WNBA Legend and Future Hall of Famer Candance Parker on New Season

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1:58spending power. The nature of baseball is it is worldwide and it is global. I'm very happy for the WNBA and how the NBA has embraced them. Sports bets are not going anywhere and sports betting is only growing. We have a super team running this league and this league is here and it's here to stay. Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio. This is the Bloomberg Business of Sports where we explore the big money issues in the world of sports. I'm Vanessa Perdomo Maglione. Michael Barr will be back next week. Randall Williams is traveling this weekend to see his mom for Mother's Day and give her a big hug, but he did join me in the studio earlier this week.

2:35Coming up, we are looking ahead to the World Cup with soccer media personality and creator of Men in Blazers network, Raj Bennett. But first, we're talking hoops with a future Hall of Famer. This weekend marks the start of the WNBA season after a contentious offseason regarding the CBA that created a lot of uncertainty if this season would start on time. But here we are. This season is officially kicked off on time after a landmark deal was negotiated. And what better way to kick off the W season than to speak to a legend of the game? Earlier this week, Randall and I spoke to none other than Candace Parker.

3:09She's leading the WNBA broadcast for Amazon Prime this year, part of the league's historic$2.2 billion media rights deal. She talked to us about how Prime is elevating the game as well as her thoughts on the CBA and what storylines and teams to watch for this season. Let's take a listen to the conversation with WNBA legend Candice Parker. Candice thanks so much for joining us in the studio and tell me about adding that that last title Hall of Fame. It's surreal I think you you you don't start your career off being like hey I want that orange jacket but when it's all said and done you know you prepare to try to go out and give your best win championships and ride into the sunset and so to be in the 2026 class, to be in the cool club.

3:54You know, I'm really proud of it. Where are you going to wear this jacket? It's one of those jackets where it's a statement piece. You know what's so funny is, you know, we talk a lot with my daughter. She's 16 about trust and like all these things about what she would get, you know, and all this stuff. And so she has claimed the orange jacket. So I don't know where I'm going to wear it, but I know when I'm no longer here, she's going to have it. Damn, she already claimed that one. Did you start thinking about the fit for Hall of Fame? I have a little bit. I'm going to pay homage to my journey a little bit.

4:24So, and I think my boys are going to be there. So we're all going to have like a, you know. Matching family vibe. Matching vibe. Yeah. Yeah, for sure. So why don't we start and talk about what Prime is going to bring to WNBA coverage? I think we're entering this new wave of NBA and WNBA media partners. And I wonder from your perspective, what is something that you're looking to stand out on as it pertains to WNBA coverage and broadcasting on Prime? I think that if you look at Thursday Night Football, if you look at, you know, I was a part of the NBA rollout. You know, we definitely want to teach the game.

5:01We definitely want to bring entertainment to the game. And I think just being a technology company, just being able to have a studio like we have, be able to have some of the tools and things like that to be able to teach the viewer about the WNBA. So that's the thing I'm most excited about and doing it in a really cool way. I mean, we have a lot of new fans to the WNBA. We have a lot of OG fans to the WNBA. So being able to do that in year 30, I think, is pretty special. It's something I wanted to ask you about because of the new influx of fans that the WNBA has gotten. And do you take a different approach to broadcasting for WNBA than you do for NBA because of that?

5:38Absolutely not. I think that, you know, you have to have the ability to reach the viewer where they're at. And some of the greatest advice I ever got was from Kenny Smith. He said, if you can say one thing and reach the grandma, the casual fan and the super fan, then you've done your job. And I think we have those three, even in the WNBA that's 30 years young. So I think that it's about, you know, trying to figure out what can reach all three of those things and bringing it and bringing the excitement. One of the things that I think has been interesting about your commentary on WNBA is that people think that sometimes you are very harsh on players in terms of, you know, when you are saying, hey, this person could have been better at this, this person could have been better at that.

6:19And maybe that's new to WNBA because of the fact that this is an elevated platform. It is reaching more fans and more viewers. How do you balance saying like, OK, this player could have been better with potential fans who are like, oh, she's hating? Here's the thing. We've had to protect our game for so long. Like the world has not been ready for women to do anything but be in the kitchen and doing dishes. Like that's what the world has wanted women to be. And 30 years later, the WNBA is now not having to fight for its place or seat at the table. and with that comes honesty. I think for so long we've had to uplift and got the eye of the tiger and this girl is on fire and show all this stuff and it's like, no, now the game speaks for itself.

