Latest / Hurdle with Emily Abbate / 194. Nneka Ogwumike, WNBA Player for the Los Angeles Sparks

Transcript

194. Nneka Ogwumike, WNBA Player for the Los Angeles Sparks · Hurdle with Emily Abbate

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  Speaker 1: Whether it's Grace, God, the universe, love. Universal love is
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: like the sun here as though it's not hitting you.
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  Speaker 1: But if you're in the house in a room with
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  Speaker 1: the lights and the shades turned off, it's gonna appear
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: as though it's not hitting you. You have to make
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  Speaker 1: the choice to open the blinds, walk through the door,
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  Speaker 1: walk outside, and then feel the rays. And even at
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: times when you're in the house and the blinds are open,
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  Speaker 1: you can see the sun shining in. So it's always searching,
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  Speaker 1: It's always there for you. You just have to figure out
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  Speaker 1: what it is that you need to do to let
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  Speaker 1: it hit your skin. And sometimes it takes a friend
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  Speaker 1: to get you out of bed. Sometimes it takes a
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  Speaker 1: family member to open the door. Sometimes it takes a
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  Speaker 1: teammate to walk with you outside so that the sun
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  Speaker 1: can hit you.
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  Speaker 2: What is going on?
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  Speaker 3: Everyone, Emily A body coming to you from the Age Studio.
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  Speaker 3: You are listening to episode one ninety four of Hurdle,
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  Speaker 3: a wellness focus podcast where I connect with everyone from
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  Speaker 3: your favorite athletes to top experts and industry CEOs about
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  Speaker 3: their highest hies, toughest moments, and everything in between. We
• 1:17
  Speaker 3: all go through hurdles in life, and my goal through
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  Speaker 3: these discussions is to empower you to better navigate yours
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  Speaker 3: and move with intention so that you can stride towards
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  Speaker 3: your own big potential and of course have some fun
• 1:30
  Speaker 3: along the way. For today's episode, I am chatting with
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  Speaker 3: Mecca Oguamackay. She's a WNBA player for the Los Angeles
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  Speaker 3: Sparks and honestly, I.
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  Speaker 2: So needed this conversation.
• 1:43
  Speaker 3: If you are not motivated to work hard and be
• 1:45
  Speaker 3: a good human after listening to this chat with Neka,
• 1:48
  Speaker 3: loaded with so many gems, so many great one liners,
• 1:53
  Speaker 3: then you you weren't really listening. We talk about what
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  Speaker 3: it was like for her to grow up in an
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  Speaker 3: active family, going to Stanford and traveling to play basketball overseas.
• 2:02
  Speaker 3: She also shares the unconventional way she became the president
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  Speaker 3: of the Woman's National Basketball Players Association and how it
• 2:09
  Speaker 3: felt when they passed the Collective.
• 2:11
  Speaker 2: Bargaining Agreement abbreviated as the c BA. Plus.
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  Speaker 3: She talks to me about the hard lessons she learned
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  Speaker 3: navigating a tough knee injury last year when it comes
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  Speaker 3: to accepting help from others, and lets her in on
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  Speaker 3: this really great journaling a practice that she calls attitude,
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  Speaker 3: gratitude magnitude again, so many gems, so much good, good
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  Speaker 3: stuff in this conversation. Trust me, you're gonna want to
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  Speaker 3: bookmark this, You're gonna want to send it to a friend,
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  Speaker 3: You're going to want to be taking notes while you're
• 2:41
  Speaker 3: listening all that stuff. Mecca is an Adidas athlete. They
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  Speaker 3: connected us, so big, big thanks kudos to the team
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  Speaker 3: over at Adidas for helping us make this happen. And yeah,
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  Speaker 3: I'm just really really excited. Two things, little bits of
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: housekeeping I want to do this week. First up, I
• 2:55
  Speaker 3: want to hype up the Weekly Hurdle. It's a newsletter.
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: It comes out every single Friday morning, probably where you
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: even get out of bed, and it brings a lot
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: of the same inspiration, motivation stuff that you love about
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  Speaker 3: the show directly into your email inbox again every single week.
• 3:09
  Speaker 3: So I'd love for you to subscribe if you aren't already.
• 3:11
  Speaker 3: A link to do that is in the show notes
• 3:14
  Speaker 3: and bonus. It is free, so really, what's your excuse? Also,
• 3:18
  Speaker 3: on that note of keeping in touch with the show,
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: I want to have you on the show. I want
• 3:24
  Speaker 3: to have your questions on the show. I want to
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: answer your questions on the show. So while you are
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: checking out the show notes, click the link that says.
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: Leave me a voice message and ask me anything you want.
• 3:34
  Speaker 3: It can be about self care, fitness, health, wellness, me
• 3:38
  Speaker 3: New York.
• 3:39
  Speaker 2: I mean literally no topics.
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  Speaker 3: No topics, I say that, but like I also stumbled
• 3:44
  Speaker 3: to say that a little bit. Nothing's off limits. So
• 3:47
  Speaker 3: ask me a question, please let me answer it. I
• 3:49
  Speaker 3: want to help you in whatever way that I can
• 3:51
  Speaker 3: make sure you are following along up with the show.
• 3:54
  Speaker 3: Over on social at Hurdle Podcast, I am over at
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  Speaker 3: Emily a Body and with that, let's get to hurtling.
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  Speaker 2: Today.
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  Speaker 3: I am sitting down with nekka Ogumakay. She is a
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  Speaker 3: WNBA player for the Los Angeles Sparks. How are you
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  Speaker 3: doing today?
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  Speaker 4: I'm doing so well. Thanks for having me.
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  Speaker 2: Of course, thank you for giving me your time.
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  Speaker 3: I'm fangirling a little bit over here, and I'm going
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  Speaker 3: to tell you why. So you're just gonna need to
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  Speaker 3: like kick back for about like thirty seconds while I
• 4:29
  Speaker 3: rattle off some of your outstanding accomplishments. Tenth year in
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  Speaker 3: the league, Adidas Athlete, President of the Women's National Basketball
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  Speaker 3: Players Association a job you didn't really want.
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  Speaker 2: But we'll talk about that in a little bit.
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  Speaker 3: Flashback to first overall pick twenty twelve WNBA Draft by
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  Speaker 3: the Los Angeles Sparks twenty twelve for COB of the Year.
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  Speaker 3: Named recently to the W twenty five Leak's list of
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  Speaker 3: the top twenty five players in its first twenty five years.
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  Speaker 3: You're up with the greats like Candace Parker and Lisa
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  Speaker 3: Leslie as one of the highest scoring players of all time.
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  Speaker 2: Like, did I do my research right? Are we cool?
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  Speaker 4: I think we're good?
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  Speaker 3: You're like I actually dot dot dot Okay, You've done
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  Speaker 3: a lot. You've done a lot, and what I enjoy
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  Speaker 3: about you is that you have been in every interview
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  Speaker 3: I've ever listened to you so humble as you have
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  Speaker 3: come into your power. I would argue, where do you
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  Speaker 3: think that humbleness comes from?
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  Speaker 1: You know, I think it definitely comes from my upbringing.
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  Speaker 1: It's a bit of nature versus nurture. Really. You know,
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  Speaker 1: we were raised in my family to just be great
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  Speaker 1: and do your best, do what's right, and I think
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  Speaker 1: that has certainly permeated each of our lives individually, not
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  Speaker 1: just in our careers. But in our persons as people
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  Speaker 1: in this world, and so I guess that's kind of
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  Speaker 1: where it comes from. But I mean, honestly, I feel
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  Speaker 1: like humility is where you find your confidence. You know,
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  Speaker 1: I know it sounds a little bit contradictory, but when
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  Speaker 1: you exercise and humility, you're able to discover things that
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  Speaker 1: you can be better at. You're able to discover ways
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  Speaker 1: you can empower others, and ultimately that builds the strength
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  Speaker 1: and the confidence that keeps you going.
