00:00If you could explain what the NBA's Basketball Operations Associate Program is and your role
00:10in the initiative?
00:11Absolutely.
00:12So, the last couple of years, the NBA has created a career crossover program established
00:18for former WNBA NBA players to come and really learn the business side of basketball and
00:24really mixing our talents that we've had on the court and our knowledge that we have
00:30there and combining that with all of the different cogs that goes into making the league run.
00:36Why did you think it was important to join the program?
00:41For me, it was one of these things where I was in financial planning and wealth management.
00:46I was doing that for entertainers and athletes.
00:50I was learning and talking with different athletes, different coaches, and it was just
00:57something in the middle of my gut that just didn't seem right.
01:01You know, it didn't feel right.
01:03I was just ready to move on and join the league.
01:08Okay.
01:09Since you've worked in wealth management, do you think you can share a little bit about
01:12why you think we see so many stories about athletes who mismanage their money and the
01:18factors that lead to that?
01:20I think there's probably a couple things that happens along the way.
01:26I think athletes in general have to be more cognizant of their funds and really involved
01:31in what's happening.
01:33I think that you can't just blindly trust someone to do anything.
01:38There has to be checks and balances.
01:43I think that sometimes there's probably some business ventures that didn't go right, but
01:49I think you see a lot of different stories out there.
01:53What we tried to do was just really hands-off on the money per se, but just really educating
02:00them and having them learn, you know, this is what you can do.
02:07This is the good that can happen out of it.
02:10This is the bad that can happen out of it.
02:12Here's our opinion.
02:13But ultimately, it's your money, so it's up to you to make the final call as to if you
02:18want to do this venture or not.
02:20So did someone teach you about finances and money, or was it just something that you had
02:23a knack for and discovered on your own?
02:26When I graduated from UConn, I double-majored in marketing and economics, so I kind of knew
02:31a little bit about a little bit.
02:33So once I left, once I stopped playing, I ended up working at a bank, and within a couple
02:40of years of being there, I was running my own branch.
02:44So retail, banking, and financial planning is just two completely different things.
02:51So it's great to have someone who's seasoned, who's a vet in that area, to kind of show
02:56you the way, kind of teach you what not to do, the things to do.
03:02As you well know, there's just a lot of regulation that is behind wealth management and financial
03:08planning, so the government has eyes on everything.
03:11So it's, you know, you have to get licensed, you have to, you know, there's due diligence
03:17that you have to do in order to make sure that you're compliant.
03:20If you get audited, you have to have all these things that are readily available.
03:25Do you think your career as a WNBA player helped you in terms of that due diligence?
03:31It's just completely different.
03:32I mean, I think I'm fortunate to have a great family that helped me along the way with different,
03:39you know, projects and money management.
03:43I had a really good advisor, and I still have a really good advisor that helps me, you know,
03:48personally manage my own funds.
03:50But you know, I think as a player, you have to be well aware of the pitfalls that a lot
03:55of athletes have had prior to you.
03:58And hopefully, you know, you have people surrounding you that's educated enough that can help you,
04:04that can educate you enough to help you through these situations.
04:07And that's part of what, you know, one of the divisions that I work for at the league
04:12is player programming and player development, where we have different seminars to help,
04:17you know, athletes, and one of them is a financial education seminar.
04:21So speaking on that, what are some challenges as a former WNBA player yourself that you
04:26feel athletes face on and off the court during and after their careers?
04:32I would say during your career, you have a lot of the challenges that you face is just,
04:37you know, you're a celebrity.
04:39So people are, you know, coming at you in different directions.
04:42You know, they want you to be involved in different projects.
04:46They, you know, you just have a lot of people coming at you, and it's up to you to really,
04:51it's okay to say no.
04:52I think a lot of times people don't understand the value of saying no.
04:57You don't want to be painted as a bad person, but you're not, you know, it's okay to say
05:01no.
05:02Or if you have, you know, a good team around you, you know, maybe that's the job of somebody
05:09who's on your team, you know, to vet some of the projects that are coming in, and then
05:14once they relay that information to you, they could be the person to say no, that says no.
05:19Looking at the NBA's Basketball Operations Associate Program, what is your greatest hope
05:27or what do you want to accomplish?
05:30You know, thus far it's been really fantastic, just really, you know, seeing how the NBA
05:36works, the different departments, you know, being able to be an ambassador in Mexico on
05:42an NBA Academy level, and teaching, you know, the younger generation the love that I have
05:48for the game has just been fantastic.
05:50My hopes and dreams, my big dream, I know this is, you know, the Nike campaign that
05:54just recently came out, so my big dream is to maybe potentially be in the front office
05:59of a team, you know, there's many ways to do that, I have no idea what's in store for
06:06me in the future, but hopefully, you know, we'll just see more women doing great things
06:12and more athletes coming back to contribute to help the league grow.
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