7:05And so I don't ever want to lie to the fan. I'm not trying to hate. I love coming with facts and the same thing in the NBA is if you have an opinion, it doesn't mean that my opinion is the greatest thing ever. It's my opinion. But with that opinion, I like to come with facts. I like to come with stuff that backs it up. I loved being coached by being challenged. I never liked being lied to because to me, the eye in the sky don't lie, right? Your eyes can't lie in what you're seeing. And so, like I said, I think there's different styles. There's different viewpoints that we're going to bring to Amazon.

7:39I mean, you've got Cynthia Cooper that is the originator. Swen Cass in that early 2000s, me. So like, we've got a great variety of perspectives And I think we're going to have a lot of fun debates. I think so, too. Yeah, I love that. And one of the things that we're seeing now change a little bit more, be more accepted, because this has always been part of the game, rivalries and intensity and things like that. Is that something you think is more accepted in the players now? Because it goes in between of what Randall was just talking about, how, you know, you want to be as harsh as you can in those times and be real.

8:11So, like, when the players are out there being real, do you think it's more accepted in the fans now? That's just part of sports? First of all, I don't want to say harsh because I think honesty sometimes it's construed as harsh. And to me, I think it is actually asking questions, having those like lenses in the microscope to look through of like what makes success and what's wins, what's losses. Would I hold Anthony Edwards to the same standard that I would hold somebody else to? And that's what we've all been fighting for. So to me, I'm excited about the opportunity to have these open, candid conversations, to talk about strategy, to talk about on the floor.

8:49I think women for so long have played basketball and it's been everything but basketball. And now we're able to focus on the game and focus on the playing style and all of those things. So now let's talk about, you said candid conversations there. And I think there were plenty of them for the past 18 months about the collective bargaining agreement. And there was a big celebratory toast at, I believe it was the WNBA office when they agreed upon things. You see a bunch of different statements from WNBA Commissioner Kathy Engelbert and, of course, Terry Jackson, who is the executive director of the WNBPA.

9:21And I wonder, what were your thoughts as this, as players in the league were continuing to negotiate and they eventually got to the finish line? What were your thoughts throughout and then when they came to an agreement? Well, agreement had to get done. Right. There's so much momentum. There's so many things that were going in the right direction that it would have been a disservice to, first and foremost, the fans. And I mean, as a whole, the owners as well as, or sorry, Board of Governors, as well as the players. And so with that being said, a deal had to get done. And I think that we all understand in negotiations, it goes slow and then it just rapidly speeds up.

9:58And that's exactly what happened. Got it done right on time to be able to roll into the season and not miss any action. I think on both sides gained a lot of ground. I think from the player standpoint, you know, standing on what we wanted to be able to then go into the next round of CBA talks in a few years and be able to have some ground and some ability to gain momentum throughout the CBA. Was there at any point during those conversations watching from the outside or talking to players that you thought there might be a work stoppage at all? It would just lose so much if that were to happen. So I know on both sides they didn't want that to happen.

10:39And when that's the commonality, usually things get done. Yeah. So one of the things that I think is interesting about the CBA is this big, dramatic pay increase for all parties. For the WNBA, they have a new media rights there, which, of course, Amazon is a part of. They have expansion done. And I wonder what you think the next phase of the W looks like, because WNBA Commissioner Kathy Engelbert mapped it out very clearly. It was going to be media rights, collective bargaining and then expansion. The exact same thing is sort of happening in the NBA as it pertains to Vegas and Seattle and their expansion process.

11:12What do you think is the next step for the W now that we've had these landmark agreements? Where do you think it goes next? Well, what I hope is that there's some sort of break off from being a part of the NBA's media rights deal. I think that there was a study done that 96 percent of sports on television is male. Going forward, do you think that's going to go up or down? I personally think it's going to go down because of the many outlets. You look at, you know, the the NBA's partnerships in terms of media rights deals went from two basically to now splitting into three. And so with that being said, there's more outlets.