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  Speaker 3: So yeah, yeah, this mindset, this powerful mindset. I would say,
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  Speaker 3: you're saying it stems from your upbringing, but you've got
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  Speaker 3: to have some other inspirations or role models where you
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  Speaker 3: have been able to garner some of this motivation and perspective.
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  Speaker 2: Who would you say sits on that list?
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  Speaker 1: I mean, I can't really say that I have like
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  Speaker 1: a list of people that I, you know, I necessarily
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  Speaker 1: look up to. I think what makes up the people
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  Speaker 1: that inspire me are the people that I deal with
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  Speaker 1: every day. Now, of course, my family, my sisters and
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  Speaker 1: my parents. And then I've had the blessing of having
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  Speaker 1: so many coaches, teachers, administrators, mentors along the way, teammates
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  Speaker 1: and friends that just kind of align with my frequency,
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  Speaker 1: and I learned so much from people that kind of
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  Speaker 1: share the same goals and values, and those everyday people
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  Speaker 1: that are a part of my village are really who
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  Speaker 1: inspired me the most.
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  Speaker 3: I love that I described it as humble, but I
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  Speaker 3: would also argue, and I know that you'll agree that
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  Speaker 3: at times you've kind of been like maybe a little
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  Speaker 3: intimidated to take that first step or believe in yourself
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  Speaker 3: again despite your outrageous talent.
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  Speaker 2: Would you agree with that?
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  Speaker 4: Oh yeah, absolutely.
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  Speaker 3: Talk to me a little bit about that, about coming
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  Speaker 3: into your own in the sport, at least of basketball,
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  Speaker 3: and then we'll kind of extend it beyond that.
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  Speaker 1: I think that coming into my own in basketball was
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  Speaker 1: less about goal setting and more about kind of expression,
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  Speaker 1: you know, finding ways to channel this hyperactivity that is
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  Speaker 1: natural in me, and of course contributing to being well
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  Speaker 1: rounded as our parents raised us to be. So sports
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  Speaker 1: became a thing because health was a thing, you know,
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  Speaker 1: and eventually understanding not only can you work to get
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  Speaker 1: better at something, not only can you stay healthy doing something,
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  Speaker 1: but you can also be on a team and build
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  Speaker 1: and build character that you.
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  Speaker 4: Can apply not just on the court.
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  Speaker 1: You can apply it in the classroom, in society and
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  Speaker 1: your community. So I'd have to say that that's kind
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  Speaker 1: of what brought me into this and it still is
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  Speaker 1: kind of what keeps me in it now. Of course,
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  Speaker 1: like I mentioned before, I've had the relationships is really
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  Speaker 1: what gets me going with what I do. So being
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  Speaker 1: able to balance, like how I can challenge myself individually
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  Speaker 1: while also having so many collective experiences just because of
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  Speaker 1: basketball is It's truly a blessing and I'm really grateful
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  Speaker 1: to continue to be learning. You know, I don't believe
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  Speaker 1: in ever mastering anything. You know, I think that there's always.
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  Speaker 3: You said that health was a thing for you growing
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  Speaker 3: up in what way like talk to us about what
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  Speaker 3: that looked like.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean my parents were both very active, not
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  Speaker 1: competitive athletes, but they worked out a lot, and they
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  Speaker 1: also engaged in sports when it was on TV. You know,
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  Speaker 1: we would always sit together and watch sports. And then ultimately,
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  Speaker 1: of course, when we started trying to figure out what
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  Speaker 1: sports we were going to get into, we all started
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  Speaker 1: playing and.
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  Speaker 4: It was fun.
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  Speaker 1: Then it became competitive, Then it became opportunistic with scholarships,
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  Speaker 1: and ultimately a way of life. The silver lining of
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  Speaker 1: it all is that you're doing something to maintain your health,
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  Speaker 1: and that's like your health all around. That's kind of
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  Speaker 1: how it started, but we've discovered so many ways that
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  Speaker 1: it can benefit us, where with health being kind of
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  Speaker 1: the seed.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, it's funny that you say opportunistic with scholarships. I
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  Speaker 3: heard you speak on a podcast and you were talking
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  Speaker 3: about how you realize that in order to get to
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  Speaker 3: where you wanted to go, you were going to have
• 9:59
  Speaker 3: to like open yourself up in a way that maybe
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  Speaker 3: you weren't originally open to. Talk to me about selecting
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  Speaker 3: where you wanted to go to college and how that
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  Speaker 3: kind of all panned out.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: So, you know, when I started playing basketball, I was
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  Speaker 1: the first in the family, so it was like a
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  Speaker 1: family thing. We were all learning. My parents had no
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  Speaker 1: idea about it. We had no idea about it. The
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  Speaker 1: most we knew about basketball was the comments in the
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  Speaker 1: rockets and the piston. Once we realized that, you know,
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  Speaker 1: there was a competitive nature to it, then we started
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  Speaker 1: traveling on AAU teams and going to tournaments, ultimately realizing
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  Speaker 1: that letters from schools were starting to come in and
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  Speaker 1: it didn't occur. I had known about academic scholarships, but
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  Speaker 1: I had no idea about sports scholarships. And so once
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: that happened, it was clear, like, Okay, I've worked hard
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  Speaker 1: because I know I want to go to college, but
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  Speaker 1: I never knew that working hard would get me to
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  Speaker 1: compete at the collegiate level. So it became opportunistic, you know,
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  Speaker 1: in a way that realized dreams that may be seemed
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  Speaker 1: more far fetched before understanding what basketball could bring. And
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  Speaker 1: I chose. I chose to go to Stanford because of
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  Speaker 1: that very reason. My Stanford diploma is it probably has
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  Speaker 1: more value than any trophy that I could ever get.
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  Speaker 1: And so setting yourself up for life in that way
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  Speaker 1: while also still being able to be at such a
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  Speaker 1: renowned institution and highly competitive program was just it was
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  Speaker 1: the perfect storm.
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  Speaker 2: For me, the perfect storm.
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  Speaker 3: And when you started playing in college, did you foresee
• 11:37
  Speaker 3: yourself kind of continuing on this path post degree?
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  Speaker 4: No? No, not at all.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, I do have to tell you that I'm a
• 11:46
  Speaker 2: Yukon graduate.
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  Speaker 1: Oh wow, she says, Oh, so you know you know?
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  Speaker 3: And I know, I mean, please, I don't have a
• 11:56
  Speaker 3: basketball influence bone in my body. I'm a runner, but
• 12:00
  Speaker 3: I do know that when I sit down and pony
• 12:02
  Speaker 3: up with some WNBA players. I feel the need to
• 12:04
  Speaker 3: disclaim that as being going on in our conversation.
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: I think it's good that you definitely put that out there.
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  Speaker 3: You just know, okay, but you didn't see yourself going,
• 12:17
  Speaker 3: you know, pro at all talk to me about the
• 12:19
  Speaker 3: decision to continue in your pursuit of athletics despite you
• 12:22
  Speaker 3: know what you were saying, the most valuable thing that
• 12:24
  Speaker 3: you have here this Stanford degree.
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, I honestly think that me not taking
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: I don't want to say not taking it seriously, but
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: me not seeing that as a viable route for my
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: career in future had a lot to do with accessibility
• 12:38
  Speaker 1: and exposure that lacks in women's sports. It wasn't something
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: that I had anyone that I knew or trusted that
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: could show me an example of it being a career.
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  Speaker 4: But of course I had.
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  Speaker 1: Like I said, my village is my village is really
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  Speaker 1: where I find most inspiration. I had a little sister
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  Speaker 1: in Cheney who I went to school with, who was
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: already already a sports a sports personality before she became one,
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  Speaker 1: And she was telling me my senior year when I was,
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: you know, performing at a high level. You know, you
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: have a chance to become the first round draft, the
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: first draft pick in the w NBA, And I was like, well, yeah,
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  Speaker 1: that's cool, but you know, I think I'm really going
• 13:23
  Speaker 1: to try to get into this post back program to
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: become a doctor. And that's a huge cultural influence being
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: Nigerian American. But like you said, I had to do
• 13:33
  Speaker 1: something that I didn't know where it would take me.
