Speaker 1: Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we can't
Speaker 1: stop thinking about Game one of the WNBA Finals. Last night.
Speaker 1: That shit was bananas, b ananas. On today's show, we'll
Speaker 1: talk about the game, then we'll chat with Golden State
Speaker 1: Valkyries President Jess Smith and WNBA Toronto President Teresa Resh
Speaker 1: about building a team from scratch, logos, colors, name and all,
Speaker 1: plus a mother's revenge and a call to action. It's
Speaker 1: all coming up right after this welcome back slices. Before
Speaker 1: we dive in, we just want to say that we're
Speaker 1: sending love to all of those affected by Hurricane Milton.
Speaker 1: Here's what you need to know today in the WNBA,
Speaker 1: Game one was an absolute ride. The New York Liberty
Speaker 1: came out fast in front of a Rock and Barclays crowd,
Speaker 1: building as much as an eighteen point lead in the
Speaker 1: second quarter, but they went cold in the third and
Speaker 1: the Links got hot, pulling within two points. New York
Speaker 1: pulled away again, getting their lead back up to fifteen
Speaker 1: with about five minutes to play in the game, but
Speaker 1: the Links battled back again, down three. With the clock
Speaker 1: winding down, Courtney Williams hit a three and got the
Speaker 1: foul for Minnesota, draining the free throat for the four
Speaker 1: point play and the lead, Minnesota's first lead of the
Speaker 1: game with five point five seconds to play. But that
Speaker 1: wasn't it. The Links played lockdown d on multiple attempts
Speaker 1: from the liberty, but Brianna Stewart took a fowl with
Speaker 1: no time remaining and got sent to the line where
Speaker 1: Stewie made the first and missed the second. That's right,
Speaker 1: we got ot slices and the extra period was just
Speaker 1: as wild. It came down to a Brianna Stewart driving
Speaker 1: layup with time running out, surrounded by Minnesota bodies, and
Speaker 1: the touch wasn't there too hard, No bucket. Links get
Speaker 1: the improbable win ninety three and steal Game one from
Speaker 1: the Libs on their home court in front of a
Speaker 1: stunned crowd that included Jason Sadeikas, Spike Lee, Gail King
Speaker 1: and Moore. Twenty three for Courtney Williams, twenty two for
Speaker 1: Kayla McBride and twenty one for Nafisa Collier in the
Speaker 1: Minnesota win, twenty four and ten for John qwell Jones,
Speaker 1: eighteen and nine for Brianna Stewart, and nineteen points for
Speaker 1: Sabrina and Escu in the Liberties losing effort. Game two
Speaker 1: is Sunday at three pm on ABC. Do not miss
Speaker 1: it Before game one. WNBA Commissioner Katy Engelbert broke some
Speaker 1: news announcing that starting next season, the WNBA Finals will
Speaker 1: be a best of seven format. It'll be a two two,
Speaker 1: one one one format, meaning the higher seed team will
Speaker 1: host games one, two, five, and seven. Also, the first
Speaker 1: round best of three series will shift from a two
Speaker 1: to one format to alternating games one, one one, giving
Speaker 1: each team at least one home playoff game. Engelbert also
Speaker 1: announced that next year's regular season will ex span from
Speaker 1: forty to forty four regular season games. Some player news
Speaker 1: out of the day too. Duana Bonner, in her exit
Speaker 1: interview with The Connecticut Sun, said for the first time
Speaker 1: explicitly she does not plan to retire in twenty twenty
Speaker 1: five and fully intends to play in the WNBA next season.
Speaker 1: More WNBA news. Former Las Vegas Aces assistant coach Natalie
Speaker 1: Nicasse has been named the first head coach of the
Speaker 1: Golden State Valkyries. The forty one year old LA native
Speaker 1: has plenty of coaching experience to draw on. She's been
Speaker 1: Becky Hammond's assistant for the past three seasons with the Aces,
Speaker 1: but also spent eleven seasons on staff with the mnba's
Speaker 1: Los Angeles Clippers as a video coordinator, assistant coach of
Speaker 1: the franchise's G League affiliate, and as a player development coach.
Speaker 1: As a hooper, she walked down at UCLA and was
Speaker 1: a team captain there for three years, then spent two
Speaker 1: seasons playing in the National Women's Basketball League, a pro
Speaker 1: league that existed from ninety seven to two thousand and seven.
Speaker 1: We'll talk more about her hiring with Jess Smith in
Speaker 1: just a few minutes. In volleyball news. On World Mental
Speaker 1: Health Day yesterday, the Pro Volleyball Federal announced that it's
Speaker 1: teaming up with on Rise, a mental health care service
Speaker 1: specializing in work with current and retired athletes, to provide
Speaker 1: care and support to each athlete on every team roster.
Speaker 1: These services will be offered at no cost to the players.
Speaker 1: More World Mental Health Day news broke over in the NWSL,
Speaker 1: the Players Association announced its establishing the Ohm Arvind Gift,
Speaker 1: meant to honor the life and legacy of soccer journalist
Speaker 1: In women's soccer advocate Om Arvin, who died by suicide
Speaker 1: in May of this year. Ohm dedicated himself to growing
Speaker 1: the women's game through his coverage and analysis, including but
Speaker 1: not limited to spearheading dedicated in depth coverage of Real
Speaker 1: Madrid Feminina on espionations, managing Madrid site. As part of
Speaker 1: Ohm's final wishes, a GoFundMe was created to raise funds
Speaker 1: for the NWSLPA. That GoFundMe has raised over twenty five
Speaker 1: thousand dollars, which has been allocated to the support the
Speaker 1: Player's National Emergency Trust to provide mental health support for
Speaker 1: nwsl players. The new gift in his name will encompass
Speaker 1: any future contributions made to the NWSLPA for mental health support.
Speaker 1: In a statement, NWSLPA Executive Director at Meghan Burke said,
Speaker 1: quote with the om Arvind Gift, the NWSLPA seeks to
Speaker 1: honor Ohm's life, legacy and the vision he had for
Speaker 1: a better world. We are deeply moved by the gift
Speaker 1: he has left us and we believe it will save lives.