11:53There's more ability to have, you know, to be able to watch what you want. This generation is watching what they want to watch on television now because it's on a tablet. And so that's what I think is so special about the streaming element is you're able to really watch what you want to watch when you want to watch it. And so that, I think, is going to be the next step in the WNBA is doing a great job of having that proof point. Do you think it's something that we'll see a completely separate WNBA? They break off completely from the NBA. Is that something you'd want to say? I don't know if that's going to happen just because of the value.

12:28And if you're a businessman, you're a businessman for a reason and you've owned 50 percent of the WNBA for this long, you're not going to get rid of that. So I think that there's going to be some nudging and some decisions that are going to have to be made in order to have growth for the WNBA on its own. On an ownership level and at an executive level, specifically with the WNBA, one of the interesting things that's happening over the last couple of years is the accelerated growth of ownership groups and their wealth. I mean, we've seen Sportico valuations, CNBC valuations recently, and of course, many, many announcements about practice facilities, about this increase in investment.

13:04And I wonder, from your perspective, what makes a good owner from a player's perspective? Because we hear, oh, you know, this person's putting in this amount of money and this person's putting in that amount of money. But then when the season starts, sometimes players are like, this is not good enough, despite the numbers that are being reported. Well, I think there are a couple that are first of their kind. You'd think about, you know, what Mark Davis has done with the Las Vegas Aces, having the practice facility. That's the first women's only practice facility. What that has done for their franchise.

13:39Then Matt Ishbia and, of course, Clara Wu-Sai. So I think those three owners really spearheaded the growth of the other stuff, right? Yes, you want to pay increase, but you also have to have the support and the investment to succeed. and that comes along with having sports medicine. It comes along with having state-of-the-art facilities and things like that. And so that to me is what the most important thing is. And then others have to follow suit because if you want to win, then you got to have all this stuff. Otherwise, you're not going to attract free agents and stuff like that. So yeah, I'm excited where the league is and I think it's going to be an exciting season.

14:19There was so much to speak to Candice about. We had to continue. So stick around. We have more with Parker on what's next for the WNBA. For Randall Williams, I'm Vanessa Perdomo-Maglione. You're listening to the Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio around the world. Support for the show comes from Public. Public is an investing platform that offers access to stocks, options, bonds, and crypto. And they've also integrated AI with tools that can assist investors in building customized portfolios. One of these tools is called Generated Assets. It allows you to turn your ideas into investable indexes.

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17:15Go to MyPolicyAdvocate.com. This is Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio. This is the Bloomberg Business of Sports. We explore the big money issues in the world of sports. I'm Vanessa Perdomo-Maglione. Michael Barr is back next week. We're talking with future Hall of Famer and WNBA legend Candace Parker. Parker spent most of her career traveling back and forth between playing in the WNBA and overseas, where they were given private jets, private drivers and paid seven figure salaries. While back in the U.S., conditions weren't even close. Now under a new CBA, players are getting the treatment they've been fighting for.

17:52So let's dive back into our conversation with Parker, starting with her thoughts on how far the league has come and where they still need to go. I think for a long period of time, there were so many, even businesses that limited what female athletes could do and now we're seeing those chains kind of come off and them believing in the brand of female athletes and why wouldn't you believe in women first of all we're the ones that are buying stuff in the household second of all we're the ones that are selling it and so i think just in general like everybody understanding that that's where the real growth happens and on that like on the salaries being you know averaging now around$600 ,000 and minimum salaries going up a lot.

18:34Do you think that players now won't have to go overseas? It'll change the quality of play we'll see on the floor because they're coming in more fresh. A hundred percent. I mean, there's an entire two or three generations of players that played 12 months a year. I mean, I played from October to April and then from April to October in the WBA. And now you're going to see the ability to have the player development, to have the facilities, to have the strength and conditioning to get your body right, to have an offseason to actually improve. So I think the game in itself is going to benefit from it.

19:11Let's talk about the game now. Okay. What storylines are you watching for this season? Well, I always think it's really interesting whenever you're trying to repeat, and especially I love dynasties because I think there's a different mentality that you have with a dynasty. The Aces quietly made a lot of huge moves in free agency that I don't think are being talked about enough. Kennedy Carter, to me, I'm like, they let the Aces get Kennedy Carter, which is insane. Her coming off the bench. I mean, they quietly signed back their core. And a lot of the WNBA is about familiarity, playing with someone, having a style of play.