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  Speaker 4: But I knew that doors were wide open.
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: And I realized that because someone you know, believed in
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: me and instilled it in me and also helped me
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: realize that you can always go back to school, you know,
• 13:49
  Speaker 1: but I wouldn't be able to turn back the hands
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: of time to try and play in the w So
• 13:55
  Speaker 1: that's kind of how I made my decision, and me
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: being the person that I am, I was already prepared
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: to graduate early anyway because my senior year I didn't
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: want to have to worry about finals during the final four.
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: So it was a good plan either way.
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  Speaker 3: You made a reference to the cultural influence of like
• 14:12
  Speaker 3: going on to be a doctor when you made this
• 14:14
  Speaker 3: decision to kind of put that on hold or maybe
• 14:17
  Speaker 3: who knows, not pursue it at all, what did your
• 14:20
  Speaker 3: parents have to say about it?
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: I mean, I think it was kind of us learning
• 14:24
  Speaker 1: what the basketball world was like all over again. They
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: understood the opportunity in front of me and just wanted
• 14:32
  Speaker 1: to make sure that it was something that I could
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: pursue and then guided me the best way that they could.
• 14:35
  Speaker 1: And looking back now, that guidance came with Okay, figuring out,
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: you know, what I would be graduating, when I would
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: be graduating, whether I'd be able to come back and
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: walk across the stage, who would represent me as far
• 14:49
  Speaker 1: as an agent goes, you know. So those were things
• 14:52
  Speaker 1: that I didn't have to do by myself that I
• 14:55
  Speaker 1: can imagine would be so difficult for a young a
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: young semi or pre professional trying to figure out, you know,
• 15:03
  Speaker 1: where this life is going to take them. So even
• 15:05
  Speaker 1: without necessarily taking the medical route, I still had that
• 15:10
  Speaker 1: village that that brought me to where I was.
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 15:13
  Speaker 3: Yeah, And you know, it's interesting you were talking about
• 15:16
  Speaker 3: women's access and sport. I know through your partnership with
• 15:20
  Speaker 3: Adidas and They're impossible is nothing campaign like this is
• 15:23
  Speaker 3: a very big focus for you right now.
• 15:26
  Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean it's huge.
• 15:28
  Speaker 1: I think that especially you know, for women in the world,
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: most notably in sports and entertainment, you know, they're the
• 15:36
  Speaker 1: representation is it's been abysmal. It's getting better.
• 15:40
  Speaker 2: What a word a business? Oh that's like that. It's deep.
• 15:46
  Speaker 4: Yeah, and I feel like we all feel it.
• 15:48
  Speaker 1: You know. Yes, it's getting better, obviously, but you know,
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: we can't. We can't continue to sit at a table
• 15:55
  Speaker 1: for which those who are at the head presumably continue
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: to impart upon us to be grateful for us even
• 16:03
  Speaker 1: having a seat, and that's definitely not the case. And
• 16:08
  Speaker 1: being able to work with Adidas and to represent impossible
• 16:12
  Speaker 1: is nothing I think is so monumental, not just because
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: of the brand that I align with, but of course
• 16:19
  Speaker 1: because I am someone that I didn't see growing up,
• 16:23
  Speaker 1: and so I'm sure I serve as a representation for
• 16:26
  Speaker 1: young young girls and young as biers who are looking
• 16:30
  Speaker 1: to find someone that they resonate with that's doing something
• 16:34
  Speaker 1: that they want to do. And with that, like you said,
• 16:38
  Speaker 1: me not having that representation, you have to sometimes walk
• 16:43
  Speaker 1: that path what feels like blinded, you know, because there's
• 16:47
  Speaker 1: nothing to show you an example of what you're trying
• 16:49
  Speaker 1: to attain. But being able to understand that impossible is nothing.
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: It just shows that you can do it, even if
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: it doesn't seem like it's it's possible.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, you create that.
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  Speaker 2: Path for sure, for sure.
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  Speaker 3: So you started to like kind of dip your toe
• 17:09
  Speaker 3: in the water of like maybe impossible is nothing. By
• 17:13
  Speaker 3: traveling overseas and playing with a few different teams. When
• 17:17
  Speaker 3: you think about your time in Russia and China, what
• 17:21
  Speaker 3: really stood out to you as like the moment where
• 17:24
  Speaker 3: you were like, I am really doing.
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  Speaker 1: This when I was living in a country where I
• 17:30
  Speaker 1: was the only person that looked like me.
• 17:32
  Speaker 2: Oh my god.
• 17:33
  Speaker 1: Also too, just like realizing that you're I mean like
• 17:36
  Speaker 1: I was in a in what felt like a whole
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: new world and there for eight months, you know, and
• 17:43
  Speaker 1: it doesn't quite hit you until I guess, I mean
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  Speaker 1: for me, until there's just the everyday happenings that you're
• 17:51
  Speaker 1: not used to navigating, you know, driving myself somewhere in Russia,
• 17:56
  Speaker 1: going to a grocery store without without a translator. In China,
• 18:00
  Speaker 1: you know, learning how to drive stick shift in several
• 18:04
  Speaker 1: inches of snow and Poland. You know, it's just there's
• 18:08
  Speaker 1: there's so many different worlds and lifestyles and ways of
• 18:11
  Speaker 1: life that we're not exposed to that really really build
• 18:17
  Speaker 1: the multi dimensional nature of women that embodies that impossible
• 18:23
  Speaker 1: is nothing because in the face of it all, we
• 18:26
  Speaker 1: get it done. And that's just our nature. And I
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: think it's going to be a reason why people may
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: feel as though they're left behind once women in sport
• 18:36
  Speaker 1: becomes this title wave of opportunity tidle wave.
• 18:41
  Speaker 3: I feel as though there has to be at least
• 18:44
  Speaker 3: like one or two funny stories stemming from learning how
• 18:47
  Speaker 3: to drive stick shift in Russia.
• 18:49
  Speaker 1: And so, I mean, let's just say I didn't get
• 18:54
  Speaker 1: it the first time.
• 18:56
  Speaker 2: Or the first the first time in like my high
• 18:58
  Speaker 2: school parking lot.
• 19:00
  Speaker 1: My gosh, and that was I mean, like, it never
• 19:03
  Speaker 1: occurred to me that I would ever need to learn
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: how to drive one until I got overseas. Then it
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: became a necessity and it was like, Okay, you either
• 19:11
  Speaker 1: learn or you don't go anywhere. And so thankfully, when
• 19:15
  Speaker 1: I first went overseas in Poland, that was my rookie year.
• 19:18
  Speaker 1: So my dad stayed with me for three weeks the
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: first time, like the first time I went over there,
• 19:22
  Speaker 1: and he was teaching me how to drive stick But
• 19:24
  Speaker 1: he's one of those kind of like throw you in
• 19:26
  Speaker 1: the water type of instructors. So he drove us to
• 19:31
  Speaker 1: like the local mall, and then on the way back
• 19:33
  Speaker 1: he was like, oh, you're driving us back. I was like, yeah,
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: but I haven't even practiced. I don't even know what
• 19:37
  Speaker 1: I'm doing. And I stalled in the middle of it
• 19:41
  Speaker 1: wasn't like a highway, but it was in a high
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: anxiety intersection.
• 19:45
  Speaker 2: Oh but I'm here and I know how to drive
• 19:48
  Speaker 2: a stick it. I came back. I'm doing great.
• 19:52
  Speaker 3: Oh dude, I can't even imagine.
• 19:56
  Speaker 2: I can't even imagine.
• 19:57
  Speaker 3: But I mean, all of that you're talking about, like
• 20:00
  Speaker 3: this title wave, right, like all of these experiences overseas
• 20:04
  Speaker 3: culminating in you coming back home and kind of taking
• 20:07
  Speaker 3: that next step understanding that those experiences prepared you for
• 20:12
  Speaker 3: what would bring you to draft day.
