wasn't prepared for and I really

[00:10:02] struggled I had a lot of ups and downs I mean I started then I lost my starting spot I barely

[00:10:06] played and then I finally started doing well at the end of the year like the very end of the tournament

[00:10:12] um and then after those seniors left I knew I would have a bigger role in my sophomore year

[00:10:17] so I just worked my ass off that summer I was practicing twice a day um that's where I met

[00:10:21] my husband actually he was my trainer oh it was to me college yeah I love that um and yeah I just came

[00:10:28] back with a totally different mindset where I never want to feel the way I felt my freshman year

[00:10:32] ever again um so it was kind of a turning point for me and I really credit that to coach because

[00:10:39] he did he broke me down to build me back up and because of that I'm a stronger basketball

[00:10:42] player I'm strong mentally um I think you know players translate really well to the league because

[00:10:47] of the mental aspect of that so any stories I have coach it's really hard because I feel like

[00:10:55] everything he says is so quotable but he'll say stuff like I mean he first of all he knows exactly

[00:11:02] what to say to like hurt your feelings the most you know um deep cuts yes yeah deep cuts this is

[00:11:08] the one but so my sophomore year I said I came back like just worked my butt off during the

[00:11:12] summer yep and the only thing I had going for me my freshman year was that I rebounded I couldn't

[00:11:18] score I couldn't remember goddamn play because I was so like cluster that he was ready to go

[00:11:22] in there something stressful totally sink or swim sink or swim yes I couldn't do anything but I

[00:11:27] rebounded and of course like I was playing really well and it's pre-season I'm playing really well

[00:11:32] and one of the guys who practiced against guys and they're like college guys super jumpy

[00:11:37] and athletic and yeah got the rebound on me he's like that's why you didn't play well last

[00:11:41] year that's why you'll never start this year because you can't get a goddamn rebound

[00:11:48] right to the heart

[00:11:51] no just stuff like that I mean yeah it's funny because like on the court it was so hard to play with him

[00:11:58] but off the court he is so interesting and obviously he's one of the best basketball

[00:12:02] coaches but every time he talks it's like you're mesmerized because he's such a good storyteller

[00:12:07] I still talk to him all the time too and it's just like I love coach but that was definitely a trying

[00:12:12] time in my life for sure for sure you're the best and the worst of them yes but so cool

[00:12:20] you know what you said about like there's there's a reason that so many uconn players are translating

[00:12:25] so well into the WMBA and and that you're coming out of that program prepared not only to be a

[00:12:31] great basketball player but I'm sure to really achieve what you want in life as well so yeah

[00:12:36] shout out to coach Gino and the great work he's doing that's really cool thanks for sharing

[00:12:42] so if we move forward to 2009 you just finish your e finish season with uconn and what is it like

[00:12:51] two weeks later yeah you head to WMBA draft um you're actually three days three days yeah crazy

[00:13:00] this is so wild yeah crazy like the headspace that you're in from like barely time to

[00:13:06] breathe yeah march madness right like you know finishing your career in college to oh here we go

[00:13:13] now i'm off to the WMBA that's just insane but to jump back into that you were picked sixth

[00:13:18] by the minnesota links talk to us about that moment when you heard your name called on stage

[00:13:23] he got to shake the commission's hand um what was that like for you um I think I was just

[00:13:29] really excited you know that draft class particularly like in particular we have a

[00:13:34] lot of talent in that class we still have a lot of people in the league so usually you know who's

[00:13:37] going to go where you at least know like the top three we had no idea I had no idea who's going

[00:13:43] anywhere and so I think just the anxiety of that um was like a really big build up so I was really

[00:13:49] just interested more than anything to know where everyone was going my asian at the time she

[00:13:54] told me when they got to the second pick already that minnesota already picked me because

[00:13:58] they're farther along you know behind than they are there so I think it wasn't as obviously wasn't

[00:14:04] surprised when I got picked but her telling me that and then going on stage it was kind of just

[00:14:08] you know like a dream coming true it's like all my hard work had paid off I get to celebrate

[00:14:12] in this moment my family was there um and I get to you know be a professional athlete I'm now

[00:14:18] professional athlete I'm officially drafted to a team it was just like a rewarding it was

[00:14:23] really uh rewarding moment was it kind of surreal it was really surreal I think in big moments like

[00:14:31] that I don't process it at the time it takes me like days later yeah so at the moment like like I said