Speaker 1: End quote. We've got nwsl game action tonight as well.
Speaker 1: Fresh off winning the nwsl Shield, the Orlando Pride is
Speaker 1: on the road to face the Portland Thorns. Also this
Speaker 1: weekend a bunch of games with playoff implications. Here's a
Speaker 1: quick refresher on where everyone sits heading into the weekend. Orlando, Washington, Gotham,
Speaker 1: Kansas City, and North Carolina have already wrapped up five
Speaker 1: of the eight playoff spots. The Houston Dash are the
Speaker 1: only team already out of the running, meaning eight teams
Speaker 1: are technically still in contention for just three spots. The
Speaker 1: Chicago Red Stars can clinch a spot in the postseason
Speaker 1: with a win this weekend against Gotham, or if a
Speaker 1: few other things go their way. A few teams are
Speaker 1: also at risk of being eliminated from playoff contention this weekend.
Speaker 1: The Seattle Rain, Utah Royals, Angel City, and San Diego
Speaker 1: could all be mathematically eliminated depending on how things play out.
Speaker 1: As always, the scenarios are pretty complex, so we'll link
Speaker 1: to art Queen and data viz Whiz Alison Gale's research
Speaker 1: in the show notes, along with the full game schedule.
Speaker 1: In college hoops, sophomore USC guard Juju Watkins keeps bringing
Speaker 1: in the business. She has officially signed with Gatorade, making
Speaker 1: her only the third college hooper dependent nil deal with
Speaker 1: the brand. The other two are Yukon's Pagebeckers and former
Speaker 1: Iowah Hawke Caitlin Clark. Add this to the multi year
Speaker 1: extension she just signed with Nike, and it's clear that
Speaker 1: Juju's got next, Actually no scratch that her time is
Speaker 1: right now. They even gave her the Gatorade sweat treatment.
Speaker 1: You could check out that post in our episode notes
Speaker 1: more in college sports. On Thursday, the NCAA released findings
Speaker 1: from a study done in partnership with the data science
Speaker 1: companies Signify Group, analyzing the social media accounts of over
Speaker 1: three thousand student athletes, about five hundred coaches, two hundred
Speaker 1: event officials, and one hundred and sixty five teams. Their findings,
Speaker 1: the abuse, harassment, and threats of violence that college athletes
Speaker 1: face on social media reaches a high during March Madness.
Speaker 1: Eight out of ten ABUSI posts sent to college athletes
Speaker 1: on social media we're sent during the NCAA tournament. Further,
Speaker 1: women's basketball players are targeted three times more than their
Speaker 1: male counterparts. The NCAA made a point of noting that
Speaker 1: the study only covered public facing threats, and Signified Group
Speaker 1: executives believe harassment is likely worse in private messages and dms. Now,
Speaker 1: maybe this doesn't come as a huge surprise, but that's
Speaker 1: kind of the problem. We expect these young athletes to
Speaker 1: just take the online bullying in stride, keep up with
Speaker 1: their academic responsibilities, and perform to the best of their
Speaker 1: abilities in the sport they choose. But these kids are humans,
Speaker 1: and that status quo has to change. In news news,
Speaker 1: Yahoo Sports and The Athletic announced yesterday that they're teaming
Speaker 1: up to bring a women's sports hub to the Yahoo
Speaker 1: Sports website and app. The hub will provide written, audio,
Speaker 1: and video content produced by both entities, and it'll be
Speaker 1: free and available globally, no subscription required. All right, celisis
Speaker 1: it's time for another What the fact we've heard this
Speaker 1: a million times pitched to us as a positive? The
Speaker 1: US women's national team jersey sold out in twenty four hours.
Speaker 1: Caitlin clear Mark's All Star jersey sold out in fifteen minutes.
Speaker 1: An immediate game sellout is great news. An immediate merch
Speaker 1: sellout means you left money on the table and didn't
Speaker 1: account for demand, and also that you're contributing months or
Speaker 1: even years later to a statistic that someone can hold
Speaker 1: up to say there isn't much money in women's sports
Speaker 1: merch or the sales are significantly less than the men's
Speaker 1: or other context freebs that weakens the business case for
Speaker 1: women's sports. So here's what the fact. According to research
Speaker 1: done this year by Klarna and the sports innovation lab
Speaker 1: called Repper, revealing the unmet demand for women's sports merchandise,
Speaker 1: more than sixty percent of fans who searched for and
Speaker 1: intended to buy women's sports merchandise didn't make a purchase
Speaker 1: because it wasn't in stock. Thirty two percent of women's
Speaker 1: sports fans can't find a retailer that carries merchandise related
Speaker 1: to their favorite teams and athletes, and seventy nine percent
Speaker 1: of respondents reported that they would purchase more women's sports
Speaker 1: merch if there were more options available to them, twenty
Speaker 1: eight percent reporting that they couldn't find a style that
Speaker 1: they liked. The report estimated that women's sports merchandise is
Speaker 1: a four billion dollar annual opportunity and it's falling short.
Speaker 1: And here's another fact. Did you know that eighty four
Speaker 1: percent of sports fans are into women's sports, but they
Speaker 1: only get fifteen percent of the media coverage That doesn't
Speaker 1: add up. As a founding partner of Iheartwomen's Sports, elf
Speaker 1: Beauty is serious about changing the game and igniting conversations
Speaker 1: that will reshape the future of sports. Join the movement
Speaker 1: now at Elfbauty dot com. We're going to take a
Speaker 1: quick break. When we come back, we talk expansion with
Speaker 1: two WNBA team presidents. Stick around. It's time for another
Speaker 1: edition of group chat, where we take the t from
Speaker 1: the text and put it on the airwaves. She's the
Speaker 1: president of the WNBA expansion team tipping off in twenty
Speaker 1: twenty five the Golden State Valkyries, formerly head of revenue
Speaker 1: and head of corporate Partnerships for Angel City FC of
Speaker 1: the NWSL. She also spent five years working in men's
Speaker 1: Major League Soccer and six years with the Oakland A's
Speaker 1: a twenty twenty three Sports Business Journal forty under forty
Speaker 1: honoree and a member of the twenty twenty three Leaders
Speaker 1: in Sport Under forty class. We made a human pyramid
Speaker 1: in the Vice President of the United States of America's house.