• 20:14
  Speaker 2: So talk to us a little bit about draft Day.
• 20:17
  Speaker 1: It was my mom's birthday, which was pretty amazing, and
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: it was just a flurry of events. It was just
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: it just felt like everything that was happening was just
• 20:27
  Speaker 1: kind of like floating in the air or whizzing past me.
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: But it really felt like, Okay, this is the beginning
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: of what I'm going to do, and I just wanted
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: I just wanted to be great. I wanted to be ready,
• 20:41
  Speaker 1: I wanted to be prepared, and I wanted wherever I
• 20:45
  Speaker 1: ended up to understand my investment and to understand that
• 20:52
  Speaker 1: I just want my legacy to be that of contagion,
• 20:55
  Speaker 1: you know. I want to be the best that I
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: can and hopefully hopefully impart that upon anyone that I
• 21:02
  Speaker 1: work with. And I've been in La ever since, and
• 21:06
  Speaker 1: it's been it's been a journey, but I'm so grateful
• 21:10
  Speaker 1: for it. I'm so very grateful for it. Really almost
• 21:13
  Speaker 1: a seamless transition because I had been going to school
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: at Stanford and then just to go down south. I'm
• 21:19
  Speaker 1: a I guess I'm a Cala Texan or whatever they
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: call it. Yeah, it's so interesting.
• 21:26
  Speaker 3: Wasn't there like a moment where you had the potential
• 21:29
  Speaker 3: to be drafted by Was it in Oklahoma?
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: Yeah, in Tulsa, I think so, Like when the draft
• 21:35
  Speaker 1: lottery was happening, they also had several balls in the pot,
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: and so I was like, you know, I'm grateful for
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: wherever I go, but La.
• 21:50
  Speaker 4: Was a great choice to live.
• 21:53
  Speaker 2: It seemed to work out.
• 21:55
  Speaker 3: You I love what you said about like you knew
• 21:57
  Speaker 3: that you wanted to be great. And I think that
• 21:59
  Speaker 3: this is some thing that at least I've been thinking
• 22:01
  Speaker 3: a lot about lately. Is that same desire of wanting
• 22:04
  Speaker 3: to be great, but the difference between being versus doing
• 22:08
  Speaker 3: right Because in that moment, like you knew you wanted
• 22:11
  Speaker 3: to be great, but by the way that you talk about,
• 22:14
  Speaker 3: you were also taking the steps that you needed to
• 22:17
  Speaker 3: become great. It wasn't just you sitting around and being like,
• 22:20
  Speaker 3: I want to be great, I know I can be great.
• 22:22
  Speaker 3: I want to be great. I know I can be great.
• 22:24
  Speaker 3: It was like there was action behind that. So at
• 22:27
  Speaker 3: that time, talk to us about what those actions looked like.
• 22:31
  Speaker 1: You know, these actions kind of I would say that
• 22:33
  Speaker 1: they evolved year by year. So I joke around with
• 22:37
  Speaker 1: a lot of people like my rookie year, I went nowhere.
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: I just went to the gym, went to my room,
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: went to the gym, went to my room. And that
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: was what worked for me. You know, that was the
• 22:46
  Speaker 1: focus that worked for me. But then each year is different.
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: You know, every year you have experience from the last
• 22:53
  Speaker 1: and then you have goals towards the next. And I
• 22:58
  Speaker 1: think being great is all about just all of the
• 23:02
  Speaker 1: trivial things, all of the nuanced things. I think we
• 23:05
  Speaker 1: get so caught up with the grandiose idea of what
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: being great, what being phenomenal, what being amazing is. But
• 23:13
  Speaker 1: any prominent woman or person in sport always talks about
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: doing the things that people don't want to do, making
• 23:24
  Speaker 1: small decisions that really alter the rest of their day.
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: Having discipline. I think discipline is the highest form of
• 23:31
  Speaker 1: self love, and it contributes to the being that you're
• 23:35
  Speaker 1: talking about. You know, you can have a to do list,
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: but what are you embodying every day? And so for me,
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: it's you know, being disciplined on you know, what I'm
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: putting in my body, also staying balanced and not identifying
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: too much with my sport, and you know, of course
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: going out there and enjoying life. I mean, like my
• 23:56
  Speaker 1: job is a job that a lot of people dream
• 23:59
  Speaker 1: of having and never get the chance to. So not
• 24:02
  Speaker 1: taking it too seriously is also a part of the
• 24:05
  Speaker 1: small things that you can do every day. I mean,
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: I could give you a list of details and actions
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: that I take, but that's unique to me. What works
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: for me isn't going to work for you. You just have
• 24:15
  Speaker 1: to find out what lights you up here and here,
• 24:19
  Speaker 1: and that's what being great contributes to, and that's kind
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: of what creates the sustainability or what people in sport
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: like to call the legacy of the time.
• 24:34
  Speaker 3: Taking a break from today's episode to talk to you
• 24:36
  Speaker 3: about my sponsors.
• 24:38
  Speaker 2: First up, Daily Harvest.
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  Speaker 3: You know that ag one from Athletic Greens is a
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  Speaker 3: big part of my morning routine to get in those
• 24:45
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• 24:47
  Speaker 2: But as the day goes on and things.
• 24:49
  Speaker 3: Get hectic, it can be really really easy to get
• 24:53
  Speaker 3: sidetracked on my healthy eating goals, and that is where
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  Speaker 3: Daily Harvest comes into the mix. I keep my freezer
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  Speaker 3: They have got me covered with so many just super
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• 25:27
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  Speaker 2: Listen.
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  Speaker 3: I'm always seeking to do all the right things for
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  Speaker 3: my body so that I can have more energy, get
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  Speaker 3: better sleep, and a healthy immune system. I want to
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  Speaker 3: live longer, I want to live better, I want to
• 26:27
  Speaker 3: live healthier. So obviously I was super excited to try
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  Speaker 3: out inside Tracker last year and it has made such
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• 26:50
  Speaker 3: Through my inside Tracker panel and working with the registered dietitian,
• 26:54
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• 26:59
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  Speaker 3: store today. Your list of things that you were doing
• 27:42
  Speaker 3: is like self help work that people do over the
• 27:46
  Speaker 3: course of like three decades, like understanding the difference between uh,
• 27:51
  Speaker 3: you know, Meca the basketball player versus Neca the individual,
• 27:55
  Speaker 3: and that your greatness doesn't reside in one of those
• 27:58
  Speaker 3: two in just one ask, it is within itself, Like
• 28:02
  Speaker 3: such a beautiful and important lesson that so many of
• 28:05
  Speaker 3: us learn, especially during times when we can't do the
• 28:08
  Speaker 3: thing which is a big part of our identity. Now,
• 28:11
  Speaker 3: I don't want to jump around too much, but I
• 28:13
  Speaker 3: do want to talk to you about your injury from
• 28:16
  Speaker 3: twenty one because I'm sure that in that moment, that
• 28:20
  Speaker 3: knee injury, you probably struggled a little bit with your
• 28:23
  Speaker 3: identity a lot.
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: I struggled a lot, you know, I had that was
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: the That's the first injury that has kept me out
• 28:29
  Speaker 1: for that long. Yeah, I've had like a high ankle sprain,
• 28:32
  Speaker 1: I've had concussions, but having an injury that was so
• 28:36
  Speaker 1: acute both in nature and and I guess also a
• 28:43
  Speaker 1: bit in prognosis because it was very straightforward, like what
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: needed to happen for me to get back on the court.
