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by: John J. Buro Visit his website at profilesinsport.com

What a wonderful life I’ve had.” – Nancy Lieberman

She’s 48 now, but looks 38 and –based on how well she negotiated the obstacle course during the practice run of the WNBA Skills Challenge [a precursor to the All-Star Game]- still has the dexterity of an athlete even ten years younger than that.

And, while her role as an ESPN analyst may require her to dress nattier, Nancy Lieberman is still very much a ballplayer. Even in a pants suit.

‘That would’ve been fun if I wasn’t in my work clothes,” said the 5’10” Brooklyn native, who first catapulted to fame by earning a place on the USA National Team as a sophomore guard at Far Rockaway High School in Queens.

“I still play once a week. But, three or four times a week, I’m on the court teaching kids. I’ve had a basketball camp for 22 years, and that is absolutely amazing to me.

“I just love to play,” Lieberman gushed. “Deion Sanders, my best friend, and I play all the time [in her hometown of Dallas, Texas]. So do Torii Hunter, Michael Irvin [whose niece, Sandora, is a 6’3 forward for the Phoenix Mercury] and Junior Spivey. I can go on and on. There are a bunch of guys, all friends, out there who we play with.

“I’m close with all of them -Avery [Johnson, the Mavericks’ Head Coach], Jerry [Stackhouse], Jason [Terry]; I had covered each of their playoff games as NBA-TV’s studio analyst.

“How much fun is that?”

She recalled the night after the All-Star Game. “Deion said to me, ‘Great game; but, I wished Becky Hammon was in it.’ He is a real fan of the league. Earlier this year, when I was in Minnesota for an ESPN game, Torii dropped by to see me. And, we started to talk about Seimone Augustus [a rookie with the Lynx, who is currently second in scoring with a 22.7 average] and the impact she has had on the city.

“My guys really know [their stuff],” she noted proudly. “They have a good handle on women’s athletics and the WNBA, in general. It’s kind of fun to call them, ‘cause I know they’re watching the games.”

There’s also one other guy Lieberman knows is watching. His name is Timothy Cline, Jr. –she calls him TJ- who is 12 years old and already 5’7”.

“And a good player.”

No surprise there, in that Lieberman is a pioneer of the women’s game and TJ’s father played for the Washington Generals, who beat the Harlem Globetrotters just once between 1953 and 1995.

“So, during the NBA playoffs, TJ got to spend six of the most unbelievable weeks with me talking to Coaches Mike D’Antoni [Phoenix Suns] and Pat Riley [Miami Heat], as well as Avery.

“How lucky am I?”

It would take several pages for such a question to be answered. The condensed version begins in 1976 when, at 18, Lieberman –by virtue of a second place finish by the U.S. Women's Basketball Team in Montreal -became the youngest player in Olympic history to medal. In 1979 and 1980, she captured the Wade Trophy [named for the deceased three-time national champion, Delta State University coach Lily Margaret Wade] as the best female player in Division I [in 2006, Augustus, then a guard with LSU, joined Lieberman as the only multiple recipients]. There were also three consecutive Kodak All-American Awards [1978-80] and the 1979 Broderick Award for the top women's basket- ball player in America.

She would later be elected to the NYC Basketball Hall of Fame [1993], Basketball Hall of Fame [1996] and the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame [1999].

As Lieberman has won nearly every available award, it was only appropriate that she would have one named after her. Beginning in 2000, the Rotary Club of Detroit has honored the top collegiate point-guard in the women's game with the Lieberman Award.
And, while there are never guarantees in sports, this achievement has proven to be a prerequisite to WNBA success. The Connecticut Huskies’ Sue Bird –who won the first three awards- is already a four-time All-Star. Diana Taurasi, another ex-UConn star who has appeared in three All-Star games, won the Lieberman Award the next two seasons. Both Bird and Taurasi were also selected to the league’s All-Decade Team. In 2005, LSU’s Temeka Johnson followed suit; soon after, she was crowned the WNBA Rookie of the Year.

Lieberman’s own collegiate career had taken form -after more than 75 scholarship offers- at Old Dominion [Norfolk, VA] where, in 1979 and 1980, she led the Lady Monarchs to consecutive AIAW [the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women] national championships. Though she averaged 17.4 points per game during the 1978-79 season, she was far from a one-woman team; Marianne Stanley’s squad also included All-American Inge Nissen and Anne Donovan, a future three-time All-American and 1983 Naismith National Player of the Year.