Speaker 1: It's Jess Smith. What's up, Jess, Hi?
Speaker 2: I mean the last piece was the most memorable part
Speaker 2: of all of that.
Speaker 1: Important part of your resume. Joining her. She's the president
Speaker 1: of the WNBA expansion team tipping off in twenty twenty six,
Speaker 1: the yet to be named Toronto team, Formerly vice president
Speaker 1: of basketball operations for the Toronto Raptors. She also spent
Speaker 1: four years at the NBA office. We eat a basketball
Speaker 1: team's worth a sushi together in Toronto and we send
Speaker 1: each other Rex for extra long pants. It's Teresa Rush.
Speaker 1: What's up, Teresa?
Speaker 3: Oh, great to be here.
Speaker 4: I aged out of all those awards that just won,
Speaker 4: so maybe maybe my profile will be in the Golden years.
Speaker 3: No other time, but yeah, great to have.
Speaker 1: More fifty under fifty, sixty under sixty. We all got
Speaker 1: so much time to get shit done before we get
Speaker 1: to anything. Jess, thank you so much for timing big
Speaker 1: important breaking news just before your arrival on our show.
Speaker 1: We are recording this Thursday afternoon, and you just announced
Speaker 1: that the Las Vegas Aces assistant coach Natalie Nicassi has
Speaker 1: been higher as the head coach of the Valkyries. So
Speaker 1: take us through it. Tell us about the decision.
Speaker 2: A huge, huge day for us here. It's Ohemma's first
Speaker 2: move as our general manager, and you know it was
Speaker 2: quite a process for her, But Natalie comes with not
Speaker 2: only incredible expertise, but really leans into the culture that
Speaker 2: we're focused on building, where we want to be the best,
Speaker 2: but we want to be great people and we want
Speaker 2: to bring people into that and do great things. So
Speaker 2: she's going to be a powerhouse. We're so fortunate to
Speaker 2: have her in Valkyrie Violet. Moving forward, Sorry, Asis Valkyrie Violet.
Speaker 1: Oh Scott, it's just rolling off the tongue already. Okay,
Speaker 1: We're going to get into that because I'm so excited
Speaker 1: to talk about how you build a brand logo and
Speaker 1: colors and name and mascot and all of it. But
Speaker 1: I want to do a quick though on the WNBA
Speaker 1: Finals first, because we're recording this just before the tip
Speaker 1: off of Game one. We'll go big picture, Teresa, who
Speaker 1: you got and.
Speaker 4: Why I got the Liberty. I think they're al for revenge.
Speaker 4: I think they're playing really well. New York City is
Speaker 4: on fire. Ellie's my favorite mascot. I'm all in on
Speaker 4: the Libs.
Speaker 3: Even though I.
Speaker 4: Grew up I grew up in Minnesota. Minnesota always wants
Speaker 4: wants a winner, is always looking for a winner. But
Speaker 4: I'm going with the Liberty.
Speaker 1: Ellie is also my favorite mascot, although tied with Benny
Speaker 1: the Bowl for very different reasons. Jess, who you got
Speaker 1: and why?
Speaker 3: Yeah?
Speaker 2: Unbelievable finals and playoffs, you know, to date with the
Speaker 2: talent that's coming out. But I also have the liberty.
Speaker 2: I think there's a consistency that they're playing with right now.
Speaker 2: In Teresa's point, they have something to prove and there's
Speaker 2: a lot of emotion behind that, and the way that
Speaker 2: they're showing up for each other is a pretty pretty
Speaker 2: special squad. So I've got them in the finals, but
Speaker 2: I think it's I think it's going to be a
Speaker 2: tit for tat, full game finals, full five games.
Speaker 1: Completely agreat. I also love calling women's sports anything tit
Speaker 1: for tat. It has a totally different meaning. Also, I'm
Speaker 1: hoping that we're not like when they show those like
Speaker 1: full boards of like Fox Sports or ESPN, people who
Speaker 1: all pick the same team and ultimately jinx them. So
Speaker 1: if so, sorry libs, Uh sorry, because I got the
Speaker 1: libs too. Okay, once that final shot of that series
Speaker 1: has been taken, once the champions are crowned, you got next, Jess,
Speaker 1: which means all eyes will be on the Valkyries. You
Speaker 1: already have over eighteen thousand season ticket deposits secured despite
Speaker 1: having zero players on your roster and just today announcing
Speaker 1: your coach. So let's start there. What an incredible accomplishment.
Speaker 1: How have you pulled that off?
Speaker 2: A lot of it. It's a testament to the Bay,
Speaker 2: this ownership group and the intention about how we're building
Speaker 2: the team. You know, it's really important that you come
Speaker 2: out from day one and share what this is going
Speaker 2: to be and what people will be a part of,
Speaker 2: and listen to them and how to build it alongside
Speaker 2: of them, to give them exactly what they're looking for.
Speaker 2: And we did just that, you know, right down to
Speaker 2: the name where twenty five percent of people actually wrote
Speaker 2: into the chronicle after they said at the announcement day,
Speaker 2: you know, what should the team be named? They wrote
Speaker 2: in Valkyries. You know, we listened to them. That's what
Speaker 2: they wanted us to be, That's what they wanted us
Speaker 2: to build around, and we continue to do that. But
Speaker 2: it really is a testament to understanding the base power
Speaker 2: and ability to lead. You know, this is a region
Speaker 2: that people often look to to see what comes next,
Speaker 2: whether it's technology, innovation or just how we treat people
Speaker 2: and progress the world forward and building with women's basketball,
Speaker 2: and with that in mind, you know, it's just been
Speaker 2: an incredible opportunity, but we're very grateful for it. But
Speaker 2: we are going to create incredible experiences to make sure
Speaker 2: that we're matching the excitement that's being given to us.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, you created something that has such a
Speaker 1: brand already, which is wild. There are teams that have
Speaker 1: existed for years and you don't really know who they are,
Speaker 1: what they stand for in the Valkyries, so clearly already
Speaker 1: have this identity. Take us back to day one on
Speaker 1: the job. What is the first place that you start
Speaker 1: in creating a new team. And I'm not talking as
Speaker 1: much like business wise, but more creative wise.