[00:14:37] it was rewarding and stuff but I don't think I understood what a big deal it was or how exciting

[00:14:42] it was until maybe a couple days later so you so we're in the WNBA you're at minnesota links

[00:14:48] and you're still at minnesota links you've had remarkable success across the all of your seasons

[00:14:53] and earning accolades like rookie of the year multiple all-star selection how have you evolved from

[00:14:59] playing um from 2019 to where you're at now as a player I think my maturity level yeah I would say

[00:15:05] overall my maturity level in the game you just learn you can't do it unless you play like just

[00:15:10] the things that you learn through the league and playing against such elite competition that's

[00:15:14] why people are able to stay in this league for so long it's not because they're at their peak

[00:15:19] performance when they're you know at that age it's because mentally they're so tough and they're so

[00:15:24] smart in what they're doing it's why you know sue could play till she was what 40 years old dianas

[00:15:28] 42 or something like that it's because they're smart in what they're doing I think little

[00:15:33] tricks and stuff like that I've definitely learned how to take care of my body I didn't do that

[00:15:37] at all in college um just show up no strength you didn't have to really we're young we bounce back

[00:15:46] we didn't take injury seriously I remember when it turned because I remember my freshman and sophomore

[00:15:51] year the warmup felt so long I'm like oh this is so tedious can we start already in my junior

[00:15:56] year I'm like I need more time come with us we longer do you remember making fun of all the

[00:16:02] old heads you're like uh you guys are just moving so slow and I can't I can barely remember a day where

[00:16:08] I woke up and like my back didn't hurt or like my knees or something along those lines yes even my rookie

[00:16:14] year I'm like so we had Simone Augustus who it was like her second to last year playing

[00:16:20] she's in the treatment room all the time like damn Simone like are you falling tired get out of

[00:16:24] here and now I live in that like I live karma got you yeah 100 no no it's real yes real

[00:16:30] yeah but I love that part about it's kind of that mental piece that translates right like

[00:16:36] and again going back to your Yukon days I'm sure some of those lessons learned from Gino and then you

[00:16:42] I think just on a personal level being able to lock in mentally we've seen you have incredible

[00:16:46] success like literally 2023 you were first team all WMBA selection and that's not to mention

[00:16:54] I think was that your first season back uh post pregnancy and post giving birth to me as well

[00:17:01] is my first full season I came back for four games the year before yeah so absolutely absolutely

[00:17:07] remarkable of course there's a physical element of that and you have Alex Basil as your husband so

[00:17:12] we know he keeps you on lock but in the same respect like I think the mental piece we'll

[00:17:16] to lock in um we're excited to just continue to watch you uh break more records and continue

[00:17:23] to go to new heights I'd love yeah I'd love to switch gears a little bit and just kind of

[00:17:27] get some of your thoughts on the growth of the WMBA and women's basketball more largely

[00:17:34] the last few years in particular we've seen year over year TV ratings have just been skyrocketing

[00:17:39] last year TV viewership was up 21 percent WMBA attendance across the league is up 16

[00:17:45] percent compared to 2022 um we've also seen NIL really come into effect and in a lot of these

[00:17:52] college mega stars being able to monetize their name image and likeness heading into the WMBA

[00:17:58] but how do you feel like the league has evolved since you've joined the WMBA and what are you

[00:18:03] looking forward to I think the exposure has evolved a lot like you said viewership is up

[00:18:08] so much and that's because we're getting on TV more you know it has to do with I mean that's

[00:18:14] really the only thing it's like when you put us on TV the first year was really 2020 because

[00:18:19] there's nothing going on we were one of the few sports on TV so they had no choice but to play us

[00:18:24] and they saw viewership skyrocket like duh right right if you put it on TV people will get excited

[00:18:30] and watch it it depends like people are searching through Facebook and Twitter to find these live

[00:18:34] streams so if you make it accessible and easier to watch you're gonna watch it so I think that

[00:18:40] like accessibility has gone up a lot I think we have a long way to go still which has to do

[00:18:44] with our TV deal which is up actually this year fingers crossed for how that goes so that's

[00:18:49] gone up a lot and I think also the superstars have gone up a lot so you have people like you know

[00:18:54] suey and Asia Wilson and people coming in from college like the rookies this year Caitlyn Clark

[00:18:59] Angel Reese you know can bring those names are bringing fans as well um the fandom has been

[00:19:05] you know in the college game specifically has been as crazy as it's ever been and so

