 achieved peak performance. I couldn't be more excited to be here today with WNBA superstar, Candace Parker. It would take all 20 minutes of this to list her accomplishments, but Candace, the number one overall pick in the WNBA draft in 2008, spent 13 seasons with LA Sparks before joining her hometown team, the Chicago Sky in 2021. In her first season back at home, she helped lead the franchise to its first ever WNBA championship title and her second. Following an outstanding career at Tennessee, Candace was the first player to earn the WNBA MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in the same season. There's also not six WNBA all-star nods, two Olympic gold medals and multiple other honors. She's an analyst and commentator on NBA TV and TNT and has multiple endorsement deals and was just named to the time 100 most influential list. There's more, but I've been talking way too long already. So Candace, welcome to the stage. Hello. Thank you so much for being here. I know you had a game last night, great win and came straight from practice, but I am so happy to have you here. Thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to join. So we have a ton to talk about as listed by your impressive number of accolades, but let's start with the present. So the Sky won their first title last year, the 2022 season is underway. And this year, you've already become the oldest player to record a triple double and you're only the third player in WNBA history to record more than one alongside the likes of Courtney VanderSloot and your current teammate. So how's the season been going so far and how are you and the team approaching this year following the championship run? Well, first I cringe every time it's the oldest player to record a triple double. I'm sorry. Yeah, I saw that on the scroll on sports center that night. I was just like, you know, of course, all my family had jokes about being the oldest and how have you add up all my numbers? It's my age. So I've gotten the jokes for the last couple of weeks, but- What jokes here? But this season is good. You know, it's the grind of the beginning of the season, just trying to get acclimated with all my teammates. And, you know, I think just trying to, you know, work towards playing great basketball like we know we can. Yeah, it's been an exciting season so far already. It has been, you know, our ring ceremony was a little delayed just because we wanted to make sure that our entire team was here from playing overseas and, you know, be able to share in that experience of raising the banner and, you know, to have our names on the banner and basically to have that, you know, in history, in Chicago where it belonged. So it's been an amazing start to the season. Yeah, I watched that banner ceremony on League Pass. I thought I couldn't be there in person, but it looked really emotional and just important. And then I was going to bring this up a little bit later, but you brought out Layla in error for the ring ceremony. So you posted an Instagram with them getting your second ring ever. You juxtaposed that with Layla for the 2016 Sparks when like my heart melted. I know being a mom is a really big part of your identity. How do you balance it all? Well, it's interesting because when people ask me what I do, I say I'm a mom first. My kids come first and everything and I want them to share in my journey and in my experiences. Layla has been with me from the start, like we've grown up together. She was with me ever since my second year in the league and I've been in a league 15 years. So she's been a part of this. She knows that she has everything to do with the ring and has been wondering why she didn't get one. But was there just not in person last year, but to be able to share that with both of them, I mean, that's what it's about. Yeah, so I love that campaign with you and Layla by the way for muscle milk. It's really, it's great seeing how involved your kids are in everything you do. Thank you. And so the WNBA is really well known for its social justice initiatives and has been well ahead of kind of the rest of professional sports. You're a leading voice here and I know your production company launched its first project earlier this year on Title IX. So June, we're now in June, it's the 50th anniversary of Title IX. I would love to hear some of your thoughts on Title IX and how it's not only kind of shifted the footprint of women in sports, but also women in business. Well, first I find myself in the middle of two unique generations. I am as a result of the actions of Title IX and those pioneers that didn't take no for an answer, the Billie Jean Kings, the Pat Summits, the Lisa Leslie's, that really paved the way for me to be able to do what I love and to play the game I love, but also be able to get an education and travel the world because of it. And so I know the WNBA is not a federally funded institution, but it is a direct result of Title IX. And I think now we're seeing many women in leadership positions in the business world, seats at the table on boards. We're seeing how valuable diversity of thought is and just diversity in general. And a lot of that has to do with Title IX and that generation coming up. And so my mom didn't have the opportunity to play sports in school. Title IX was enacted her senior year in high school and I just think sports is a metaphor for life. It really is. And I think through this project, we just tried to really pick that apart and show it in different ways and through different lenses. And it was just an amazing project to be a part of. And it was really a passion project. And anytime that happens, I think that you're creating something that's important. Something I really liked in the documentary was you emphasized the importance of getting girls and women into sports but then also the impact that has later in life. So what effects have you seen for Title IX having for women just in the business industry at large? You learn everything through sports. You learn how to bounce back from bad games. You learn how to be honest with yourself and your teammates. You learn teamwork. You learn to value differences because everybody can't be a passer. Everybody can't be a shooter. There's so many things you learn through sports that you're able to apply later on in life. And everybody asked me if I want my daughter to play professional. No, I just want her to play team sports. So she has the tools that she can use later to be in a family, to be in a