• 28:48
  Speaker 1: There was no gray area about it. I struggled a
• 28:51
  Speaker 1: lot with my self worth in that injury based upon
• 28:56
  Speaker 1: everything that was going on, you know, being selected for
• 28:59
  Speaker 1: the olymp team and being there for my team in
• 29:03
  Speaker 1: a year in which so much change was experienced, and
• 29:07
  Speaker 1: having to watch from the sidelines, you know, knowing that
• 29:10
  Speaker 1: my teammates were holding it down. You know, we still
• 29:13
  Speaker 1: had to play, and so a lot of what I
• 29:16
  Speaker 1: experienced was it felt like I was trying to reconvince
• 29:20
  Speaker 1: myself of my worth. I feel as though me experiencing
• 29:24
  Speaker 1: the injury, along with decisions that were made last summer,
• 29:29
  Speaker 1: it stripped me of what I thought I knew about
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: my contributions, what I bring to the table as a person,
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: not even just as a player. Obviously, injuries happened, and
• 29:39
  Speaker 1: so you can't be out there, you can't be out there.
• 29:41
  Speaker 1: But how I experienced the injury at the timing that
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: it did, it really opened my eyes to what I
• 29:52
  Speaker 1: thought was important and things that may have gone overlooked
• 29:58
  Speaker 1: because of the amount of work I was physically putting
• 30:02
  Speaker 1: in to goals. And what I realized that I overlooked
• 30:07
  Speaker 1: was the people around me that support me. And it's
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: not to say that I wasn't appreciating them, but there's
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: certain people that were there for me in that time.
• 30:18
  Speaker 1: That are the people that get you out of those
• 30:21
  Speaker 1: dark moments. And I think that there's a common misconception
• 30:24
  Speaker 1: when it comes to whether it's mental health or anxiety
• 30:28
  Speaker 1: or worry, is that it's on you to get yourself
• 30:32
  Speaker 1: out of it. And there are there's a lot of
• 30:36
  Speaker 1: work that you do need to do, but a lot
• 30:39
  Speaker 1: of times when you're stuck, your core, your village, your
• 30:45
  Speaker 1: circle are the people that pull you out, you know,
• 30:48
  Speaker 1: and then you can finally see the light. I remember
• 30:51
  Speaker 1: I heard this analogy a long time ago. I don't
• 30:53
  Speaker 1: even remember when, but they said that, like whether it's grace, God,
• 31:00
  Speaker 1: the universe, love, universal love is like the sun. It's
• 31:04
  Speaker 1: always shining. But if you're in the house in a
• 31:08
  Speaker 1: room with the lights and the shades turned off, it's
• 31:10
  Speaker 1: gonna appear as though it's not hitting you. You have
• 31:13
  Speaker 1: to make the choice to open the blinds, walk through
• 31:15
  Speaker 1: the door, walk outside, and then feel the rays. And
• 31:18
  Speaker 1: even at times when you're in the house and the
• 31:20
  Speaker 1: blinds are open, you can see the sun shining in.
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: So it's always searching, It's always there for you. You
• 31:26
  Speaker 1: just have to figure out what it is that you
• 31:28
  Speaker 1: need to do. To let it hit your skin. And
• 31:30
  Speaker 1: sometimes it takes a friend to get you out of bed.
• 31:33
  Speaker 1: Sometimes it takes a family member to open the door.
• 31:36
  Speaker 1: Sometimes it takes a teammate to walk with you outside
• 31:39
  Speaker 1: so that the sun can hit you. And that's kind
• 31:41
  Speaker 1: of what I experience. That's the best analogy that I
• 31:44
  Speaker 1: can give that kind of consummates my injury and what
• 31:47
  Speaker 1: I was experiencing last year.
• 31:49
  Speaker 3: You and I have spent twenty seven minutes talking to
• 31:51
  Speaker 3: each other, But I think it goes without saying that
• 31:55
  Speaker 3: you probably are the strong person for a lot of
• 31:59
  Speaker 3: people in your life. I definitely identify that way as well,
• 32:02
  Speaker 3: and I understand that that is me also at times,
• 32:06
  Speaker 3: like maybe not being upfront about the things that I'm
• 32:09
  Speaker 3: going through right off the bat because I want to
• 32:11
  Speaker 3: stand as a pillar for those that I care about.
• 32:14
  Speaker 3: But the broader understanding of knowing exactly what you're saying,
• 32:17
  Speaker 3: of knowing that it's okay to let someone give you
• 32:21
  Speaker 3: their hand, it's okay to take their hand, it's okay
• 32:23
  Speaker 3: to be like, yo, I am not doing so hot,
• 32:26
  Speaker 3: And even just like that idea of feeling stuck right oh,
• 32:29
  Speaker 3: that resonates with me so much. How many times do
• 32:32
  Speaker 3: I just feel like, man, I really wish someone could
• 32:35
  Speaker 3: help me lift me up out of the pool that
• 32:36
  Speaker 3: I feel like I'm just like spinning my legs in.
• 32:39
  Speaker 3: I wish that so often someone would just extend that
• 32:42
  Speaker 3: olive branch to me. But it's not thinking like, oh,
• 32:46
  Speaker 3: I'm a burden, I can't ask for that. It's oh,
• 32:48
  Speaker 3: if I have the relationships, the right relationships in my life,
• 32:52
  Speaker 3: then I will never ever have to feel that way, right.
• 32:56
  Speaker 1: You hit the nail on the head. With being the
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: strong one. It can be empowering at times, but it
• 33:04
  Speaker 1: sucks when, like when you feel like there's there's nothing
• 33:10
  Speaker 1: that can match, like you don't have a strong person
• 33:14
  Speaker 1: for you, and that's what that's what it seems like.
• 33:16
  Speaker 1: But you have to kind of break that down and
• 33:18
  Speaker 1: understand that everyone is strong in their own way, and
• 33:21
  Speaker 1: there's a reason why there's people in your life that
• 33:24
  Speaker 1: can bring out of you what for you may feel
• 33:26
  Speaker 1: really vulnerable.
• 33:28
  Speaker 3: YEA.
• 33:28
  Speaker 1: Something that that you also hit on that I think
• 33:30
  Speaker 1: is really important to understand is true grace and greatness.
• 33:36
  Speaker 1: It happens in those moments when you keep doing the
• 33:40
  Speaker 1: work and seemingly nothing is changing, and I don't mean
• 33:44
  Speaker 1: to say like build on bad habits, but when sometimes
• 33:48
  Speaker 1: when things are happening and in life it feels as
• 33:51
  Speaker 1: though you're writing a plateau, it's just that patience is
• 33:56
  Speaker 1: preparing you. I was just talking to someone about this
• 33:58
  Speaker 1: this morning. I struggle with anticipation, like I understand that
• 34:03
  Speaker 1: things can't happen as planned, even though I'm such a planner,
• 34:06
  Speaker 1: I understand that things can happen as planned. But for me,
• 34:10
  Speaker 1: when the plan is ambiguous, it's it's understanding that patience
• 34:17
  Speaker 1: is also preparing me. I don't have to feel like
• 34:20
  Speaker 1: I have to keep doing something. And so I think
• 34:22
  Speaker 1: my injury forced me to sit down, and it was
• 34:26
  Speaker 1: very helpful because I had to sit with myself and
• 34:29
  Speaker 1: I had to sit I mean I ultimately I couldn't moved,
• 34:31
  Speaker 1: so I had to sit with people that were there
• 34:32
  Speaker 1: for me. So it was it was a blessing in disguise.
• 34:36
  Speaker 3: Yeah, but like this analogy extends to every single person
• 34:39
  Speaker 3: over the last two years of our life. And so
• 34:41
  Speaker 3: to think about you going through that necessity to sit
• 34:44
  Speaker 3: still and feel a little bit stuck while physically, in
• 34:47
  Speaker 3: some ways all of us having to sit still a
• 34:50
  Speaker 3: little be a little bit stuck, like it's no wonder
• 34:52
  Speaker 3: why you felt like you were in the room with
• 34:54
  Speaker 3: the shades drawn, because how could you not how could
• 34:57
  Speaker 3: you not feel that way considering everything that was going
• 35:01
  Speaker 3: on in the world. Nevertheless, everything that was just going
• 35:04
  Speaker 3: on with you and your body not being able to
• 35:06
  Speaker 3: execute in the way that you were used to.
• 35:08
  Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, no, that's absolutely right.
