0:00

Today's episode is sponsored by Mass

0:02

Mutual. Retired

0:06

WNBA legend Sue Bird knows

0:08

just how far women's basketball

0:10

has come. We've

0:14

been trying to get people to pay attention, to

0:16

see what we've all seen behind closed doors, and

0:19

now it feels like society finally caught up with us. Inside

0:24

the momentum behind women's basketball

0:26

and the work still ahead with one of

0:28

the players who laid the foundation. I'm

0:39

Nylah Budu for Maxios. This is One

0:41

Big Thing. That's

0:54

been the soundtrack to basketball this

0:56

year. Explosive enthusiasm for the women.

1:11

And if you don't typically follow

1:13

the women's NCAA tournament, you're not

1:15

alone if you did this year.

1:17

For the first time ever in

1:19

2024, more people watched the Women's

1:21

NCAA Championship than the men's final.

1:23

Ticket prices for the women's final

1:25

were almost double that of the

1:27

men's. That of course is thanks

1:29

in large part to some star

1:31

players, including the University of Iowa's

1:33

Caitlin Clark and LSU's Angel Reiss.

1:36

Here's Reiss. We're going to go to

1:38

work on Stolke. Reiss flips it up and

1:40

in. She is unstoppable

1:42

tonight. Suddenly,

1:44

it felt like everyone was a fan

1:47

or at least was curious about

1:49

these phenoms. The WNBA,

1:51

where Clark and Reiss will begin their

1:53

professional careers this season, has been around

1:55

for almost 30 years, but it's been

2:00

In terms of dollars in audience A

2:02

The and be one of the O

2:04

G, W N B A players who

2:06

pushed for more visibility for the sport

2:08

also made a big splash during women's

2:10

March Madness. just like this year's grades

2:12

only back in two thousand and. A

2:17

long. Rumored.

2:25

Went on for quite a lot of farm was

2:27

with whom one of the greatest point guards of

2:29

all Pound. And arguably the greatest Power

2:31

and W and be a history. Here's

2:33

what that looks like by the number

2:35

three Hundred and Thirty three Subaru to

2:37

hold the record for most games the

2:39

one in the league. Five.

2:42

Per Olympic gold medals and

2:44

for her w and be

2:46

A titles and finally three

2:49

she's. The only W and be a

2:51

player to win titles and three different

2:53

decades. Of.

3:07

Our growth. In

3:11

my theory is very heavy and

3:13

have it was at places where

3:15

it was the center. Where.

3:18

You. I had to live up to that effect by Christian. Noun:

3:20

In Seattle where they've never done it and I've never been

3:22

apart of that, I've never been a part of something. Where

3:24

you're starting at where you're helping. Hand

3:28

or where you're the one. That

3:30

to be a part of the i never

3:32

been uprooted like of And so this is

3:34

my sisters. And

3:38

Subaru new Documentary in the. Another

3:41

first and twenty nineteen bird was

3:43

part of negotiating a major new

3:45

collective bargaining agreement for the W

3:47

N B A. It resulted in

3:49

big changes in compensation for women's

3:52

basketball players, raising the salary cap

3:54

by thirty percent, but as he

3:56

probably heard, they're still a long

3:58

way to go. Retirement

4:00

and twenty twenty two Super. It

4:02

hasn't stepped away from her sports

4:04

most. Recently becoming Chief Strategy Officer

4:07

for Deep Blue Sports and

4:09

Entertainment. Which is working to

4:11

change how brands interact with women's

4:13

sports. She's also launched a production

4:15

company with the on Say and

4:17

soccer legend Meghan Repeat Now and

4:19

an athlete focused media brand with

4:21

three other world class female athletes.

4:23

I want have my fingerprints. You're on the

4:25

world of women's sports in a different way.

4:29

Bird was one of the voices this week

4:31

at T and Fifty, The Business of When

4:33

and Sports Summit for Max Ios and Deeply

4:35

sports and Entertainment. So we're bringing you a

4:38

special episode today from the sidelines of the

4:40

Summit. At See, a senior

4:42

media reporter Sarah Fisher, sat down with

4:44

Sue Bird backstage to ask about her.

4:46

One big thing. Capitalizing on this

4:48

moment for. Women's basketball. We.