business, whatever she wants to do. And so I think now we're seeing that leadership. And then also how crucial and how valuable is it for fans, boys and girls, men and women to see women just doing what they love on television, playing sports in leadership positions. It's so crucial for our young boys and our young guys to see women in those positions. And the more you see that, then they're gonna hire them and they're gonna follow them and they're gonna listen to their leadership. So I could go on and on about this. This is a passion of mine. And I just really want at some point in life for my son and my daughter to be able to walk in a room and be able to have the same opportunities as each other and there's no differences. And so I don't think I'm gonna stop until that happens. Yeah, and I encourage you to go on and on, especially because there's still a ton of work to be done. I mean, we saw last year, women's March Madness, Sedona's TikTok went viral. What work do you think we still need to do here and how can we get to true equality in sports? Well, like anything, I think the world stood still but those of us that have been in women's sports know that that's the reality. We weren't surprised. I think everybody else was surprised at this picture that Sedona posted of the weight room and the differences and all of that. But in women's basketball, that's the way it's been. Women's sports, that's the way it's been. You have to constantly prove yourself over and over and over again. And even through like women's soccer, even when you do prove yourself, you still have to fight for yourself and your rights even when it's proven. I would like to see Title IX and its enactment and just in general across women's sports be less reactive and more proactive. And I say that in the sense of putting things in place that allow us to really measure the capabilities of women's sports. And I think through social media, we're seeing that that now no longer can companies say, well, women's sports don't sell. Well, guess what? We just saw women's soccer sell out arenas and stadiums and across the board. And so I think that's what I would like to see as being less reactive and more proactive. Yeah, for sure, especially with women's soccer. I mean, I know you're a co-owner of Angel City FC. They're selling out 18,000 tickets a stadium. Like that's insane. But women's sports don't sell. We don't sell, we can't sell tickets. Nobody watched this. So it is. I mean, just, I mean, I told you earlier, I was at the Chicago Sky Game Four Championship last year, sold out arena, rocking audience. Some of the best atmosphere I've ever been, like in any sport, men's or women's, it's incredible. But then, okay, moving over towards brands. So you've got some huge partnerships and endorsements with brands like 2K Sports, Adidas, Capital One, Gatorade and a bunch more. And as I just said, you and Layla are co-owners of Angel City FC. So how have you kind of marketed yourself and built up your own brand over the years to land these partnerships? And also you were the first WNBA player on the cover of NBA 2K. That's just impressive. Well, I think just growing up, you wanna dream and you wanna shoe. I mean, I remember being in a gym, like I'm gonna have my own shoe. I remember taking tape and writing my name on the shoe. And you wanna be on a video game. Those are the two desires. And then of course, you see the commercials with Gatorade. I remember the Gatorade commercials from when I was a kid. And I think just across the board, those are the things that you dream of as a kid. So I don't take that for granted at all. Fortunately, I've had an amazing team that has continued to encourage me to be authentic in who I am and what I wanna represent. And I think with that comes that brand partnership. When you're able to be authentic and who you are and you're able to find brands that encourage that and wanna continue that. And so fortunately, I've been with Adidas since day one, literally, and then Gatorade, I signed with them when I first got into the WBA. And so I think it's just, it's really about relationships, telling a story and making an impact. I think that's the biggest thing is, if you're just doing it for yourself, but you're doing it to really reach others. And I think through the messaging through Adidas, through Gatorade, through other partnerships, we're able to see like through Capital One, we're able to talk about financial literacy and we're able to talk about money management and the balance of all of those things. And so those are all things that I'm very passionate about. And I love that the brands are empowering me to continue to talk about those things. Yeah, so with the brand partnerships, the messaging behind it is really important then. Messaging behind it is super important. And I think you're gonna be able to find that connection with other brands when you are completely authentic in what you're talking about. I always say this, it's a skill to know what you're good at, but it's also a skill to know what you don't know. And I think my team does an amazing job of asking those questions and kind of searching for what I wanna be about and what I want my legacy to be and what I represent. And so I'm really appreciative for my team kind of finding those matches for me. Seems like they're doing a great job. And then let's go back in time a little bit. So you made a name for yourself way back in high school in Naperville. You dunked at 15. You then led the Lady Bowls to back-to-back NCAA championships. And I think I might know the answer to this, but I wanna hear it. So who were some of your role models and mentors and how'd you get where you are today? My brothers, to be honest with, were my biggest role models growing up. I wanted to do everything that they did. The reason why I wanted to dunk at 15 was because my brother's dunked at 16 and I won bragging rights at the breakfast table. We're an extremely competitive family and my two older brothers from the get-go have been my heroes and they still are to this day. And so when you don't have to like, I feel so fortunate because I didn't have to go outside of my house to really look up to somebody. But then of course, you have sports. I mean, I grew up a Chicago Bulls fan. So I was a Chicago Bulls fan. Mia Ham was, you know, the be-all-end-all. I had pictures of her all over my wall growing up. I was a huge soccer player. And then of course, when the WNBA started in 97, the 96 Olympics as