• 35:10
  Speaker 1: And realizing at times that those things kind of happened
• 35:14
  Speaker 1: for a reason, but then also allowing yourself to feel
• 35:18
  Speaker 1: it without it becoming a part of you. That's a
• 35:23
  Speaker 1: big challenge in anything in life.
• 35:26
  Speaker 4: We have to feel these.
• 35:27
  Speaker 1: Things, you know, otherwise they wouldn't exist. You know, we
• 35:32
  Speaker 1: learn a lot through our challenges. But it's what happens
• 35:35
  Speaker 1: after or it's how you push through the tunnel that
• 35:38
  Speaker 1: gets you to the light at the end.
• 35:40
  Speaker 4: Adult think is hard.
• 35:41
  Speaker 2: Adult think is hard. I don't think it's so hard
• 35:44
  Speaker 2: talking about the light at the end of the tunnel.
• 35:46
  Speaker 3: I said, I didn't want to jump around too much,
• 35:48
  Speaker 3: and then we harped on this for a moment because
• 35:50
  Speaker 3: I think it's a really important part of your story
• 35:52
  Speaker 3: so far. But you have been like trudging your way
• 35:56
  Speaker 3: through this career like none other I highlighted so many
• 35:59
  Speaker 3: of your amazing accomplishments.
• 36:01
  Speaker 2: At the top of this podcast, I asked.
• 36:04
  Speaker 3: You when you thought that you knew that you want
• 36:06
  Speaker 3: to continue on with this professionally, but when professionally, would
• 36:10
  Speaker 3: you say that you really understood I am one of
• 36:14
  Speaker 3: the best women to ever.
• 36:16
  Speaker 1: Have done this honestly when we signed the CBA, Yes, yeah,
• 36:22
  Speaker 1: when I would. I had the pleasure of working with
• 36:25
  Speaker 1: my current executive committee and our WNVPA staff and of
• 36:29
  Speaker 1: course the WNBA front office. Signing the CBA for me,
• 36:34
  Speaker 1: I mean and granted, I've won a championship, I've I've
• 36:37
  Speaker 1: you know, had all types of honors and recognition as
• 36:42
  Speaker 1: it pertains to like my achievements on the court, but
• 36:45
  Speaker 1: signing the CBA for me was like, oh my gosh,
• 36:47
  Speaker 1: like this is history. And then also too, completing a
• 36:52
  Speaker 1: bubble season was also a major major accomplishment. It's not
• 36:59
  Speaker 1: anything I would wish upon anyone. It's not anything I
• 37:02
  Speaker 1: would ever do again, but those two things stand out
• 37:06
  Speaker 1: in my career. Is like wow, like that's gonna be
• 37:07
  Speaker 1: in the history books, like we were a part of that.
• 37:10
  Speaker 4: That was huge.
• 37:11
  Speaker 1: But I think after having after having settled into my
• 37:15
  Speaker 1: role as a player, as a president, and as a person.
• 37:18
  Speaker 1: I find myself now in my career just kind of like, man,
• 37:20
  Speaker 1: I just want to hoop and I want people to
• 37:21
  Speaker 1: get to know me outside of my roles. It's funny
• 37:24
  Speaker 1: because I think people see me as I think people
• 37:28
  Speaker 1: give me like principal energy, and I don't really like it.
• 37:31
  Speaker 2: Oh principal energy.
• 37:33
  Speaker 4: Yeah.
• 37:33
  Speaker 1: I mean like because like I am the president and
• 37:36
  Speaker 1: most times I've been captain on my team, you know.
• 37:40
  Speaker 2: Just like an overachiever.
• 37:42
  Speaker 3: I'm like the person that was also staying council president
• 37:44
  Speaker 3: and like captain of the varsity, et cetera, et cetera.
• 37:47
  Speaker 1: It's cool, but I'm just kind of like I want
• 37:49
  Speaker 1: people to know.
• 37:50
  Speaker 3: Me, like, girl, I was the same way, please, like
• 37:53
  Speaker 3: after a president for my entire region of three states,
• 37:56
  Speaker 3: Like what was it? You know, sometimes you're just like
• 37:58
  Speaker 3: you just identify as that, like that's the person that
• 38:00
  Speaker 3: you're going to be. You're going to be at the forefront,
• 38:02
  Speaker 3: even though you're going to have these moments where you
• 38:04
  Speaker 3: do doubt yourself. You know, I do want to make
• 38:05
  Speaker 3: sure that I double click here on two things that
• 38:08
  Speaker 3: go hand in hand. I mentioned at the top of
• 38:10
  Speaker 3: this that you were like, yo, I don't even want
• 38:12
  Speaker 3: to be the president. Talk to us a little bit
• 38:14
  Speaker 3: about how that kind of came to fruition.
• 38:16
  Speaker 1: Well, you know, I think for the longest, it's always
• 38:19
  Speaker 1: kind of been a job that was assumed because a
• 38:22
  Speaker 1: lot of people don't it's a hard job, especially in
• 38:27
  Speaker 1: this world where women's sports is growing, and so the
• 38:31
  Speaker 1: growing part sounds good, but you know, we all know
• 38:33
  Speaker 1: what growing pains feel like. You know, like it's it's
• 38:36
  Speaker 1: not always fun. I had always been I had always
• 38:40
  Speaker 1: been voted as a player representative without my knowledge by
• 38:43
  Speaker 1: my teammates, and so I naturally just kind of became
• 38:47
  Speaker 1: a part of the circuit. And then ultimately I got
• 38:49
  Speaker 1: voted onto the executive committee without my knowledge as my
• 38:52
  Speaker 1: teammates for my teammates, and so I was like the
• 38:57
  Speaker 1: baby of the bunch when Tamika was the president. And
• 39:00
  Speaker 1: then when she was retiring, she came to me. She
• 39:02
  Speaker 1: was like, yeah, so I'm gonna need you to run
• 39:05
  Speaker 1: and I was like, yeah, so no, but she You know,
• 39:11
  Speaker 1: when when someone liked to mek A, you know, you know,
• 39:14
  Speaker 1: in a lot of ways suggests that you need to
• 39:16
  Speaker 1: run for something or that you need to step up
• 39:19
  Speaker 1: and be a part of something, then you don't really
• 39:22
  Speaker 1: say no. So that's kind of what I did, and
• 39:24
  Speaker 1: it has been a complete I was a guppy, like,
• 39:27
  Speaker 1: it was a complete learning process from the beginning.
• 39:30
  Speaker 4: But I have an.
• 39:31
  Speaker 1: Amazing executive committee, We have an amazing WNVPA staff, and
• 39:40
  Speaker 1: I don't know what I would do without that group
• 39:42
  Speaker 1: of people. Like we we have some some really enlightening conversations.
• 39:46
  Speaker 1: We have some conversations that aren't always easy for people
• 39:50
  Speaker 1: to have, but they're such a comfort and there's such
• 39:54
  Speaker 1: a revolutionary air to how we do what we do
• 39:58
  Speaker 1: and how we communicate and how we represent the one
• 40:01
  Speaker 1: forty four that just really ignites us and it allows
• 40:06
  Speaker 1: us to be change makers.
• 40:07
  Speaker 3: Yeah, and you mentioned the CBA, the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
• 40:11
  Speaker 3: Let's give a little bit of insight onto that for
• 40:13
  Speaker 3: those that may not be familiar and are listening to
• 40:15
  Speaker 3: this right now.
• 40:16
  Speaker 1: Yeah, So the Collective Bargain Agreement is essentially a really
• 40:20
  Speaker 1: long agreement that highlights and details, you know, the rights
• 40:25
  Speaker 1: of the players as agreed upon by the player Association
• 40:29
  Speaker 1: or the union and the WNVPA their employers. So it's
• 40:34
  Speaker 1: the union and union union workers agree with their employer
• 40:39
  Speaker 1: to have rights and proper working conditions.
• 40:43
  Speaker 2: I love the air quotes that are like happening on
• 40:48
  Speaker 2: our end here.