[00:19:11] for some reason there's been a disconnect in the W so translating that over I think is a big thing

[00:19:15] that we need to work on but yeah just the growth is I think it really actually um Sedona Prince I

[00:19:22] think she was like the catalyst to all this because remember a couple years ago she recorded

[00:19:28] the difference in the locker room between the men and the women in the NCAA and then then like

[00:19:33] the exposure of women's sports like women's basketball has really just skyrocketed and then

[00:19:38] it's across all women's sports now like the nwsl is like skyrocketing they have like a new

[00:19:43] professional hockey league just everything women's sports is going so far up and it's like

[00:19:48] if you just give us a chance people want to watch us we just got a chance yeah yeah that's a great

[00:19:53] point because that was absolutely disgraceful for the everything that she posted and to bring

[00:19:59] that to light for anybody who had no idea what we were what we're doing or how we were playing

[00:20:05] or what we were going I would say going through like yeah we were so lucky to be there but it wasn't

[00:20:09] to the level that it should have been yeah it is those those conversations and social media

[00:20:14] drastically changing what what gets where the light gets shown on for people to see yeah 100%

[00:20:22] 100% yeah I'm excited to see how we continue to just kind of grow from here but there's

[00:20:27] definitely still work to do your preseason games for the WNBA literally aren't televised

[00:20:33] I'm like trying to tune in and find the games and I can't so I have to go to the WNBA app and like

[00:20:40] are we at least there right now this is wild this preseason game was against Chicago which they have

[00:20:46] you know one or two of the reigning like champs um on their team yeah it wasn't on even not

[00:20:54] alone like let alone tv it wasn't on the WNBA app like leakpass and so a fan like live streamed

[00:21:00] it on twitter and they got a million views like this is embarrassing this is wild

[00:21:08] in today's day in age they can put it on where what's the point of leakpass is that right

[00:21:16] let's watch the games come on let's get it together well we have high expectations for

[00:21:21] that next tv deal let's get it right yes we have a long way to go yeah we have a long way to go

[00:21:26] yeah 100 percent we kind of briefly mentioned that you did give birth to your daughter Mila who is the

[00:21:34] cutest has her own just amazing spunky fun personality but you gave birth to Mila in 2022

[00:21:42] three months later you're back on the court which is just unfathomable to me like oh what wild

[00:21:49] but you come back on the court because you want to finish out the last four games of the

[00:21:52] season can you talk to us a little bit about what your journey as a mother has been like and

[00:21:59] and yeah maybe how it's impacted your perspective on basketball and online the journey has been

[00:22:05] crazy i mean she's definitely like the best thing that's ever happened to me she's so amazing

[00:22:10] she's my little mini we're besties she's definitely a mom's girl right now which i'm

[00:22:14] soaking in because i know the tides are going to turn she'll be daddy's girl so i'm soaking it

[00:22:19] now um but it's been amazing and i mean like i think it just puts everything into perspective

[00:22:25] because i've honestly never been someone who what basketball is my whole life i told you before

[00:22:30] you know sports is such a huge part i like to enjoy other aspects of life off the court

[00:22:35] but when it's the only thing you have to focus on obviously sometimes you're going to get caught

[00:22:39] up and you know to fight a good game what's going on blah blah blah but she just puts everything

[00:22:44] into perspective where even if i have a like a bad game she doesn't care she still sees me she says

[00:22:49] mama and she runs up and gives me a hug like it's just the best feeling in the world um she's gonna

[00:22:55] love me no matter if you know i become an mvp or if i retire tomorrow so and she's the most

[00:23:01] important thing in my life i no longer i mean it matters obviously i care how i play i'd still

[00:23:06] love the sport and i want to do my best but i know at the end of the day what she thinks of

[00:23:11] me is way more important and i want to be there for her and everything in her life so

[00:23:15] i think that's just changed my how i approach the game a lot and i we listened to another

[00:23:21] interview that you did where you talked about how the priorities your priorities changes you get

[00:23:26] older as you step into motherhood and that playing overseas that isn't always going to be

[00:23:32] it's it's kind of like whatever season of life you're in and based on your need and based

[00:23:37] on your what you value at that point in time in the in your life yeah um was it a big was it

[00:23:43] an easy decision to stop playing overseas and stay home so i actually played this last season

[00:23:48] and it wasn't an easy decision to go and got the Euro championship your cup championship