However, even with a sparkling resume, women’s basketball in the ‘80s didn’t offer many attractive opportunities, and Lieberman began to think of her future in the game.

“There’s nothing better than playing the game,” Nancy Lieberman conceded. “The most incredible thing is to play. The next best thing is coaching because you’re still in the trenches; when you teach, you share. And, when you can’t have either of those, it’s doing TV because it’s all about promoting a game that you love.

“All three of those elements have been part of my career and I’ve absolutely loved it.”

During an unparalleled career at ODU, Lieberman tallied 2,430 points [18.1 ppg], 1,167 rebounds and a record 961 assists. With respect to the two championship seasons, Lieberman’s teams won 72 of 74 contests.

Yet, it remained to be seen how well her knowledge of the game would translate in front of a television camera.

“When I was in college,” she recalled, “Matt Merola, who is Reggie Jackson’s agent, said to me, ‘When you’re out of college, Nancy, you should think about diversifying.’ At the Superstars competition, Reggie –then at the height of his career-, suggested that I should get into TV.”

“Use your name and your status,” the baseball great advised, “to share the game with people.”

“I never forgot that,” Lieberman confided. “Later, Matt got me a TV gig -the 1981 NCAA Tournament on NBC, with Jay Randolph. Then, I worked three games for ESPN.”

In 1981, the 24-hour sports network wasn’t even a blip on the radar screen -which was okay, since their newest analyst didn’t have a clue about on-air necessities.

“Like knowing which camera to look into, or about dressing nice.”

There was also an issue with her speech, which could not go overlooked. “I still had a New York accent,” she laughed. “So, I was sent to a voice coach. I paid $2,000 to stop ‘tawking like this. Ya know what I mean?’ This voice coach, literally, changed how I communicate.”

By the mid-‘80s, she was communicating much better. Then, David Stern had already been the Commissioner of the NBA for two, maybe, three years.

“Once, I visited him in New York. He closed the door to his office and said, ‘I’m closing the door because I don’t want them [the owners] to fire me. They’d kill me if they knew what I was going to talk about.’

“Before I’m done, on my watch as Commissioner of the NBA, there is going to be a women’s league called the WNBA. And, one of my wishes is that you’ll be around to participate.’

“It gave me chills that he had said this to me, and that he wanted to make his dream a reality. But, think back to what the NBA was like at that point. Drug problems. The Finals were on tape delay. And, in spite of labor issues, he was still trying to grow internationally. Now, David was telling me that, one day, there would be a WNBA.

“Talk about vision.”

The WNBA opened for business in 1997. By then, Lieberman was 38 and had already led the Dallas Diamonds to the Women's American Basketball Association title, and later became the first woman to play in a men’s professional league by enlisting with the Springfield Fame of the United States Basketball League. Then, in 1987-88, she toured with the hapless Generals in a never-ending quest to foil the Globetrotters.

“I remember seeing David after the league was formed and, as we hugged, he said, ‘I’m sorry it wasn’t earlier, but I’m so happy for you’.

“I waited 17 years to play one year -17 years of playing in front of Maurice the janitor, at the downtown Y. But, that one year with the Phoenix Mercury was worth it. At home, we averaged 13,000-14,000 fans a night. There was electricity and excitement, and an extraordinary amount of media coverage. Of course, playing for Cheryl Miller was a neat thing for me because Cheryl –a fellow Hall-of-Fame player- is also my friend.

“The closeness of the fans was so unparalleled in this virgin league. There was no ego. There was no ‘Well, you got this shoe contract and I don’t,’ or ‘You have three commercials and I only have two.’ It wasn’t about labor issues. Everybody was just happy to be there. It was so pure.

“Think back to the first group of players in Major League Baseball. Or, who played during the National Football League’s first season? This was a happening. And, when the WNBA comes full circle, David’s going to be able to say, ‘I started this league.’

“Now, that’s cool stuff.”

Nancy Lieberman moved to the present, and the future, of a league that is now celebrating its 10th year anniversary.