• 40:49
  Speaker 3: So for you, why was this just like such a
• 40:53
  Speaker 3: monumental thing that you have accomplished so far in your career.
• 40:57
  Speaker 1: It didn't occur to me until we announced that we
• 41:00
  Speaker 1: had included, you know, innovative models and details for which
• 41:09
  Speaker 1: we could, you know, start having the conversation around equity
• 41:16
  Speaker 1: as it's directly represented in an agreement that affects us.
• 41:20
  Speaker 1: Until you know, women who weren't even in sport were
• 41:26
  Speaker 1: talking to us about how monumental it was that we
• 41:28
  Speaker 1: signed such a revolutionary agreement. And you know, as athletes,
• 41:32
  Speaker 1: you think, okay, you know, I have an unconventional job.
• 41:35
  Speaker 1: There's just things that happen and that we do, and
• 41:40
  Speaker 1: at times you feel sometimes that you're kind of behind
• 41:42
  Speaker 1: the grain. But it was evident that we were setting
• 41:47
  Speaker 1: the tone for women in the workplace, not just women
• 41:49
  Speaker 1: in sport, but then of course too to now come
• 41:53
  Speaker 1: to today and see that the NWSL has signed their
• 41:56
  Speaker 1: first CBA and just being being able to contribute what
• 42:02
  Speaker 1: we learned for other women to be monumental, to be historical,
• 42:07
  Speaker 1: and ultimately for us to leave things better than when
• 42:10
  Speaker 1: we entered it is just huge. This is something that
• 42:13
  Speaker 1: will change things forever and there's no retracting, there's no
• 42:17
  Speaker 1: going back, and so to be a part of that
• 42:20
  Speaker 1: forward progress and that forward movement is amazing.
• 42:24
  Speaker 2: It's exciting to see the progress that we're making.
• 42:26
  Speaker 3: It's exciting think about where it could go from here.
• 42:30
  Speaker 3: When you think about what you want next. You mentioned
• 42:33
  Speaker 3: the Olympics and obviously navigating that knee injury.
• 42:37
  Speaker 2: What's on your bucket list going forward?
• 42:40
  Speaker 4: I just want to hoop, and I just want to
• 42:41
  Speaker 4: win some trophies. That's all that is.
• 42:46
  Speaker 2: I'd also like to lift up other women and like,
• 42:48
  Speaker 2: you know, all of these things. But hooping and trophies
• 42:50
  Speaker 2: sounds great.
• 42:51
  Speaker 4: Yeah, it really does.
• 42:53
  Speaker 1: I mean, of course, you know, I look forward to
• 42:55
  Speaker 1: seeing what more we can do as a players Association
• 42:58
  Speaker 1: and as a league.
• 43:00
  Speaker 3: But you mentioned also your outstanding Executive Committee.
• 43:05
  Speaker 2: I know that your sister Shane is on it as well.
• 43:07
  Speaker 3: What's it been like for you too to be able
• 43:09
  Speaker 3: to share this love for basketball and keep it within
• 43:12
  Speaker 3: the fam.
• 43:13
  Speaker 1: Oh fantastic. I think the person that loves it the
• 43:16
  Speaker 1: most is my mom for sure. You know, it's I
• 43:19
  Speaker 1: get to play with her. I'm on the executive committee
• 43:22
  Speaker 1: with her. You know, we get to talk about these
• 43:23
  Speaker 1: things every day that affect us, that affect our teammates
• 43:27
  Speaker 1: and the women of this league. And for us to
• 43:32
  Speaker 1: be able to have those kind of congruencies, amiss, you know,
• 43:36
  Speaker 1: our almost kind of like separate careers because she's taken
• 43:40
  Speaker 1: her path and I've taken mine. It's it's fun to
• 43:43
  Speaker 1: be able to to always relate, you know, in something.
• 43:46
  Speaker 2: That we have to do.
• 43:48
  Speaker 3: How is it that you're making the time to take
• 43:50
  Speaker 3: care of you considering everything we talked about from the
• 43:53
  Speaker 3: challenges of the you know, the year that we just
• 43:57
  Speaker 3: just checked off.
• 43:59
  Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, I think this is something that looks
• 44:00
  Speaker 1: very different for a lot of people. Taking time can
• 44:05
  Speaker 1: look like a whole different. It looks so different for
• 44:08
  Speaker 1: every person, and I think also too at times for
• 44:12
  Speaker 1: the individual. It looks different on a day to day basis,
• 44:14
  Speaker 1: on a week to week basis. And so you know,
• 44:16
  Speaker 1: the time that I take now in our off season
• 44:19
  Speaker 1: is very different from the time that I would take
• 44:20
  Speaker 1: during season. So now, like I really when people say, oh,
• 44:24
  Speaker 1: we're going to work. You know, I'm going to work.
• 44:26
  Speaker 1: I got to get up, get ready to go to work.
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: My work is like waking up and working out, like
• 44:30
  Speaker 1: that's what I do. And so granted, in two or
• 44:32
  Speaker 1: three hours every morning, I do that, but like having
• 44:36
  Speaker 1: the discipline and having my morning routine that sets me
• 44:38
  Speaker 1: up to have like a great workout, and then of
• 44:41
  Speaker 1: course having a recovery session at the end. Just learning
• 44:44
  Speaker 1: more about my discipline, learning more about my personal boundaries
• 44:49
  Speaker 1: when it comes to, you know, how far I can
• 44:51
  Speaker 1: extend myself. But then always staying tapped in, you know,
• 44:54
  Speaker 1: being able to talk to people like you, being able
• 44:57
  Speaker 1: to show up, whether it's at a dinner, appearance or
• 45:00
  Speaker 1: a photoshoot, like enjoying those moments when the season is
• 45:04
  Speaker 1: not happening. Being very present is one way that I
• 45:08
  Speaker 1: really try my best to stay balanced, because there's going
• 45:13
  Speaker 1: to be a day when no one remembers who you are,
• 45:15
  Speaker 1: so you have to you have to be very, very
• 45:17
  Speaker 1: grateful for every moment. And so this offseason, I've really
• 45:20
  Speaker 1: been focusing on that and saying yes to doing more
• 45:23
  Speaker 1: after experiencing a couple of years of us needing to
• 45:27
  Speaker 1: kind of detach from one another physically at least.
• 45:30
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 45:30
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean I don't know about if there's going
• 45:32
  Speaker 3: to be a day where people don't know you are
• 45:34
  Speaker 3: with the legacy that you are consciously working on and building.
• 45:38
  Speaker 2: Here two quick things to double click on.
• 45:40
  Speaker 3: First thing you said morning routine a buzzword for many
• 45:43
  Speaker 3: Two parts of your morning routine that are non negotiable.
• 45:46
  Speaker 2: What are they?
• 45:47
  Speaker 4: Ooh, I journal.
• 45:51
  Speaker 2: And is there a framework to that that you stick by.
• 45:55
  Speaker 1: Yeah, So I'm kind of like a I have my
• 45:57
  Speaker 1: own kind of like prompt. So, like I have this
• 45:59
  Speaker 1: thing that I'm up It's called attitude, gratitude, magnitude. So
• 46:03
  Speaker 1: I write about like how I guess attitude is kind
• 46:06
  Speaker 1: of like mantra sort of, but like I write, you know,
• 46:08
  Speaker 1: how I'm feeling. You know, you have to speak in
• 46:10
  Speaker 1: the present and you have to speak good upon yourself.
• 46:12
  Speaker 1: So like you just write about things that like I
• 46:15
  Speaker 1: am I feel this, you know, and then gratitude I
• 46:18
  Speaker 1: write down. That's always at the end of the day,
• 46:20
  Speaker 1: but in the morning, I write down my attitude and magnitude.