Speaker 2: No, creative wise, it's you know, the name had been
Speaker 2: selected by the time I started, but then how we
Speaker 2: were going to define that was a big moment. You know,
Speaker 2: a lot of the conversation was should we be blue
Speaker 2: and gold. Often when you see a women's team with
Speaker 2: a sports ownership group that already has an existing men's team,
Speaker 2: they have a similar color way, and we were really
Speaker 2: adamant that that was not going to be us. For
Speaker 2: good reason. When you see blue and gold and Golden State,
Speaker 2: you're going to think of the Warriors. They've earned every
Speaker 2: piece of that legacy. We want the ability to build
Speaker 2: our own legacy. And also, we've talked about in sports
Speaker 2: business now for the last number of years, this audience
Speaker 2: is a unique audience. Now all of them will be
Speaker 2: Warriors fans, and you want to make sure that you're
Speaker 2: building a product that invites everybody to have a seat
Speaker 2: at the table. Well, of course we want Warriors fans too,
Speaker 2: and so when we thought about the colorway, the WBA
Speaker 2: has done a great job of this with the orange
Speaker 2: ho titty. We wanted to own something that was ours,
Speaker 2: so whether it had our logo on it or not,
Speaker 2: that when you saw it you thought of the Valkyries,
Speaker 2: and not only thought of the Valkyries, but thought of
Speaker 2: who we are from a value perspective and what that means.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 2: I think what's really special about what all of us
Speaker 2: are doing, including this show, is that we know that
Speaker 2: there's power in listenership, viewership, buying merchandise, buying tickets, and like,
Speaker 2: what this feels like is so much more than sport.
Speaker 2: It's really part of our culture and our identity, and
Speaker 2: so building a brand that allowed our fans, you know,
Speaker 2: to make sure that they can embody that as well.
Speaker 1: And I love that and it's so true. First of all,
Speaker 1: I love the violet, not just because it looks really
Speaker 1: good on me. You set me a shirt and I
Speaker 1: was like, oh, this might be my color, but also because,
Speaker 1: much like Angel City, that sort of reclaimed pink in
Speaker 1: a way that had been something to mock. This is
Speaker 1: a color that you don't see in professional sports really
Speaker 1: the same way racing Louisville has a touch of it,
Speaker 1: but this is really your dominant color. Real quick. You
Speaker 1: did help launch angel City as well. What's been the
Speaker 1: biggest difference in starting a team from scratch in the
Speaker 1: WNBA versus NWSL.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's such a different time. Even four years later,
Speaker 2: it often feels like dog years to me, like one
Speaker 2: day is one month's time, and so launching Angel City
Speaker 2: feels like ten years ago to me in the best
Speaker 2: ways of just the amount of work we poured into
Speaker 2: that organization. But really what I took from the it's
Speaker 2: different in some ways, but what I think is similar
Speaker 2: is the opportunity to really lean in and be unapologetically yourself.
Speaker 2: And build something that's really unique, and I think that's
Speaker 2: incredibly important. You're going to see a lot more of
Speaker 2: it in women's sports.
Speaker 1: I love it. Teresa. You're sitting where Jess was less
Speaker 1: than a year ago, a blank page in front of you,
Speaker 1: and not really just a city, but a whole country
Speaker 1: to represent with your name and your brand. The Toronto
Speaker 1: WNBA team is Toronto, but like a whole bunch of Canadians,
Speaker 1: I mean, watch them from all over. Where did the
Speaker 1: process start for you?
Speaker 4: Funny, I didn't even realize just that when you arrived
Speaker 4: and took the job, like Valkyrie's has already chosen, Like,
Speaker 4: I feel so honored that I get to actually impact that.
Speaker 4: So where we started was, I mean a similar place.
Speaker 4: Like we wanted to hear from Canadians and we thought
Speaker 4: it was really really important that they had a voice
Speaker 4: in it. So we set up a website, We set
Speaker 4: up a text number and said tell us what you want.
Speaker 4: And it was really really interesting to see the submissions.
Speaker 4: We had over ninety eight different countries actually interact with website,
Speaker 4: which really surprised me. We got over a thousand unique names,
Speaker 4: and then from there we just started calling them out right, Like,
Speaker 4: there was a lot of a lot of names in there.
Speaker 4: That Valkyrie actually was very popular, and like I'm not
Speaker 4: sure if they paid attention, Raptors was really popular. Like
Speaker 4: there's a lot that came up.
Speaker 1: With the hders at the end, right, Raptors, Well.
Speaker 4: Yep, that was part of it. Yeah, there's a lot
Speaker 4: of genderized names in there too. But what was interesting is, yeah,
Speaker 4: there's a lot of names that are taken, right, there's
Speaker 4: trademark and IP and all those those crazy things, But
Speaker 4: there is still an unbelievable universe that hasn't even been
Speaker 4: touched yet, and we are really excited to play in
Speaker 4: that universe.
Speaker 3: So we're not quite there. We don't have our name and.
Speaker 4: Colors yet selected, but we've actually taken a lot of
Speaker 4: insight and direction from Canadians and also from what other
Speaker 4: teams have done. Like we take a lot of cues
Speaker 4: from the Valkyries, and we talked to Jess a lot.
Speaker 4: We take a lot of cues from the NWSL PWHL.
Speaker 4: We're learning a lot. We're looking around in the marketplace.
Speaker 4: So we can't wait to have Brandon Dendy. Like the
Speaker 4: fact that right now my name says Teresa rash WNBA
Speaker 4: Toronto is kind of boring. I can't wait to actually
Speaker 4: have a name to put at the end there and
Speaker 4: really plant our flag. But it's fun to also see
Speaker 4: like oh, Emma being hired and Nally being in hired,
Speaker 4: and like, you know, I kind of hate that just
Speaker 4: keeps stealing all the people on my short list. But
Speaker 4: it's good because that means that this league is only
Speaker 4: going to be elevated. And what the Valkyries are doing
Speaker 4: is setting the bar that we are going to try
Speaker 4: to raise, that Portland's going to try to raise, and
Speaker 4: the next team is going to try to raise, and
Speaker 4: I think in general, we're just so excited to be
Speaker 4: part of this movement.
