I'm remembering when all four elite eight games were played and televised back-to-back-to-back-to back. Such glory to finally see more than the Championship Game televised. The commentators enthralled with being at the games, explaining what was happening on the floor and telling stories about the history of women's basketball.
I remember watching the powerhouse of Louisiana Tech and point guard Kim Mulkey and how the indomitable Pat Summitt turned Tennessee into the next powerhouse in our sport. The epic battles of Dawn Staley and Virginia in Elite Eights and Final Fours and how they were denied the joy of cutting down the nets.
UConn, Auriemma and Rebecca Lobo came on the scene much later, when more games were being televised. Their rise to power coincided with much broader coverage by the media, making this sport more accessible to young girls, who could then strive to get that college scholarship as a springboard to the rest of their lives.
Now we sit in a time when girls and women playing basketball have the opportunity to parlay their talent on the floor and with the media into solid financial futures. Dawn Staley cut her teeth as the National Championship Game became the only time women's basketball was on TV. I'm proud of how she embodies the history of the game we love. She knows in her bones how things were and has the vision to help our sport climb to the next level by elevating the players and coaches making a difference on and off the court. Every time Dawn Staley steps out in Oofos commercials, she's leading women ballers into financially secure futures, the current challenge in women's basketball.
As I watch the teams battling to be the ones to cut down the nets this year, I am aware of the evolution of women's basketball, every legendary coach, every star player through the years. Let this year's Sweet Sixteen begin!
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Follow your passion and your life will be true down to your core.
~rAf