“I am so proud of the players that have come after me,” she said in reflection.“So proud of Lisa Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes. I adore Becky Hammon and Katie Smith. I am such a fan, and I have admiration for what they’ve done in this game. They are absolutely phenomenal.

“If I had one wish, I would’ve liked to go head-to-head with Sue Bird, or any of them, in my prime. But, that’s a selfish wish. I’m still a competitor.”

Lieberman remained in the WNBA as General Manager and Head Coach of the Detroit Shock from 1998-2000. In January 2004, she coached the Dallas Fury of the National Women's Basketball League. Currently, she is ESPN’s college basketball analyst, in additional to working selected WNBA games.

“I relish my position in women’s sports,” she beamed. “I totally understand my role as someone who is trying to be a role model for women athletes –and trying to fulfill Billie Jean King’s dream, when she put it on the line against Bobby Riggs.

“I get it. And, I’m glad that the viewers have entrusted me with this responsibility.”

Lieberman is both a keen observer of who is playing today, as much as she is a fan of yesteryear. “LeBron James needed Kobe Bryant, that Bryant needed Michael Jordan, that Jordan needed Julius Erving, and that Erving needed Elgin Baylor.”

“I’m young enough to still get on the court and help players with their game. I’m their eyes to things they don’t know. For instance, Taurasi is 24; Bird and Lauren Jackson are 25. And, even though they’ve had hearty experiences, they still need a friend, a mentor. I’m here to promote the game they’re playing so hard to excel at. We are all connected to it.”

The common denominator lies in the history of the league.

“The players of today are phenomenal, and the league has been fantastic in honoring the pioneers of the game. And, by making sure the veterans are not swept under the carpet, the game will get even better. I really believe that the younger players respect those who played before them. So, when there’s a mutual respect -because we’re all making contributions in a variety of ways- it’s a very good thing.

“It’s not unusual to see a teammate’s arms wrapped tight around Yolanda Griffith, because a young player knows that Yolanda knows her stuff. The same with Ticha Penicheiro, who had also played at Old Dominion, and Anna DeForge. And, many other players. This is such a great place to be.”

It is no secret that the WNBA has survived, in large part, because of the NBA’s financial muscle. Lieberman knows this, but also draws on the analogy of an ambitious journalist needing a home to write.

“Can you imagine if there wasn’t a place where your stuff could be printed? You’d be sitting there, at the keyboard, saying, ‘I know I’m good. I know my stuff. And, I also know that people would want to read it, but there’s no way to get it out there. It’s the same thing with this league. The players of the ‘60s and ‘70s were really good; but, they just didn’t have the platform to show their skills. And, that’s sad.”

The WNBA has evolved, in her opinion, because upper management recognized the league for what it is. A business. She is most proud of what Val Ackerman, the league’s founding President, ex-Deputy Commissioner Russ Granick, and Stern have done for women’s athletics.

“They never treated it like a girls’ club,” she stated. “They’ve applied a lot of business savvy to it. When there was something really good, they left it alone. But, when the business needed to be changed, they changed it. That’s the mark of really smart people going with the times, and the economic demand.

“This is a business. If our widgets don’t sell as well as other people’s widgets, there won’t be a business. So, it has to be run with a certain mentality. In that regard, they’re doing the very best they can.”

And, so is Donna Orender, a former player in the now-defunct Women’s Basketball League who, since February 2005, is the President of the Women’s National Basketball Association. By the end of the last calendar year, Fox Sports Network had named her the seventh most powerful woman in all of sports.

“Donna is brilliant,” said Lieberman, who had played against Orender [nee: Geils] as a teenager. “She understands business. She understands media. She gets it. Val had laid the foundation for who we are. Now, we’ll see how far Donna can take us, in terms of sponsorship and TV ratings. She is amenable to working with ESPN, and ESPN is, certainly, amenable to working with her.

“It’s kind of cool.”

Cool, too, is the emerging talent. Augustus, Candice Dupree [Chicago Sky], Cappie Pondexter [Mercury] and Sophia Young [San Antonio Silver Stars] have already broken through as first-year All-Stars.

“It’s a natural evolution,” Lieberman noted. “All we have to do is continue to grow our fan base. We’re getting people in our corner. And, that, is really neat.”

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