[00:23:53] first year league championship but yeah it was a hard decision for our family because

[00:23:58] i'm uprooting my daughter and you know we have to have childcare there also so i have

[00:24:02] to pay for someone to be there with us thankfully my dad like was able to travel with us

[00:24:07] but my husband you know he still works too so he has to be kind of in and out so

[00:24:11] it's definitely a hard decision um but i'm really happy that like the team was it was the best

[00:24:17] situation i could have gone in they were so exciting they love kids there they made us feel

[00:24:20] as comfortable as possible but definitely i mean the older she gets and as she starts school

[00:24:25] things like that um it i mean it's pretty it's pretty hard decision

[00:24:30] hmm so do you do you kind of have a timeline or of when you might end up saying no to overseas

[00:24:37] offers in order to shift focus to the us i think well partly has to do with our league that's

[00:24:44] starting but also part i think when meals start school like i can't just take her out of school

[00:24:50] for you know four months yeah i'm putting out then yeah that makes sense and so as you became

[00:24:58] a mother like that's that's kind of looked differently throughout the wmba organization

[00:25:02] since even when i was there um how mothers were were supported by the organization i would love to

[00:25:08] hear how the links how the wmba has come alongside you in motherhood to support you as a mother

[00:25:14] support your teammates and other athletes in the league what does that look like it's been

[00:25:19] really good so per our last cba if i so i play those last four games you know the year i gave

[00:25:24] birth to me but even if i hadn't played at all i still would have gotten my full salary

[00:25:28] so that's obviously just like a huge burden off not having to wonder how you're going to support

[00:25:32] your family so that's a huge one and then they also provide like bigger housing they provide us

[00:25:39] like childcare stipend for each month um things like that so they make it you know i think they

[00:25:45] have really come a long way from where it used to be yeah for sure are there any changes that

[00:25:51] you would hope to see in the future within the organization yeah not my organization organization

[00:25:56] specifically but through the league like this is a cba issue as well so you kind of saw this with

[00:26:02] the vegas aces like what d'arico is kind of accusing them of it's if you have someone who's

[00:26:08] pregnant that money still comes off the cap and we have you know only a certain amount your

[00:26:12] it's a hard cap you're not allowed to go over like the nba is and so she believes she was

[00:26:17] traded because you know she couldn't play and it's hard because it's a busy like we're people but it's

[00:26:23] also a business it's amazing we get that money but it ultimately hurts the team so we should not be

[00:26:29] put in that position and neither should the team it should not be they should not be penalized

[00:26:34] and neither should we because in the end we will be because you're not going to want someone

[00:26:37] who has expressed they want kids or is pregnant or is yeah like that because you're down all that

[00:26:44] money and you can't sign another player yeah 100 yeah so i think that needs to change where that money

[00:26:49] doesn't come off the cap that that's going to be a huge thing in our next cba obviously there looks

[00:26:53] like childcare stipend will go up that'd be great because we do get money but kids are expensive and

[00:26:59] like doesn't make a huge dent um and then maybe like travel because we don't like we still have

[00:27:04] to pay for their travel if they come on games and stuff but those last two were kind of nitpicking

[00:27:09] but definitely like the cba salary that has to change yeah for sure for sure that has systemic

[00:27:15] effects like you like you mentioned yeah cool well i also want to talk about a new venture which you

[00:27:21] are starting and have launched so you co-founded unrivaled alongside one of your besties and

[00:27:28] fellow wmba superstar brianna steward uconn teammate as well um just to give a little context

[00:27:33] for our listeners unrivaled is a new league which will feature the top 30 professional women's basketball

[00:27:39] players across six teams and it's set to launch in january of 2025 so talk to us about why you decided

[00:27:47] to start this league i mean some of what we can expect in this upcoming year as it launches

[00:27:51] yeah so we started for a couple different reasons one was the overseas we're kind of talking about

[00:27:57] so yep first of all like a lot of players go back to back season so we were seeing a lot of

[00:28:02] injuries like really bad ones achilles you know acl things like that just from the wear and tear on

[00:28:07] your body i mean you play six months in the w and then there a lot of them have to report no more than

[00:28:13] 10 days after that to their next team and then it's the same thing when they come to the w so they

[00:28:18] have like less like 20 days off in the year so wild part i know you're missing holidays

[00:28:25] like major holidays with your family and then just wanting to be home so there was that part