4:50

Just came off as an incredible

4:53

and suitable a championship record viewership.

4:55

So much momentum around Killing Clark

4:57

How as one of sports evolved

4:59

since your time your heyday of

5:01

until now. The I mean

5:03

honestly where I've landed with it is

5:05

arm. Of course. Woman sport has evolved.

5:07

Or things they'll write. The product on the

5:10

floor has only gotten better. In In In

5:12

in a lot of ways in the world

5:14

A woman's basket eyes. I caught the Survival

5:16

of the Fittest hurting the salty and saw

5:18

roster spots. I mean, it's quite literally the

5:20

Survival of the Fittest or what that leads

5:22

you to is a wonderful product. The players

5:24

only get better, so on and so forth.

5:26

But the like I said, where I've landed

5:29

with it is in a women's sports has

5:31

been on a trajectory. We've been screaming from

5:33

the mountain tops about the things we need

5:35

to the things that were lacking. We've been

5:37

trying to. Get people to pay attention to

5:39

see what we've all seen behind closed doors

5:41

and now it feels like society finally caught

5:44

up with. Yes, But I can't

5:46

help but think it has. But it also

5:48

has an immunity to look at someone like

5:50

You and Clark for any of the other

5:52

singers of getting drafted. Right now. they're not

5:54

getting paid with their male counterparts, Are getting

5:56

paid at the end? Yes. So how do

5:58

we close that gap? Yeah, so that's

6:01

always been for me personally where I go with

6:03

that is it was never about

6:05

oh This is what you know NBA player

6:07

X makes and therefore W me player X

6:09

should make the same That's that's not the

6:11

conversation in reality What in

6:13

reality has been happening is we haven't had the

6:15

same opportunity to grow in the ways that the

6:17

NBA has had So we

6:19

haven't had the same corporate sponsorship

6:21

opportunities. We haven't had the same

6:24

media coverage opportunities All

6:26

of that leads to huge meteor rights deals, which

6:28

is really where the money where that flow of

6:30

money comes from Right it comes from a lot

6:33

of different buckets But that's the main one and

6:35

now that things are have turned a corner and

6:37

there are a variety of reasons I think that

6:39

that's happened, you know in the next CBA I'm

6:41

sure the players will be negotiating

6:43

for a different salary structure But

6:46

I was actually a part of the CBA

6:48

negotiations in 2019 and at that time that

6:50

was the best deal But it's like any

6:53

deal right right now. We're talking about sports

6:55

and CBA's You can't have

6:57

the next one without the one before it and at

6:59

times it has to be baby steps Hopefully this one's

7:01

a giant step But you need to build on the

7:03

ones that came before you in order to get to

7:05

the next one and I used to always joke It

7:08

was the CBA before the CBA we understood that

7:10

what we did in our last CBA was a

7:12

restructure And it wasn't where we wanted to finish

7:14

things We knew it was just gonna set it

7:16

up or set the next CBA to

7:18

be a killer one More

7:20

with Sue Bird coming up. This is one big

7:22

thing for Maxios MassMutual

7:25

knows that finances can lead to

7:28

uncomfortable conversations. We should talk

7:30

about our finances. Sure How

7:32

about Friday evening soccer practice

7:34

Saturday morning soccer game maybe

7:36

Wednesday night girls night How

7:39

about Thursday? Mmm guys night. Let me see

7:41

your phone. So next time we're both free

7:43

is three months from now According

7:45

to calendar.com the average American schedules

7:47

less than four and a half hours a

7:50

year for finances your finances deserve more go

7:52

to mass mutual Com today feel comfortable about

7:54

tomorrow In

8:01

2002, Sue Bird was the number one

8:03

overall pick in the WNBA draft, the

8:05

first guard to take that spot. This

8:07

year, it was another point guard at

8:10

the top. With the first pick in

8:12

the 2024 WNBA draft,

8:16

the Indiana Fever selects Kaitlyn

8:19

Clark. Clark's

8:26

now headed to the WNBA, where ticket

8:28

sales for the Indiana Fever are following

8:30

a similar pattern to Clark's Iowa game.