19:52And so with that being said, I mean, the Aces to me is Aces and everybody else. I also think it's deep-seated in rivalries. So you talk about New York Aces. Is Phoenix in the Aces brewing rivalry? There's a lot of question marks. Is Atlanta going to be really good? Can you play the two bigs together? What is Ryan Howard going to do in this season now with Alicia? How are they going to get over the hump? So I think there's just a number of exciting topics to talk about. Sure. We're speaking with WNBA legend Candice Parker. When you're looking at the field, like you said, it's Aces and everyone else, but when you're looking at the field, if you were a free agent this year, as a lot of players were, who would you have been looking to sign with?

20:38Who do you think you would have fit in with? And who do you think would have been a great fit for you? That's a great question. I really like what they're doing in Toronto, just from scratch. I know Sandy Bondello is a G in this league in terms of like she's been in this league for 20 something years, played in the league, now coaching, has won championships with two separate franchises. So she knows what it takes. So Toronto is an interesting, intriguing spot. You know, I mean, I think the excitement around just in terms of the people, but also the style of play. I know they're going to play.

21:11Marina Mabry can't go under. Brittany Sykes, one of the best two way players in the league and is really settling into her role. I mean, they've signed, they put together in the expansion draft, like, I just like all the moves that they've made from ground zero. So I'm not saying I would play there. That would be an intriguing place if you're a free agent. Well, I think that's interesting. I was, we're talking about expansion. You know, I wanted to get your take on that because obviously the Golden State Back Race came in. They made this insane splash last year. Like we said, like CNBC is rating them about a billion dollars in valuation.

21:43so do you think these new teams Toronto and Portland can come in with that same sort of and have the same sort of you know impact it's so interesting because I think it is you know time I think it is like obviously your team but it's also like place and the Valkyries coming in in Silicon Valley kind of helped that out a little bit and having Lakeham as your owner being able to and he didn't cut and paste it wasn't like what works for Golden State now works for Valkyries they did it strategically and um they drafted well in the expansion draft um so i think they overachieved and they kind of set the bar now like being the first a lot of people are going to try to follow but it doesn't mean that that's going to be the case so you have to make the right hires everybody's got to be on the on the same page so i'm excited to see what toronto and portland do from a standpoint because the valkyries already got off to a great start because they made the playoffs in their first year.

22:39That's probably not the expectation for Portland and Toronto. I don't think it's an expectation for any expansion team to make the playoffs. At all. Usually you're in the cellar. Yes. Wrapping up here, looking forward, one of the things that I think is hanging over the league's head on the business side and on the executive side is Adam Silver and both Kathy Engelbert were asked about her future with the league. And from your perspective, someone who played with her, someone who had a a lot of conversations with her. What is she like and what has she meant to the league over the course of her history since she's been hired?

23:15So I think just when she came in, you know, I think the tremendous amount of growth and we've gotta give that credit. Obviously, we gotta give it credit to, usually leagues start to take off 30 years in. And the WNBA, I think, was being judged way too early. You grew up in a different era than like the NFL and the NBA and the MLB. And so many of these other leagues existed when there wasn't social media when you were reading newspapers about it. And the WNBA is one of the first leagues alongside the MLS. They grew up in the age of social media where it was like, oh, look, look, look. And I think that, unfortunately, there were fans who just looked at it in a cynical way.

23:52Yeah, but it also gave the power to the players to be able to tell your story. That's why we're sitting where we're at right now is because of NIL. Because these players were coming in with these names behind these different colleges in the backing and then losing momentum when they got to the WNBA because of the platform. Now, that's not the case. And I think a lot of it did have to do with the growth, the growing pains. I think Kathy coming in and negotiating basically two CBAs that have all gone and trended upward, there's positives. Obviously, there's been talk about relationship element of things.

24:28And I think in this today's age, you want to be led with relationship. And, you know, I think she could be better in establishing those relationships and making sure that everyone's on the same page. As a leader, that's your responsibility. Do you think that, let's say she does eventually move on before the next CBA, what would another leader need to come in and really do? Do you think they establish the relationships first right away? Like what needs to happen from a WNBA leader? Well, I've been so impressed with the NBA. And I think the NBA has such an advantage because you see their faces. The camera's up close.