[00:28:31] but then also on the flip side a lot of people go overseas to get better

[00:28:35] you know so you don't want to just stay at home and be training you don't it's never going to

[00:28:38] be the same as playing in a real game um another one was kind of what i mentioned earlier is the

[00:28:44] biggest stars in women's basketball are college athletes and that's because of the exposure they

[00:28:49] get i mean it's amazing that the women's game is growing like that but this is the only sport

[00:28:54] where the most recognizable people are not the professionals or the ones in college yeah

[00:28:58] so for all those reasons that's why we started it and then more things came up like you know women's

[00:29:04] sports is on such a rise and it feels like everyone is benefiting financially from that

[00:29:10] except for the people last in line or the women in those sports so we wanted to also be able to

[00:29:14] make money off this so through all that we kind of came with the idea of three on three but

[00:29:19] it's full court so it's like two thirds the size of a real court so you get to really

[00:29:23] see that talent still since you said you know it's the top 30 women we want to expose it

[00:29:27] so we're really excited about that and um yeah we're just in the process of that right now

[00:29:34] yes let's go we're so hyped for the launch of this and i think it's really such a cool moment

[00:29:39] to launch this league like you said the need is there um the excitement and the fandom is there

[00:29:45] and how sweet is it going to be to see nefisa and briana going one on one or or as part of

[00:29:52] their respective captives for their teams but there also i think is going to be a one-on-one

[00:29:56] component of it as well too right there is yes so it's going to be kind of like an all-star break

[00:30:01] kind of thing but mid season there's going to be a one-on-one tournament as well we love it we love

[00:30:07] it yeah super high for this it's it is crazy how the like the college athletes get more exposure

[00:30:12] than professional athletes in the united states and you look at countries like australia who have

[00:30:17] different leagues going on throughout the season and and and how they're doing it in this like

[00:30:22] kind of the the building blocks for their youth programs into those things it is inspiring and it's

[00:30:28] really cool to see you guys doing that and building something similar here because it is a it is an

[00:30:32] issue and it is an area that we can build on yeah so the reason i brought that up i didn't kind of

[00:30:38] expand on it was that the league is going to be really heavily content-based so we're really

[00:30:42] excited about that because you know for the most part the the place that we make our money is

[00:30:48] off court which is kind of crazy that we don't make the most money playing like what we're known for

[00:30:53] right by your job exactly so as i was saying like the college game is so explosive because of the

[00:31:01] content and the access that you have to this athlete so we're going to be bringing that as well

[00:31:05] we're you know like behind the scenes access like really in depth into these players so that's

[00:31:10] like a huge like staple to what we're doing as well as getting um free exposure to like the best

[00:31:16] town in the world for sure it's going to get a tv show going get like a get a netflix deal or

[00:31:22] maybe for like a yeah like some doggie series type stuff yeah it'd be amazing yeah that is cool and

[00:31:29] it makes sense you know one thing i think that's tough for wba players is you play your season

[00:31:34] stateside and then all of a sudden there's this six month gap more eight month gap where all of

[00:31:41] your fans have to like tune into euro basket or try to find your game online it's one in the morning

[00:31:48] us time we're just weird hours so even just for players themselves building fandom when it's

[00:31:55] so disjointed you're playing stateside then you're going overseas and then you're coming back

[00:31:59] i think unrivaled is really powerful also for players and that not only is there upside for

[00:32:04] equity but even on the brand building side you get to build your brand alongside the

[00:32:08] 30 best players in the league and really kind of get to maintain that connection point with your

[00:32:14] fans throughout the years which is wonderful so yeah thanks really cool thank you love that approach

[00:32:18] uh with your so with your regular season coming up on may 14th against Seattle storm

[00:32:23] how are you feeling about the team as you head into this season i'm really excited this has

[00:32:28] been the best energy that i felt in a preseason since i've been like in the league everyone is

[00:32:34] we have a lot of young kids a lot of new faces but everyone is like so willing to learn and we

[00:32:38] got some great um that what's called free agents this year too so like a lot of talent coming in so

[00:32:44] i'm really really excited it's looking good for sure it's going to be a wild summer for you also

[00:32:49] because not only do you have the bmba season but you're headed to paris for the olympics yeah

[00:32:56] which i think starts in july right yeah when you head over mm-hmm yeah yeah it's gonna be

[00:33:01] crazy we have just as many games but they take a month off for the olympics and we didn't add any

