Candace Parker headlines dynamite crew of Black women basketball broadcasters

The GIST: It’s Black History Month and National Girls and Women in Sports Day, so it just makes sense to start with four ceiling-smashing women.

• The sports media landscape has long been dominated by white men, but that’s changing with an increasing number of women clipping on mics and crushing it on air — and that’s exactly where these four hoop-tastic Black women thrive.

🐐 Candace Parker: One of the most dominant players in WNBA history, CP3’s drive to be the best extends to her broadcast career. Parker started commentating in 2018 — while she was still playing in the W — appearing on TNT, NBA TV, and March Madness broadcasts before joining the iconic Inside the NBA studio show in 2020.

• As if Parker didn’t have enough “firsts” to her name as a player, in 2023 she became the first woman to provide in-game analysis at the NBA All-Star Game. Shining bright and far.

⭐ Then there’s the ESPN trio of some of the best analysts in the business: Andraya Carter, Chiney Ogwumike, and Elle Duncan. Forget the Miami Heat Big Three, this is the only basketball superteam we need.

• Not only was Carter the first full-time woman panelist on men’s College GameDay, she’s also the only ESPN analyst who regularly covers college and pro women’s and men’s basketball, providing insightful analysis for all facets of the game. She truly does it all.

• Ogwumike is another player-turned-analyst, and, like Parker, she began her broadcast career while hooping, becoming one of the youngest full-time basketball analysts in ESPN history. Then, in 2020, she became the first Black woman to host a national radio show.

• Duncan’s been in the game since 2003; she’s an industry expert with the spiciest of takes. From starting her career as an on-air radio personality to anchoring SportsCenter (and winning two Emmys), Duncan’s been a sports broadcast staple for decades. We bow down.