First Episode Features In-Depth Interview with Basketball Legend Lisa Leslie

January 10, 2022 — WNBA icon, Olympian and South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley has joined the podcast lineup for Just Women’s Sports (JWS), the leading multimedia platform exclusively dedicated to women’s sports, with the launch of NETLIFE, presented by Flame Bearers. The 12-episode audio offering is available every Wednesday through the NCAA basketball season, and will feature discussion on hoops, leadership, politics, and pop culture in addition to in-depth interviews with sports luminaries and trailblazers. WNBA legend Lisa Leslie joins Staley for the debut episode.

“We’re really excited to kick off 2022 with the launch of Dawn Staley’s NETLIFE podcast,” said Haley Rosen, Founder and CEO of Just Women’s Sports. “Dawn is an icon in and outside of sports, and we’re excited to work with her to share her voice and perspective.”

“I’m thrilled to be launching NETLIFE with Just Women’s Sports,” said Staley. “This team is incredibly talented and I’m looking forward to working with them to deliver meaningful interviews with individuals who have influenced my life, in hopes of inspiring listeners.”

In NETLIFE’s first episode, Staley and Leslie recount their early days playing basketball together for Team USA. They also discuss Leslie’s experience playing in the inaugural WNBA season, having children as a professional athlete, and how she’s used her platform to impact change

Alexys Feaster serves as Executive Producer of NETLIFE and Ambre Moton is Technical Producer.

JWS Audio Network Expansion

NETLIFE is the fourth offering in a JWS audio lineup focused on discussion and opinion on topics in and around the game. In 2021, JWS posted a +106% increase in composite downloads of its four podcasts dedicated to women’s sports. The industry-leading audio network includes the Just Women’s Sports podcast hosted by USWNT star Kelley O’Hara, which launched at #1 in Sports on Apple podcasts, Snacks, a podcast co-hosted by USWNT stars Sam Mewis and Lynn Williams, which debuted at #5 in Sports on Apple, and is home to Tea with A & Phee, the popular podcast hosted by 2020 WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson and 2019 WNBA Rookie of the Year Napheesa Collier.

MEDIA CONTACT

Rachel Zuckerman, 610-724-5078, [email protected]

About Just Women’s Sports Inc.

Established in 2020, Just Women’s Sports Inc. is the leading multimedia platform exclusively dedicated to women’s sports. Through daily content including podcasts, newsletters, online content and social media, Just Women’s Sports brings you everything you need to see and know in the world of women’s sports. Find Just Women’s Sports online, subscribe to the newsletter, and follow on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.

About Dawn Staley

As a player, Staley brought home three Olympic gold medals and returned from Tokyo this past summer with her fourth as she coached Team USA to its seventh consecutive win. Staley’s storied career began in North Philadelphia, where she grew up, before playing collegiately at the University of Virginia and then professionally in both the ABL and the WNBA. In the WNBA, Staley played for the Charlotte Sting and Houston Comets, making five All Star appearances. In 2015, she was recognized by the WNBA in their ‘Top 15’ list of most influential players in the league’s history.

Her coaching career began at Temple in 2000, while she was still playing in the WNBA. In 2008, she was named the head coach at South Carolina, and in 2017, she led the Gamecocks to the program’s first-ever national championship. Staley’s many accolades include being the first player to earn both the Naismith Player of the Year award and the Naismith Coach of the Year award. As a coach, she has twice been named the National Coach of the Year, in 2014 and 2020. Staley was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012 and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.

About Flame Bearers

Flame Bearers celebrates the journeys of unsung female Olympians & Paralympians on their paths to the Games. Flame Bearers spotlights the people, sharing athletes’ often unheard stories and provides a microphone for women who are true masters of resiliency. Through storytelling, Flame Bearers uses sport as a vehicle to discuss issues such as racial justice, disability bias, and pay equity. This podcast addresses hope and the belief that we are not alone by sharing inspiring stories of athletes who have overcome countless obstacles to reach their goals. Listen to Flame Bearers wherever you get your podcasts.

Expansion team WNBA Golden State has officially brought on New York Liberty assistant GM Ohemaa Nyanin as general manager, the team announced in a Monday afternoon statement.

The move marks one of the first major personnel hires for the highly anticipated franchise, set to begin league play in 2025. Nyanin will oversee all basketball operations for the Bay Area addition, including building out the roster, shaping the team, and developing talent. 

Nyanin joins team president Jess Smith and senior vice president of marketing and communications Kimberly Veale in the WNBA Golden State front office.

"Ohemaa is the perfect fit to lead our WNBA basketball operations as we prepare for our inaugural season in 2025," Warriors co-executive chairman and CEO Joe Lacob said in the release. "As we moved through the GM hiring process, it became more apparent each day how impressive and well-versed Ohemaa is in all facets of the business, and as a person."

Nyanin was with the Liberty for more than five years, most recently serving as the team’s assistant general manager. Prior to that, she spent five years as the assistant director of the women’s national team at USA Basketball, helping to oversee team operations through gold medal wins at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio and the 2018 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup.

"I am truly honored to be chosen as the first general manager of WNBA Golden State," Nyanin said. "Throughout the interview process, it was clear that bringing a WNBA team to the Bay Area was meticulously thought out and those involved are motivated changemakers who will be proactive in growing the league. I look forward to joining this franchise and building a competitive basketball team that the fans deserve."

In a July 2023 profile published by The Next, Liberty assistant coach Roneeka Hodges described Nyanin as the New York team's “Ms. Make-it-Happen."

"She’s a jack of all trades," added Hodges, while Liberty GM Jonathan Kolb paid Nyanin a particularly prophetic compliment.