[00:33:06] time to the season so this is much games but with a month less to play them in and then also

[00:33:13] so it's a good thing we got those charters otherwise it was going to be even more grueling so

[00:33:18] right yeah crazy yeah so you've competed in the olympics before you actually were a part of team

[00:33:22] usa in 2020 you won gold with the squad um how are you feeling headed into paris this year

[00:33:29] i'm really excited well i love the olympics last time you know it was my first one but it was a

[00:33:34] covid one so we were trapped like we were not allowed to leave the the hotel like there's no fans at

[00:33:41] the arena you couldn't see any other sports like it was locked down um yeah so it was still awesome

[00:33:46] it was my first experience i have nothing to compare it to but i am really excited to have

[00:33:50] that full olympic experience hopefully see other sports because that would be awesome

[00:33:56] but yeah i mean hopefully i'll have a bigger role this this time too so i think just overall it's

[00:34:01] going to be really really awesome for sure we're stoked stoked to tune in so a huge part of our

[00:34:06] podcast is being able to highlight the positive impact of our guests uh without our guests are

[00:34:10] driving in their community and we would love to hear some more about the impact you're

[00:34:14] driving off the court what are some of those areas that you're most passionate about uh

[00:34:18] and inspiring positive change with your current platform well i'm an eco-athletes with free

[00:34:24] so let's go that together also in my hometown i'm involved in something called eagle's wings

[00:34:30] and it's a non-profit where they supply like brand new clothes to kids you know a lot of times when

[00:34:37] they're in those situations they get like secondhand clothing these are all brand new and it's set up

[00:34:41] like a boutique where they can go shopping and pick out what they want so that's a really really

[00:34:45] cool experience like to be a part of um so that's really fun and then i'm trying to get involved

[00:34:51] in something to support single mothers in child care because i'm not a single mother

[00:34:56] and i see how hard it is like i live i know that i live a privileged life like i'm a professional

[00:35:01] athlete and so i want to help those who don't have the resources that i do because i can't imagine

[00:35:06] like it's it's really hard and so i want i want to be able to support them um in some way so

[00:35:11] i'm really looking to get involved with something like that yeah i love that and i'm i'm excited

[00:35:17] you lean into that space as well because you already are such a positive light in the community

[00:35:21] and you're doing such incredible work so i know um you're going to be a huge blessing to

[00:35:25] those mothers as well uh yeah as a fellow eco athlete i'm curious to hear from you like

[00:35:31] what got you into climate action like why why is the climate important to you

[00:35:37] uh i think you guys should give a little background of what eco athletes so

[00:35:40] so what is eco athletes from coming from two eco athlete representatives

[00:35:44] do you want to go bird you want me to go yeah i can go wow eco athletes is essentially a community

[00:35:50] of i would say like 150 professional athletes who have come together to use our respective

[00:35:56] platforms to advocate for climate action um in various ways so lou bloustine founded the

[00:36:01] organization i want to say four years ago and yeah we sometimes will tag team together

[00:36:05] to do different initiatives around climate action or um we've just been equipped uh

[00:36:10] by lou and the eco athletes team to be more confident speaking out around climate action

[00:36:14] and all those things yes so i kind of originally got involved where it was i think my brickie

[00:36:23] year i'd seen the video um it was like a countdown on the side of a huge building i want to say

[00:36:28] like tokyo i'm not sure but it's we have this much time until uh climate change is irreversible

[00:36:34] and it was just like really scary because obviously i didn't have my daughter then but i knew i

[00:36:38] wanted a family someday and i want to survive also here so i'm like what kind of world would i be

[00:36:43] bringing them into like it was just i think really sobering and so not long after that i got introduced

[00:36:50] to lou at eco athletes and i just thought it was like a great opportunity to learn more and to use

[00:36:55] my platform as much as i could and just educate myself because there's i mean so many things i

[00:37:00] didn't even know i just knew that this was scary but i knew nothing else like and i didn't know

[00:37:04] how to enact change at all so yeah i've been involved with them since then so more than four years

[00:37:09] because that was like six seasons five years ago i guess so yeah i know it's going by fast but time

[00:37:14] is moving for sure very cool well to finish out the pod we'd like to ask all of our guests one

[00:37:22] question and this question is do you have any words of advice for our listeners on really

[00:37:27] how to use their talents and passions to make the world a better place well i guess it depends

[00:37:32] on your talents and passions and what you think the world a better place looks like i would probably