8:33

Other teams are even moving games against the

8:35

Fever to larger arenas. Here in

8:38

D.C., the Mystics are moving from their 4,200-seat home

8:40

arena to the 20,000-seat Capital

8:43

One arena, where the Wizards of the

8:46

NBA play to meet Capul City. And

8:49

the WNBA has said it will broadcast

8:51

more Fever games on its national and

8:53

streaming platforms this upcoming season. This

8:56

all seems like good news for women's

8:58

basketball, right? Yes, but who knows if

9:00

the so-called Kaitlyn Clark effect will extend

9:03

to deeper interest in the game overall,

9:05

and how long the buzz will last.

9:07

That's why teams want to take advantage

9:09

of this financial moment. More

9:11

on that later. In any

9:13

case, Clark will now face a similar transition

9:16

to the one Sue Bird faced, more

9:18

than 20 years ago when heading to the pros.

9:21

Here's more back to you, this is Sarah Fisher talking with

9:23

Sue Bird this week. So let's talk about

9:25

your experience a little bit, going from a

9:27

player to now an entrepreneur, but even going from

9:29

a college player to going to professional player. You

9:31

talk about this a little bit in your documentary.

9:34

What is that transition like from college

9:36

to professional? What's the hardest part?

9:38

What's the most exciting part? Taking me back. I

9:42

think the hardest part, so there's like

9:45

a hard part that exists as an

9:47

athlete. You're going from the college game,

9:49

which is amazing, to the

9:51

professional game, which is now you're

9:53

playing against players that have been doing this for

9:55

a long time, people that are feeding their

9:58

families off this money. It's a different motivation,

10:00

it's a different level experience, it's a different

10:02

set of skills, it's a different strength, it's

10:04

all, there's so many differences. And

10:06

you're learning how to become an adult at the

10:08

same time. So you're out there

10:10

getting challenged on the court in ways and stretched

10:12

in ways, and you're simultaneously learning what it is

10:15

to be an adult. You now have all this

10:17

free time, you have nobody dictating your schedule, you

10:19

know, in college it's really regimented. You eat team

10:21

meals together, you obviously have class and things of

10:23

that nature, and then you become an adult, a

10:25

professional. And now it's on you to make sure

10:28

you're ready for your game. It really becomes a

10:30

job. And so there's just all the

10:32

same adjustments that every college kid, when they

10:34

get their first job, deal with, so do

10:36

professional athletes. Interestingly enough, when you

10:38

come, you know, when you retire, you're

10:40

now in a similar situation. It's

10:43

almost like this, you're losing more structure. So

10:45

you're super structured in college. You

10:48

have some structure in the pros, but less, so

10:50

you're figuring that out. Now I'm retired, I got

10:52

no structure. I'm like, what do I do? Do

10:55

I set an alarm? Do I have to get

10:57

up? I'm making my own schedule. At times, obviously,

10:59

I have business things that require me to be

11:01

certain places, but you know, it's

11:03

learning how to be, not an adult,

11:05

but it's learning this whole other, yeah,

11:08

this whole other aspect of life. That's

11:10

an amazing thing to get to, to the

11:12

point where you can just take advantage of

11:15

business opportunities and not feel like you have to

11:17

pound the pavement, like you earn that spot. Towards

11:20

the end of my career, I played overseas for 10

11:23

seasons while I was playing in the WNBA.