well, magnificent seven. You got, you know, women's basketball dominating. You got the 99ers with women's soccer. So I think during that span is when, you know, I really was shaped, I think as a kid and I had amazing role models to look up to. Yeah, and then back in your college days, you led Tennessee's the back-to-back championships. And then in 2016, you won a Sparks championship. What did that mean to you? I really honestly think the hardest thing to do is to be the last one on the podium, you know, the last one standing. And, you know, with that being said, you realize through that journey, how hard it is and how difficult it is and how much you lean on the people around you. And, you know, I'm able to reflect like even right now, you know, we're in game eight of season five and three. It's hard. It's hard to stay focused on the prize. But because you look back at memories like that, you look back at pictures and you look back at the rings that you're able to put on your finger and you realize all of it's worth it. You know, it's worth it to get up and, you know, work out. It's worth it to get up and go to the gym and you don't want to. It's worth it to get treatment and things like that. So I think it just inspires me and continues to motivate me to want more. I mean, winning is dangerous because it's a feeling that like, doesn't satisfy that feeling for very long. You want to do it again. Great. And then what do you see next for you? You're at the top of your game right now, but you've also got a really promising broadcast career going. You're the only female studio broadcaster at Turner. What do you see heading next? I really just love obviously playing. I love playing basketball. I love commentating about basketball. You know, I think we're kind of more going into that life after basketball with business and things like that. So I always say I want to enter into the business world. I, my heroes are Robin Roberts who obviously transcended television and went from sports to now saying hello and good morning to millions and millions of people in Good Morning America. And Michael Strahan, the same thing was an athlete, woke up on Mondays when he didn't want to do radio shows and then now look at him sitting right next to Robin. And then again, like, you know, Magic Johnson just the way that he's transcended the way we look at athletes in the business world. And so that's what I want to do. And I hope to do that for women in sports especially. We're close to running out of time but I have a couple more for you. So what advice do you have for women who either want to become professional athletes or want to break into the business side of sports or both? My biggest thing is, and this is something that I've learned because a lot of people are prideful and they don't want to ask questions and they think they're stepping on your toes when they try to reach out and really make connections. That's what it's about. As a veteran on a WBA team, I love a rookie that comes in and is asking questions and wants to work out with me and wants to know how I got to where I'm at and really wants me to be their mentor and things like that. It's the same thing in the business world. You make those connections, you reach out, you lean on people, you're eager to learn, you follow up. Good things are gonna happen. And so I think I'd just encourage everyone to have that like childlike innocence of wanting to know more, wanting to get answers to their questions and really just working hard. And before we get to your key takeaways, we do have a question from the audience which is along a similar vein. What is your advice to bring the best in sports for every woman from a young age? To bring the best in sports? I would say to be honest with you, having a passion has to come from inside. I always say this with my kids, I'm not gonna ever get you out of bed. And coach Summit used to say this all the time, I can't start your engine. You have to start it yourself. I'll be here to help you push it. I'll be here to help you make it better and hone your skills. But I can't start your engine. And I think that's the biggest thing with kids in sports. I think there's a lot of parents and a lot of coaches out there that are trying to start the kids engine. And it's just not gonna happen. That's great advice. Well, okay, before I let you go back to your very busy life, I think you have some key takeaways you wanna share with us. Yeah, I think it's super important for everyone to realize like how important, you know, the who is, I think everybody in the society kind of focuses on the what. And for me, yes, I am, you know, gold medalist. I've won, you know, rings, I won the NCAA championship, been MVP, but still, you know, my favorite role in life is being a mom. And I think I've always stayed center in who I am because when you focus on the what, you're focused on the wins and the losses and you're focusing on how you played the night before and things like that. When you focus on the who, you realize you gotta show up every day. And so I think that my kids, my family, my wife, my brothers, everybody, my mom, my dad, they all pushed me to continue to be who I am because that'll never change. And then, you know, obviously your habits make you. And I think it's, you know, making promises to others, we are more likely to follow through, but when you make a promise to yourself and in the words of the late great Kobe Bryant, he used to make a contract with himself and he signed it in the off season because you know how you say, I'm gonna get up in the morning, I'm gonna work out, right? And then the morning comes and you don't. But if you're meeting somebody to work out, you're gonna show up. So make that promise to yourself because it's important to keep those promises because you know what you should be working on. And then also just in terms of title nine and how important it is to continue to push that forward. I think it's so important to acknowledge those that came before us. And you know, I went to school at Tennessee and played under coach Summit. So I know a lot about title nine, but there's still so much we have to do to be able to capitalize and spread the wealth for everyone. Boy, girl, no matter where you come from or what color your skin is. And so I think it's so important for us to continue to learn about it, to acknowledge it and to celebrate it. Okay, that is all fantastic advice. And Candice, thank you so much for being here. I really do appreciate it.