Intern Kaili Spooner perfects her broadcast live-streaming for the Women’s Premier Basketball Association
By Julian Moreno
As the final buzzer echoed through the basketball arena and the satisfying swish of the net sealed the game, SSU student Kaili Spooner leaned into the microphone to describe the final play. Her voice was steady despite the adrenaline coursing through her veins.
It was yet another exciting moment for Spooner during her media internship. After years of dreaming of a chance to be a basketball courtside commentator, Spooner now interns with the Women's Premier Basketball Association (WPBA). Her duties not only include play-by-play commentary, but also broadcast live-streaming as well social media work.
Luckily, Spooner, a fourth year Communications major, understands high-level athletic competition from the inside. She plays on the Seawolf Women's volleyball team and says she has been enjoying her role promoting women’s sports off the court. She explains that the WPBA is a truly exciting basketball league that consists of recent college graduates who want to play overseas, current overseas players who want to play during the offseason and even ex-WNBA players. For example, this season a former WNBA player Erica McCall is in the league.
According to Spooner, her own on-the-job growth has been tremendous. She diversified her vocabulary, dove into professional sports research and gained more background knowledge about basketball. She credits mentoring as being invaluable and, in particular, has learned so much from her mentors, including Kevin Dana, a broadcaster for the Santa Cruz Warriors, the G league affiliate of the Golden State Warriors.
Her mentors have helped Spooner learn to trust her gut and assert herself. “It's important to speak up in this industry,” said Spooner. “If you disagree with something it’s okay to speak up and pitch your opinion.”
The end goal for Spooner is to be a sideline reporter for either the NBA or the WNBA. She believes that her love for this internship and the sport itself is the perfect example of: “If you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life.”