Speaker 1: It's really cool how you've been sort of transparent and collaborative,
Speaker 1: right You've you've asked people for their suggestions, and then
Speaker 1: you've also put up on the w NBA Toronto Instagram
Speaker 1: rejected suggestions by category nature and Animals. Can you name
Speaker 1: one of the weirdest suggestions you got?
Speaker 4: Oh my gosh, there's a lot. Honestly, it was very common.
Speaker 4: Toronto is obsessed with raccoons.
Speaker 1: Oh my god, I love raccoons.
Speaker 4: It showed up so many different times, like not only that,
Speaker 4: but like trash panda, like all the kinds of things.
Speaker 3: And likely want to be associated with a pest.
Speaker 1: First of all, have some respect.
Speaker 3: I wouldn't say that.
Speaker 4: Was the most unique, but you know, my dad keeps
Speaker 4: telling me we should be called the solar flares with
Speaker 4: like neon colors. So every time he's like, a solar
Speaker 4: flare is still.
Speaker 3: In the running. I don't have the heart to tell
Speaker 3: him it's been.
Speaker 4: But I guess if he listens, No, he listens, I
Speaker 4: told him to listen, he'll he'll know now that it's
Speaker 4: not quite there anymore. But it's been really interesting, Like
Speaker 4: it's been really fun as well to be transparent in
Speaker 4: the process, Like the cutting room floor has been really fun.
Speaker 3: To talk about. And the thing is is a lot
Speaker 3: of those are great names. It just doesn't work for us.
Speaker 4: It doesn't work for us to make sense this sport
Speaker 4: or this marketplace. But there's a lot of great names.
Speaker 4: And yeah, our Instagram page talks about it. We also
Speaker 4: have a podcast bringing Home the w just like you
Speaker 4: have a podcast that talks about it. Really excited to
Speaker 4: have doctor Edwards come on board. He's just a legend
Speaker 4: in design. He works out a pencil out of Detroit
Speaker 4: and he's a consultant on the project with us, and
Speaker 4: his insights were incredible. On this cool journey, we're going
Speaker 4: to talk to some athletes about what it means to
Speaker 4: wear the different jerseys, how it impacts their experience in
Speaker 4: different cities. So just like the whole three six c
Speaker 4: of what brand identity means has been really fun to
Speaker 4: super fun.
Speaker 1: I think we're super aware now of how much that
Speaker 1: branding can affect the exposure, the awareness, the interest all that.
Speaker 1: I want to say, I love raccoons and trash pandas,
Speaker 1: and also not choosing solar flares is a good choice.
Speaker 1: But if you have Neon, especially like the Brat Neon
Speaker 1: green slash yellow, I will buy all of your ear.
Speaker 1: That is my favorite color right now. I guess because
Speaker 1: I'm a basic pitch, but I want to say I
Speaker 1: was rocking it. Jess can account for this. I was
Speaker 1: rocking a Neon green Onesie jumpsuit in Sydney well before
Speaker 1: Charlie XCX.
Speaker 2: So you were think you set the scene.
Speaker 1: I set the scene, that's for sure, Jess. We were
Speaker 1: just talking colors, names, vibes. Take us through that process
Speaker 1: it sounds fun and so overwhelming. So you arrive and
Speaker 1: it's valkyries. What else did you get to kind of
Speaker 1: put your stamp on.
Speaker 2: Yeah, so it's valkyries. But very quickly when we create
Speaker 2: the brief of wanting that unique color, we realize how
Speaker 2: difficult that is. There's actually only so many colors that
Speaker 2: exist in the color way that we get a chance
Speaker 2: to work on a lot of boring production details about
Speaker 2: how that can get done and how to match the
Speaker 2: color and different types of fabrics and those types of things.
Speaker 2: So you actually don't have that many to choose from,
Speaker 2: even though you think you would. And then you have
Speaker 2: to kind of do as elimination, right, So some of
Speaker 2: it's like, okay, the b area, every team has chosen
Speaker 2: different color waves already, you have to eliminate those. Then
Speaker 2: you have to look at what the WMA is doing,
Speaker 2: which has obviously done a great job in a variety
Speaker 2: of different markets, having some beautiful branding already too, and
Speaker 2: then find this space to work in. I mean, for us,
Speaker 2: the color fits so perfectly with the modern depiction of
Speaker 2: the valkyrie as well, and you know has such history
Speaker 2: in women's empowerment. It really just fell into place in
Speaker 2: a great way, and we wanted it to feel like
Speaker 2: it's very icy, right. It's a very specific type of
Speaker 2: valkyrie violet. It's not a deep purple by any means.
Speaker 2: That's why we're so specific about how we talk about it.
Speaker 2: But there were some great conversations back and forth of
Speaker 2: why this color versus that blew and gold over and
Speaker 2: over again. But when we landed it, we all felt
Speaker 2: incredibly strong about it. But I mean, I can't tell
Speaker 2: you the number of iterations of the shade of the
Speaker 2: color for the fonts and exactly how it would work
Speaker 2: together that way, and how the lines lined up like
Speaker 2: the you know, the logo itself, if it's thirteen lines
Speaker 2: or the thirteenth team coming in it's wings. It's it's
Speaker 2: dual in every way, but every single detail it's a
Speaker 2: bridge exactly right, which is a big piece about us
Speaker 2: making sure that we're connectors both locally and you know,
Speaker 2: just as a brand in totality. But the thickness of
Speaker 2: the lines, the indentse I mean, Teresa, you're probably in
Speaker 2: the mix of.
Speaker 4: Thick of that right now. I literally just came from
Speaker 4: a call with Nike about color swatches and how the
Speaker 4: colors show up on different types of fabric and like high, medium, low,
Speaker 4: super low, no risk, Like what does all that mean?
Speaker 4: Like all the details you never think about when you're
Speaker 4: just love.
Speaker 3: It throwing out a color like yeah, I like black
Speaker 3: and white.