• 46:23
  Speaker 1: Magnitude are things that I want to see happen, their goals,
• 46:26
  Speaker 1: their dreams, you know. Their prayers, manifestations, whatever it is,
• 46:32
  Speaker 1: and I'm very detailed about it. You know, you can't
• 46:34
  Speaker 1: be too vague with those. So I definitely journal every
• 46:37
  Speaker 1: morning and then I have like a meditative or prayerful moment,
• 46:41
  Speaker 1: and a lot of times I kind of mix that
• 46:43
  Speaker 1: with like some type of stretching or like some way
• 46:46
  Speaker 1: to kind of invigorate my body. So whether it's like
• 46:49
  Speaker 1: in child's polls or my legs up elevated against the wall.
• 46:53
  Speaker 1: I try to do at least like fifteen minutes of
• 46:55
  Speaker 1: that every morning before I get up.
• 46:58
  Speaker 3: Are you willing to share what's on the magnitude from
• 47:01
  Speaker 3: anything from the last week? Ooh? I like that piece
• 47:07
  Speaker 3: of advice about being very specific about it, like being
• 47:09
  Speaker 3: very you know, you can have positive intentions, but until
• 47:12
  Speaker 3: you like actually get specific about the things that you want, like,
• 47:15
  Speaker 3: that's how it helps those things actually happen.
• 47:18
  Speaker 4: Yeah. No, absolutely.
• 47:19
  Speaker 1: I would say, like something that I'm specifically manifesting is
• 47:25
  Speaker 1: for my team to have the resources necessary to build
• 47:30
  Speaker 1: a Sparks practice facility, And like I write that down
• 47:32
  Speaker 1: and like sometimes if you want to, you can write
• 47:35
  Speaker 1: it down down to like when you want it to happen,
• 47:37
  Speaker 1: Like by this year, by this day. But that's something
• 47:39
  Speaker 1: I've been writing down for about a year.
• 47:41
  Speaker 3: You know. That's interesting, right, because I think someone will say,
• 47:44
  Speaker 3: like you were just talking about how like how specific
• 47:46
  Speaker 3: you can get, and maybe someone who is a little
• 47:49
  Speaker 3: bit more cynical would be like, well, how much of
• 47:51
  Speaker 3: that is actually in your control? But when you take
• 47:53
  Speaker 3: a step back and you ask yourself that question, like
• 47:55
  Speaker 3: a fair amount of it could be in your control
• 47:57
  Speaker 3: if you actually like speak up and take action against
• 47:59
  Speaker 3: the thing that you want, even if it is a
• 48:01
  Speaker 3: little bit grand noise, right.
• 48:03
  Speaker 1: Right, Yeah, no, one hundred percent, because you're not writing
• 48:06
  Speaker 1: it down in hopes that you just put it out
• 48:08
  Speaker 1: there and it's going to happen, right, You're writing it
• 48:10
  Speaker 1: down to make it material, But then you're also writing
• 48:13
  Speaker 1: it down so that you can see that all the
• 48:15
  Speaker 1: actions that you take on a day to day, whether
• 48:17
  Speaker 1: you feel like they're you're in your control or not,
• 48:20
  Speaker 1: are towards those goals.
• 48:22
  Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, wow, I love it. I love it all. Right,
• 48:25
  Speaker 2: we're starting to wind down here right now.
• 48:27
  Speaker 3: Someone doesn't know you that well, maybe they're hearing about
• 48:30
  Speaker 3: you for the first time on this show.
• 48:32
  Speaker 2: Right now, they go to your Instagram page to check
• 48:35
  Speaker 2: you out.
• 48:35
  Speaker 3: They're like wow, like superstar basketball player geez, one hundred
• 48:39
  Speaker 3: and fifty four thousand people follow her.
• 48:42
  Speaker 2: This is crazy. When you look in the mirror, what
• 48:45
  Speaker 2: is it that you see looking back at you?
• 48:49
  Speaker 1: I see, I guess you could say, like a big sister.
• 48:55
  Speaker 1: And I mean that both literally and figuratively. I feel
• 48:59
  Speaker 1: like I I hold that role for a lot.
• 49:01
  Speaker 4: Of people in my life. I see.
• 49:07
  Speaker 1: A leader, someone who's in charge, and I see a
• 49:12
  Speaker 1: creative I see someone who's very creative. There's a lot
• 49:14
  Speaker 1: that I use to express myself, whether it's through food,
• 49:17
  Speaker 1: through music, through television. There's a lot of stuff that
• 49:20
  Speaker 1: I do that people don't really or like that I
• 49:22
  Speaker 1: pay attention to, or that I engage with that people
• 49:24
  Speaker 1: don't really know about.
• 49:24
  Speaker 2: What are we cooking?
• 49:26
  Speaker 4: Ooh?
• 49:27
  Speaker 1: Right now on my fridge, I have lo maine as
• 49:30
  Speaker 1: something that I want to make.
• 49:31
  Speaker 2: Oh yeah, I.
• 49:34
  Speaker 3: Love how Also you were like I see the strong friend,
• 49:37
  Speaker 3: Like I know, I see this person that is a
• 49:41
  Speaker 3: person that is here for everyone I care about.
• 49:44
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I really am that person though. Yeah that's just
• 49:47
  Speaker 1: kind of who I am. But you know, I love music,
• 49:51
  Speaker 1: I love food, I love TV. And movies like I
• 49:54
  Speaker 1: actually really like fashion too, Like I'm I have a.
• 49:58
  Speaker 4: Very creative essence. So Lomaine is on the menu I'm
• 50:03
  Speaker 4: currently living.
• 50:04
  Speaker 3: And hears this, They're like, okay, so we're going to
• 50:07
  Speaker 3: need to start working on some specific key pieces for
• 50:10
  Speaker 3: twenty twenty three, twenty twenty four.
• 50:14
  Speaker 4: Well we'll see what happens.
• 50:16
  Speaker 3: Yes, start putting that on the Magnitude list right right,
• 50:21
  Speaker 3: Oh my god. Well, okay, final question here for you, Neka.
• 50:24
  Speaker 3: Right now, you have an opportunity to offer yourself a
• 50:28
  Speaker 3: year ago, going through the thick of it, sitting in
• 50:31
  Speaker 3: that dark room, dealing with the knee injury.
• 50:33
  Speaker 2: The pandemic is in full force.
• 50:36
  Speaker 3: You have an opportunity to offer that woman a piece
• 50:38
  Speaker 3: of advice. Looking back on it now with the new
• 50:41
  Speaker 3: perspective that you have. What is it that you tell
• 50:44
  Speaker 3: her you.
• 50:45
  Speaker 1: Just got to feel it, feel it and forget it.
• 50:48
  Speaker 1: Like feel it and let it go, allow yourself to feel.
• 50:53
  Speaker 1: Don't arrest yourself in this idea that hurting is not healing.
• 50:58
  Speaker 2: My soul, my soul.
• 50:59
  Speaker 3: All this is like, honestly, such a such a joy
• 51:02
  Speaker 3: to talk to you today.
• 51:04
  Speaker 2: I appreciate you. Nika.
• 51:05
  Speaker 3: How did the hurdlers follow along with you. How do
• 51:07
  Speaker 3: they keep up with you? Give me all the details.
• 51:10
  Speaker 4: Absolutely.
• 51:11
  Speaker 1: My name is Neco Gloomickay. You can find me at
• 51:13
  Speaker 1: Neco Boomackay on both Twitter and Instagram, and I think
• 51:19
  Speaker 1: that's really the best way on social media. But most importantly,
• 51:24
  Speaker 1: I play for the La Sparks, so you can get
• 51:26
  Speaker 1: your tickets at the Lasparks dot com. You can watch us,
• 51:30
  Speaker 1: you can sub you can subscribe to le w NBA
• 51:32
  Speaker 1: League Pass for you to be able to watch me
• 51:35
  Speaker 1: and the La Sparks at your earliest convenient.
• 51:41
  Speaker 2: I'm on it. I'm on it.
• 51:42
  Speaker 3: I'm over at Hurdle Podcast and at Emily Abadi another
• 51:45
  Speaker 3: hurdle conquered.
• 51:47
  Speaker 2: Catch you guys next time.