[00:37:37] say just do things that are true to you because you can always tell when someone's not actually

[00:37:43] passionate about passionate or cares about what they're doing so pick something that is actually

[00:37:48] important to you and that'll take you really far because if it's a chore or you don't want to

[00:37:52] do it you're going to look for ways to not complete your goal but if you're passionate

[00:37:56] about it even though it's hard because it's going to be it's going to be really hard to stay

[00:37:58] consistent in what you what your goal is if you really believe in what you're doing then it makes

[00:38:04] it so much more worth it at the end of the day than instead of it being a chore that's a good word

[00:38:09] all right i think that takes us into our lightning round we still haven't gone music so

[00:38:18] i'll bring the guns when you have all the little things on the screen and the sounds and stuff

[00:38:22] yeah it's coming we have little animations that sometimes pop up if we do them on here but

[00:38:27] FaceTime right that does it there too oh there it is yeah got some hearts balloons what up yeah but

[00:38:33] all right so you got 30 seconds to answer each of these questions first question is uh you're

[00:38:39] headed to Paris this summer and you've also lived in France as a pro-hooper what's your

[00:38:43] go-to crepe flavor um strawberries with bananas with chocolate drizzle and the little walnuts

[00:38:51] cut up hmm oh wait like flavor chocolate on the top or inside like new televised it's like drizzled

[00:38:57] drizzled oh yeah powdered sugar oh yeah that's a powdered sugar yeah okay okay i'm here for it um okay

[00:39:07] you've gone to travel across the globe for basketball what country in your opinion has the best

[00:39:12] hoops culture and you can't include the us because yes obviously us is great yeah

[00:39:18] yeah i would say france is really hard so france has like really really tough competition i think

[00:39:27] yeah and they have so many leagues league levels yeah like france national team is really good too

[00:39:32] they just they got good people yeah yeah that's great who's the best trash talker on team usa

[00:39:40] diana terrasi i don't need 30 seconds absolutely i love that have you ever been like

[00:39:46] called out in practice or did she talk a little trash to you yeah you've been a victim of this

[00:39:52] trash talking years ago and what she does she didn't she like chess monthly i said dee come on

[00:39:57] and she's like yeah yeah i'm sorry i'm sorry so i remember my freshman or not my my freshman

[00:40:05] my rookie season and we were playing against her and i was gonna take a charge and i like it was a

[00:40:11] it was square it was a fair charge and it obviously didn't get called because she she like owns

[00:40:17] owns a league and no rookie's ever gonna get a call but she just kind of like glared down at me

[00:40:21] and like shot it yeah and i was like welcome welcome to the league welcome he's no conscience

[00:40:28] she is a different person on and off the court yeah that's great okay last question

[00:40:35] mila your daughter your girl right now what is her current favorite phrase or is there like a little

[00:40:41] thing she likes to do i saw her on instagram with you and alex having a little tea party like what

[00:40:46] what's she into right now besides saying no like because that's her favorite thing to do is say

[00:40:52] no she loves like mila do you want to do a move and so you're like do you want to dance do you

[00:40:58] want to twist do you want to run she loves that game she's like move so she loves that game where

[00:41:03] you're asking what she wants to do but jumping i think is her favorite one she's like ask me about me

[00:41:09] yeah yeah my gosh that's so funny because like when i'm away from her i just scroll through videos

[00:41:16] and pictures of mila and i was just doing it at home one time she saw and she's obsessed now

[00:41:21] like she always she says mila mila and we have to watch she makes me watch videos of her and pictures

[00:41:27] of her just at home so she's learning she's learning that self-love she is it's good

[00:41:32] confident girls i know for sure oh my gosh so good well in the piece of we we have loved

[00:41:39] having you on the show um it's been an absolute honor and a pleasure to get to spend this time

[00:41:43] with you um we're so excited to continue to watch you drive positive impact in the communities

[00:41:49] in which you live in and also to watch you continue to get buckets and win some more

[00:41:54] nbps on rival that's going to be amazing can't wait to see the launch of that

[00:41:58] chelsea can you tell the listeners where they can get a little more information regarding nefisa

[00:42:03] yeah for more information about today's episode that'll be her highlights and resources that

[00:42:08] we mentioned will be in today's show notes along with her social social links and everything

[00:42:13] involved also don't forget to like share follow give us some feedback and you can

[00:42:17] reach us at champion this podcast at gmail.com