Speaker 1: I I tend to be pretty understanding with teams when
Speaker 1: they make decisions because I'm like, I actually don't know
Speaker 1: everything that went behind that. So unless you're totally moronic
Speaker 1: and offensive, I'm going to assume there's a reason why
Speaker 1: extra wire it's not the exact thing I want. I'm
Speaker 1: wondering now, just now that you've done all this, if
Speaker 1: you know the Pantone color code for Valkyrie violet.
Speaker 2: I do, but I'm mistaking it right now. We have
Speaker 2: some plans around the color. You know, they can come
Speaker 2: out because of that ownership opportunity. But yes, we do
Speaker 2: have a Pantone color Teresa.
Speaker 1: The w NBA Toronto team owned and operated by Kilmer
Speaker 1: Sports Ventors. Larry Tannenbaum, the chairman of Kilmer, is also
Speaker 1: chairman of the NBA Board of Governors, chairman of Maple
Speaker 1: Leaf Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Toronto Raptors. How
Speaker 1: much of a connection is there between the Raptors and
Speaker 1: your squad.
Speaker 4: So we are partners in this and the fact that
Speaker 4: we get to play in their arena. So we're going
Speaker 4: to play in Coca Cola Coliseum, which is owned and
Speaker 4: operated by Maple Leave Sports and Entertainment. We plan to
Speaker 4: play some games across Canada, so Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, Edton,
Speaker 4: like all the different all the different cities. We are
Speaker 4: gonna The Raptors and MLSC are separate entity from Kilmer
Speaker 4: Sports Ventures and WNB Toronto, so we're not under the
Speaker 4: same ownership umbrella like the Valkyries and Golden State Warriors are,
Speaker 4: but we share a sport, we share a city, and
Speaker 4: we are definitely going to work together and partners who
Speaker 4: grow the game of basketball across this country.
Speaker 1: I love it. So your kind of cousins, whereas Jess,
Speaker 1: your brother sister. So tell us about the connection between
Speaker 1: the work you're doing and the Golden State Warriors, the
Speaker 1: kind of support you're getting.
Speaker 2: For sure, and just to share. It's such a pivotal
Speaker 2: moment for this league to have Toronto representing the entire
Speaker 2: country of Canada. Like that type of growth and the
Speaker 2: opportunity to represent women's sports in that landscape, which has
Speaker 2: had such incredible history, is huge, So very excited that
Speaker 2: collectively we get a chance to witness that and then
Speaker 2: to have that a part of our league for us,
Speaker 2: you know, Golden State is really what the connection is
Speaker 2: where we play, how our athletes show up, and we
Speaker 2: want to really define the Golden State way and what
Speaker 2: that means. And so, while were there are separate entities,
Speaker 2: how are we working together to do things like ensuring
Speaker 2: the interchangeability of jerseys between young boys and girls where
Speaker 2: it's not just if you're a girl, you're avelch or
Speaker 2: you're a boy or a warrior. How are we supporting
Speaker 2: the idolization of all genders through the opportunity to work
Speaker 2: together in things like our academy systems, in building safe
Speaker 2: places to play and the branding that goes into that
Speaker 2: as well.
Speaker 3: Well.
Speaker 1: Also, you have stolen a number of employees from the
Speaker 1: Golden State Warriors since you started over there, so it
Speaker 1: feels like there's a real give and take and then
Speaker 1: take some more and then take again.
Speaker 2: I mean, who's keeping track. Let's just say that, yes,
Speaker 2: a decent amount of my leadership team, but in honor
Speaker 2: of them, like truly, and the Warriors have been a
Speaker 2: leader in so many things globally for quite some time.
Speaker 2: And as I came in looking to build a leadership team,
Speaker 2: we had some incredible internal and external candidates with every
Speaker 2: single role, and I will say just the staff that
Speaker 2: we put together and the ones that have had, you know,
Speaker 2: the work with the Valkyries, which happens to be Kimberly Veal,
Speaker 2: who's our senior vice president of Marketing Communications, Katie Jones,
Speaker 2: who's our new head of Partnerships, and then Maria Veldezweza
Speaker 2: who's our VP of Ticketing and Events SVP of Ticketing
Speaker 2: and Events. They bring ten twenty years of just legacy
Speaker 2: experiencing and opening Chase Center, building this business, you know,
Speaker 2: and comfortability in this region right, Like this is a
Speaker 2: really specific region in the try that we have with
Speaker 2: our community is so pure with this ownership group, and
Speaker 2: so that added extension of their experience. But now their
Speaker 2: excitement to build something of their own legacy with the
Speaker 2: Valkyries has been great. But yes, please stop telling CEAR
Speaker 2: leadership to like start counting, because they've just like consistently
Speaker 2: happened and like, oh no, it's just another one. It's
Speaker 2: totally fine, but very fortunate.
Speaker 1: I love it. It's so smart though, It's really so smart.
Speaker 1: Not only do they have this new challenge, but they're
Speaker 1: bringing so much literal experience from the exact space that
Speaker 1: you're in, which makes such a difference. Teresa, What exactly
Speaker 1: does the job of team president entail? At least as
Speaker 1: long as you've been at it up in Toronto?