11:25

I stopped when I was around 33 or

11:28

4, and I really wanted to make sure

11:31

that I used my off-seasons wisely, and I wanted

11:33

to make sure that I stepped

11:35

outside of my comfort zone and tried different

11:37

things, whether it was broadcasting. I worked in

11:39

an NBA front office for a season, and

11:42

other things sprinkled in in between, because I didn't

11:44

want to retire and not have any idea. And

11:46

I really kind of always joked that I

11:49

never wanted to have a real job. That

11:51

was like my goal. So somebody had asked me at 37, like,

11:53

oh, what do you want to do when you're trying not have a real job,

11:56

right? I wanted to be able to dictate things. I

11:58

Wanted to do things on my own time, my own. Schedule I

12:00

want to have my fingerprints I'm you're

12:03

on the world of women's sports in

12:05

a different way. As his final thing

12:07

going back to the Kitten Clark phenomenon

12:10

think so many people have said this

12:12

feel sexy many years later. Do you

12:14

see yourself in her. And

12:17

do you thing she sees him as

12:19

or something? You? I mean, I don't

12:21

shoot like that, so it's hard to

12:23

say that I see anything I'm in

12:25

that regard. but touches speaks to her

12:27

exceptional talent. I think she

12:29

does have a maturity and how she

12:31

carries herself. I think she has a

12:33

tendency to meet every moment. I look

12:35

back at my career and I hope that

12:37

somebody would describe me and I thank

12:39

you for your time. The both of

12:41

us are. That was actually a

12:43

senior media reporter Sarah Fisher with retired

12:45

W N B A Star Schubert in

12:47

New York City this week. Before

12:54

we go, some final thoughts from the

12:56

business of women's sports. I meant that

12:58

perks my ears this week, including the

13:00

pressure on the W N B A

13:02

to capitalize on the financial opportunity of

13:04

this coming season. Just Smith is

13:06

the president of the W N B

13:08

A is forthcoming Golden State Team and

13:10

previously worked in revenue for the Angel

13:12

City Football Club, a National Women's Soccer

13:14

League team in L. A hundred and

13:16

twenty twenty. When. You sit at a

13:18

liberty. Game for those that have you have any market. Or an

13:21

angel. three games. There's a feeling they're You walk

13:23

in those arenas in stadiums and your. Shoulders

13:25

drop. Do you feel safe? You feel

13:27

seen? You still feel just as passionate

13:29

about the refs comparable to they are.

13:32

Just getting away with a lot of

13:34

it anymore. fight. There's a feeling of

13:36

those then use that you can't replicate.

13:38

And I think when people. Turn

13:40

on the opportunity to experience.

13:42

That there's something that unlocks in their brain of

13:45

like oh this is how. I want people to

13:47

feel around. My. Brand. And

13:49

the business opportunity is there for the taking

13:52

says Molly Key. Helene, a reporter at

13:54

Sports Business. Journal of in Women's Sports

13:56

are not having a moment. It's been here,

13:58

everyone else is now. Finally! attention

14:01

and having such a big platform I'm

14:03

able to help other people who might

14:05

not have seen that yet but it's

14:07

happening across all sports like you've got

14:10

gymnastics on ABC you've got like women's

14:12

college softball outperformed baseball constantly so

14:14

I think on the business side of

14:16

it being able to express how women's

14:19

sports is just good business and having

14:21

such wide viewership I think is gonna

14:23

be very pivotal. And

14:25

one final piece of business news for you the

14:27

Seattle Storm where Sue Bird played for all 19

14:30

seasons of her WNBA career announced

14:32

yesterday that Bird has joined the

14:34

team's ownership group Force 10 Hoops

14:36

ahead of the 2024 WNBA season.

14:40

In the announcement Bird said quote investing

14:43

in women's sports isn't just about

14:45

passion it's smart business. And

14:57

that's it for this week's edition of One Big

14:59

Thing. Send us a voice memo with

15:01

your feedback, story ideas, or your favorite

15:03

women's sports moments. The

15:06

number is 202-918-4893. The

15:09

One Big Thing team includes supervising producer

15:11

Alexandra Boti and sound engineer Jay

15:14

Cowett who also composed and produced our

15:16

music along with Alex Sugiyura. Sarah

15:18

Kehlani-Gu is executive editor of Axios

15:20

Live and New Platforms and

15:23

Asia Whitaker Moore is Axios' editor-in-chief.

15:26

I'm Nyla Budu. Thanks for listening. Stay safe

15:28

and we'll see you back here next week. MassMutual

15:42

knows that finances can lead to

15:44

uncomfortable conversations. What about that

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guy who's always trying to get you to invest

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in his business? His last idea was generating power

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with electric eels. Oh What about

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Uncle Paul? You mean Uncle Audit? How About

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that co-worker who retired early? She's off the

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grid so unless you send a carrier pigeon.

16:00

Then what about? According

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to the Financial Educators counsel, thirty

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nine percent of Americans don't have

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someone they can ask for trusted

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financial guidance. Go to massmutual.com today.

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Feel comfortable. About tomorrow.