"She needs to be a general manager in this league," Kolb said. "Full stop, it needs to happen, and that’s her goal."

Chelsea began Sunday with their WSL title hopes a distant dream... before closing out the weekend right back in the thick of the title chase.

The Blues made a last-ditch effort to claim their fifth consecutive Barclays WSL title on Sunday with an 8-0 win over relegation-bound Bristol City. The victory came after a visiting Arsenal upset current table-toppers Manchester City at Joie Stadium, besting the home side 2-1 on back-to-back goals from Stina Blackstenius. With the win, the third-place Gunners re-opened the door for Chelsea to finish level at the top of the table on points.

Chelsea remains second in the standing, with 49 points to Manchester City's 52. But the barrage of goalscoring over the weekend could be enough to overtake City's potential tiebreak advantage in goal differential, leaving even coach Emma Hayes in awe.

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Chelsea holds a game in hand, but the Blues will need to win their May 15th match against Tottenham to give them a shot at the title. Should they take all three points, the title race will come down to the final weekend, when Chelsea squares off with Manchester United while City faces Aston Villa on Saturday, May 18th. 

Set to take over the USWNT in June, Hayes acknowledged the likelihood of finishing out her time at Chelsea with zero trophies, after losing in both the Conti Cup final and UWCL semifinal last month. But for now, her initial pessimism has subsided.

"Let me be clear, it's not f*****g over," Hayes said after coaching her last home match with Chelsea on Sunday. "There's no time for sentimentality, all work drinks are canceled. There's a title to be won.

"This group of players taught me something so special this week — that you never ever give up."

A WNBA League Pass error left fans scrambling to watch Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso make their preseason debuts for the Chicago Sky in Minneapolis on Friday. 

Despite indicating streaming availability via YouTube before tip-off, the evening’s game was later removed from the league’s platform. With no streaming options — along with no live TV broadcast — WNBA fan Alli Schneider began livestreaming the game on X from her seat inside Target Center. As many as 400,000 people logged on to watch the game live, and by Saturday, the resulting two-hour video had amassed over 2 million total views. 

In the lead-up to the preseason showdown, fans on both sides voiced frustrations over the WNBA's error. The league apologized in response, saying their app was "incorrectly showing that every preseason game (including CHI vs MIN) is available on League Pass."

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"The growth is happening so fast, it’s so accelerated. Business as usual isn’t going to work anymore, you’re going to get left behind," Reeve said of the blunder. "This is an example... We have to capitalize on those things."

Sky coach Teresa Weatherspoon echoed Reeve's sentiments, calling it "awesome" that so many fans followed along via Schneider's DIY livestream.

"We would love for us to be on and for everyone to take a look, especially for this team, you have a great group of young women who are exciting to watch play," said Weatherspoon. "Tonight we had an opportunity to kind of get a feel for where we are and what we need to do. It’s awesome to know that a lot of people really tuned in."

On the court, Reese had a near double-double in her first professional outing, notching 13 points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes. A viral pass inside to set up fellow rookie Cardoso's bucket served as the icing on the cake. The Sky ultimately lost to the Lynx 92-81, despite Minnesota newcomer Alissa Pili netting just two points and one rebound in 13 minutes of playing time.

Due to overwhelming fan demand, the WNBA confirmed today that it will indeed stream the Sky's next preseason game against the New York Liberty on League Pass. The two teams square off on Tuesday, May 7th at 8 PM ET.

The Caitlin Clark WNBA era has officially begun, with the star-studded rookie making her preseason debut with the Indiana Fever on Friday. 

Clark scored a team-leading 21 points — including five threes — and recorded a game-high 16 points at the half. But it was Arike Ogunbowale who got the last word for Dallas, knocking down a splashy buzzer-beating three-pointer in front of the sold-out crowd to deliver the Wings the 79-76 win.

"I think there's gonna be a lot to go back and look at and learn from, because a lot of it is kind of different from college," Clark said shortly after the Fever's loss. "Just from, you know, a technique standpoint or you know, scheme standpoint, and what we do is not always always going to be the same. So I think those are the biggest things, but I think overall, I just played really hard and that's always something to be proud of."

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For Clark, the biggest transition challenges lie in WNBA's physicality and talent levels. 

"No matter who steps into the game, you can never really relax, because that’s how competitive the league is," she added.

Fever coach Christie Sides also commented on's Clark on-court adjustment in her postgame remarks. Noting that the team will have to take steps to protect their star as she navigates the W's upgraded athleticism, Sides shared that at one point in the game, Clark was "completely gassed" and called for a sub. 

"We have to do better, we can't let her get to that point," Sides said. "She just won't be able to last and the way people are guarding her — I mean, she's seeing a double team, she's seeing hard hedges, they're being real physical with her. That's how it's going to be for her. And so we've got to make sure we're doing what we can to protect her so she's able to go into fourth at the same level she is in the first."

Clark wasn't the only rookie making their pro debut in Dallas that night. Ohio State ace Jacy Sheldon racked up six points and one rebound in her 13 minutes on the court (plus an unfortunate viral moment), but the breakout performance of the night went to Jaelyn Brown, a Cal grad who went undrafted in 2020 and spent the last few years playing overseas. On Friday, she carried the Wings to the finish line with 21 points in 29 minutes on 7-of-15 shooting.

After the game, Brown attested that she's "ready to compete" in an atmosphere that she "belongs in."

"I just try and treat it as any other game," she continued. "The crowd was amazing, it’s a little different from overseas, a little bit, but it’s the same game. I just [came] out there with a calm composure and did what I can do."