Speaker 4: I mean, I'm just jealous hearing about all the people
Speaker 4: that Jess has working for her. We're a mighty team
Speaker 4: of four right now in Toronto, so I can't wait
Speaker 4: to get some more staff to help us out and
Speaker 4: be part of this team. But team president, I mean
Speaker 4: in a complete startup organization. It's literally level setting every
Speaker 4: single aspect of this organization, whether it's on the court,
Speaker 4: business off the court, setting culture, making hires. It's literally
Speaker 4: starting from scratch. And I could be more excited every
Speaker 4: day I wake up, and not that I even have
Speaker 4: it to do list, it's just what's going to hit
Speaker 4: me today, And we are choosing the most exciting, which
Speaker 4: means the most difficult pathway in order to bring this
Speaker 4: team to life. We could just play all our games
Speaker 4: in one arena, but no, we want to play across
Speaker 4: this country. We could have just gone in a room
Speaker 4: and picked a design agency and chosen our name and
Speaker 4: color and logo, but no, we want Canada to be
Speaker 4: part of it. But like, that's exciting. That's how you
Speaker 4: build culture, That's how you build something that people feel
Speaker 4: part of. And I'm really excited to be able to
Speaker 4: share that, be transparent and get people to join us
Speaker 4: on this, on this ride, on this movement. And I
Speaker 4: don't know, maybe they maybe they can also see themselves
Speaker 4: as team president someday because they're gonna they're gonna have
Speaker 4: a little peak behind a curtain and actually know what
Speaker 4: it's all about.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 1: I also love the idea of you playing across Canada
Speaker 1: because now that I've visited Vancouver and Toronto twice in
Speaker 1: the last year, I'm like, just kitchen to get to
Speaker 1: more places in Canada. So perfect excuse slot on over
Speaker 1: to a WNBA game up there. And I love the
Speaker 1: idea of bringing all of Canada with you. It's smart
Speaker 1: business wise, and it's also just really cool and keep
Speaker 1: things interesting. Jess, does that sound like the job you've
Speaker 1: been tasked with so far? Fewer to do lists as
Speaker 1: opposed to what just hit you in the face and
Speaker 1: has to be dealt with immediately.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's everything, and there's an actual timeline, right, there's
Speaker 2: no like, Okay, we can push launch off by thirty days. No,
Speaker 2: opening night is opening night. So you need to have
Speaker 2: everything ready by that moment in time. And to the
Speaker 2: expectations of you know, Teresa and I share really intentional
Speaker 2: owners that expect greatness. You know that we're delivering against too,
Speaker 2: and so that's a big piece. You know, I'm fortunate
Speaker 2: to have a leader like Ohama side by side with
Speaker 2: me and her having that responsibility. She reports directly into
Speaker 2: Joe on the player side, so that I get to
Speaker 2: focus directly on the business side.
Speaker 1: And interesting to the time during which you're arriving and
Speaker 1: during which Toronto will arrive to Teresa, the expectations are
Speaker 1: much high than even five years ago for any new
Speaker 1: women's professional sports team. There isn't a lot of time
Speaker 1: that you will be given to mess things up, to
Speaker 1: have things not be ready, to not have good facilities,
Speaker 1: to not have smart ownership. Like, the expectations are different now.
Speaker 1: It is a different world, and that's great and wonderful,
Speaker 1: but you better hit the ground running, because those eighteen
Speaker 1: thousand who already have their deposits are going to expect
Speaker 1: a certain experience day one, and that's exciting and that
Speaker 1: holds you to a certain standard. Speaking of jess expansion
Speaker 1: draft coming up in December, this is when it stops
Speaker 1: being about playing with colors and starts being about what's
Speaker 1: our record going to be and what's our team going
Speaker 1: to look like? First of all, are you one hundred
Speaker 1: percent clear on the rules, how it works, who's available.
Speaker 1: There's a lot of fine print here.
Speaker 2: A lot of fine print. I will not be digesting that.
Speaker 2: Ohemma can can walk you through every piece of the puzzle.
Speaker 2: I more so I'm like, hey, how's it going. What's
Speaker 2: going to happen? So it's exciting for any league and
Speaker 2: expansion because just a lot happens, Right, There's always shake ups,
Speaker 2: there's always thoughts here. You know that's going into free
Speaker 2: agencies in college draft. I think you know the league
Speaker 2: in total, you know, I think there's just going to
Speaker 2: be a lot of exciting things to watch in this offseason.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you keep mentioning. Ohima, formerly the assistant GM for
Speaker 1: the New York Liberty, so comes in with experience and
Speaker 1: from a very well run team. So that's very helpful
Speaker 1: to you to have someone who's been in this space
Speaker 1: in the w UH to make some of those decisions. Jess,
Speaker 1: have you decided who your biggest rival is going to be? Yet?
Speaker 2: I mean everybody, right, we want we want a fresh
Speaker 2: take to literally hate every single team in the WNBA.
Speaker 2: I have joke, but listen, like, we want to win
Speaker 2: and we want to be great, so we want everyone
Speaker 2: to succeed, and yet we still want to be the best.
Speaker 2: I don't think that's, you know, a unique mindset when
Speaker 2: you're looking at the world of sports. But I have
Speaker 2: a feeling that there will be some natural rivalries. But
Speaker 2: whether you have the La Bay Area natural rival that
Speaker 2: comes in for the state of California or certainly you
Speaker 2: know him is coming from New York, So once we're
Speaker 2: on the court, there's going to be an extra added
Speaker 2: weight to that. Natalie is coming from the Vegas so
Speaker 2: there's going to be an extra added way to that
Speaker 2: as she goes head to head with that who's a
Speaker 2: mentor you know and friend of hers, you know, first
Speaker 2: time on the court as at head coach, and I'm
Speaker 2: sure we'll have some game moments like every franchise and
Speaker 2: every franchise dies, where something's not going to go as
Speaker 2: planned and we will all decide for the for the
Speaker 2: rest of our lives. We hate said franchise curse. That's
Speaker 2: why sports are fun.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I would also posit. As soon as Toronto arrives,
Speaker 1: it's the battle of the expansion team, so you guys
Speaker 1: will be rivals as well. Teresa, you got your eyes
Speaker 1: set on starting any beefs with any particular team.
Speaker 4: I think that the competition will be fierce, and I
Speaker 4: think we're all going to make each other better.
Speaker 1: That is that a It's not the answer I was
Speaker 1: looking for. Maybe we'll start a beef between Chicago and Toronto,
Speaker 1: sister cities. People are always comparing us. We're both wonderful places,
Speaker 1: but we could start fighting about about who's better.
Speaker 3: Give you the Battle of the Great Lakes, right.
Speaker 1: That's right there? You go. Okay, before we go, Jess,
Speaker 1: I need you to give Teresa the most pertinent piece
Speaker 1: of advice that you think she needs right now at
Speaker 1: this point in her journey.
Speaker 2: Don't forget to drink water. I like half joke, but
Speaker 2: I go hours sometimes I'm like, why am I so thirsty.
Speaker 2: It's like, oh, because you haven't sit up in eight hours,
Speaker 2: like get up half a gless of water. But just
Speaker 2: enjoy it. I think for me, you know, building Angel
Speaker 2: City is such a unique opportunity because building the brand
Speaker 2: from day one, when there were five of us in
Speaker 2: the middle of a pandemic inside of our house, is
Speaker 2: being like, we're going to do this and then do
Speaker 2: the end. You know, It's there's no greater feeling than
Speaker 2: that first opening night looking around at something that didn't
Speaker 2: exist and seeing the support and what it means to
Speaker 2: our society, cultures, countries, et cetera. Is just unbelievable. So
Speaker 2: every day and everything that's hard, just enjoy it because
Speaker 2: this piece ends up being your favorite part. And I'm
Speaker 2: so grateful that I now know that because in Angel City,
Speaker 2: I was just very stressed all the time, And now
Speaker 2: when I'm very stressed all the time, I'm like, oh,
Speaker 2: but that's because it's fun. So just enjoy it as
Speaker 2: you can.
Speaker 1: I love that it is such a beautiful responsibility to
Speaker 1: have to usher in a brand new era for a
Speaker 1: whole city or country, and to be representative of all
Speaker 1: the fans that are going to come and gather and
Speaker 1: support the thing that you're creating. Gosh, I would love
Speaker 1: to be in the room with you guys as you're
Speaker 1: doing it. It sounds so fun. Okay, Teresa, we'll see you
Speaker 1: back here as soon as you're ready to announce to
Speaker 1: break the news right here on this show and nowhere else.
Speaker 3: I'll be here. Don't worry, tune in.
Speaker 1: Not an answer again, You're getting good at that, mister President.
Speaker 1: Not an answer. Thank you so much, ladies for being
Speaker 1: on here. We can't wait to start watching the Valkyries
Speaker 1: if we can't wait for all the news out of Toronto.
Speaker 1: So thanks for taking some time.
Speaker 3: Thanks Sarah, oh, I appreciate you having us.
Speaker 1: Thanks so much to Jess and Teresa for joining us.
Speaker 1: We got to pay the bills when we come back.
Speaker 1: A pivotal play of the day. Welcome back, Orange Slices.
Speaker 1: You know we love that you're listening, but we want
Speaker 1: you to get in the game every day too. So
Speaker 1: here's our good game play of the day. First, keep
Speaker 1: sending in those evesdropping stories that Alex asked for yesterday.
Speaker 1: We love to hear about unexpected sources, talk and women's sports.
Speaker 1: But we got another play and it's a big one today, slices.
Speaker 1: We are exactly twenty five days away from election day,
Speaker 1: so you need to read up on Project twenty twenty five,
Speaker 1: the extremist blueprint for the next Republican President, written by
Speaker 1: the Heritage Foundation and one hundred and forty former Trump staffers.
Speaker 1: It's necessary to understand how a win for Donald Trump
Speaker 1: in this election would mean the implementation of the terrifying
Speaker 1: policies outlined in Project twenty twenty five. Those include reclassifying
Speaker 1: tens of thousands of federal civil service workers as political
Speaker 1: appointees in order to replace them with people that are
Speaker 1: loyal to the president, infusing government and society with conservative
Speaker 1: Christian values, reducing environmental and climate change regulations, abolishing the
Speaker 1: Department of Education, cutting Medicare and Medicaid, and rejecting abortionist
Speaker 1: healthcare and reducing access to contraception. The removal of quote
Speaker 1: gender equality language from government websites, criminalizing pornography, removing legal
Speaker 1: protections against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity,
Speaker 1: and terminating DEI programs and affirmative action. Project twenty twenty
Speaker 1: five is particularly focused on enforcing a vision of the
Speaker 1: family that relies unfixed, narrowly defined gender rules and undermining
Speaker 1: protections that allow women and LGBTQ plus IA people to
Speaker 1: thrive outside of a male dominated, heterosexual family. If you're
Speaker 1: an undecided voter, if you no undecided voters, or if
Speaker 1: you have friends and family planning to vote for Donald Trump,
Speaker 1: please have conversations with them about Project twenty twenty five
Speaker 1: and its implications for our civil rights and liberties. And
Speaker 1: if you really want to get involved, you could share
Speaker 1: one terrifying policy suggestion from Project twenty twenty five each
Speaker 1: day for the next twenty five days. Make sure the
Speaker 1: people around you and in your circles really understand what's
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Speaker 1: shout out to producers mis Alex for holding down the
Speaker 1: fort while I was out yesterday. Mama bears back and
Speaker 1: it looks like the Cubs did not trash the place
Speaker 1: while I was out yesterday. So good game producers, and
Speaker 1: don't forget to subscribe, rate and review, y'all. It's easy.
Speaker 1: Speaking of mama bears, let's rate the voters of Fat
Speaker 1: Bear Week, rating five out of five feelings of vengeance
Speaker 1: and satisfaction. Review Graser, a proud mama bear, has won
Speaker 1: Fat Bear Week for the second straight year. Alaska's cat
Speaker 1: My National Park and Preserve runs the contest every year.
Speaker 1: Fans picked the bear that they think best exemplifies winter
Speaker 1: preparedness via the fat that they got over the summer.
Speaker 1: Graser defeated Chunk, the most dominant bear on the Brooks River.
Speaker 1: And get this, the bear that killed her cub after
Speaker 1: it slipped over the waterfall fishing for salmon. Graser fought
Speaker 1: Chunk in an effort to save her cub, but it
Speaker 1: later died. This is some real reverse line king shit.
Speaker 1: The people have spoken and Graser, the mama bear won. Now,
Speaker 1: it won't bring back her baby, but she deserved the
Speaker 1: honor for her bravery and middle paw finger to you, Chunk.
Speaker 1: Now it's your turn. Great and Review have great weekend slices.
Speaker 1: Talk to you Monday. Good Game, Jess, Good Game, Teresa
Speaker 1: fe merch sellouts. Good Game with Sarah Spain is an
Speaker 1: iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports
Speaker 1: and Entertainment. You can find us on the iHeartRadio app,
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Speaker 1: Our executive producers are Christina Everett, Jesse Katz, Jenny Kaplan
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