The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Nneka Ogwumike on Excellence and Equity with the LA Sparks | Candace Parker Returning Home to Chicago

Episode Date: May 19, 2023

Los Angeles Sparks power forward Nneka Ogwumike discusses her family’s success on the court, the gender pay gap in professional basketball and Gigi Bryant’s legacy. And Candace Parker talks about coming home to Chicago to play for the Chicago Sky, the playful dynamic she has with Shaq and Dwyane Wade on TNT, her new podcast and motherhood. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to Comedy Central. My guest tonight is a WNBA champion and six-time all-star who plays for the Los Angeles Sparks. As president of the Players Union, she played a leading role in negotiating higher pay and expanded benefits for all of the women in the league. Please welcome, Ne, Obumike. Thank you. Welcome. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Welcome to the show. Thank you. Thank you. This is so fun, especially having a woman president on the show. This is nice. I hope this is a woman president on the show. This is nice.

I hope this is a predictor of the future. Welcome. Thank you. I don't even know where to start in your world. Because of how many achievements you just have, you know, in your resume. Let's start with your journey as a player. You are one of the most accomplished players that we've ever seen in the game of basketball. Magic Johnson said that he watches you playing and he goes you one of the smartest players on and off the court. He actually said you you

are like a combination of Magic Johnson and LeBron James. I appreciate that. That is really high praise. You've dominated for such a long time. What's interesting is your sister plays in the team with you. She does. She's also amazing. And then you have a younger sister who has been predicted to also be coming into the W. What are they feeding you in your family? If you must know, we're Nigerian, so we eat a lot of goosey soup.

Ah, that's what it is. But is there something in your family where like, how do you have so many great basketball players in the family? I don't know. I really couldn't tell you. You know, we just kind of grew up knowing what excellence was. Right. In our culture, it's just the staple and the standard.

to be honest, like if I was playing another sport, I would have found a way to be excellent in that. And it's just so happened that we all play basketball. But not only that, you know, we had the opportunity to play basketball at Stanford University between me and my sister and then my youngest two sisters play at Rice. And it's just in the blood. It's interesting that you've been playing for so young as a league. So when you started off playing, there wasn't even an idea of a possible future. I mean, the WNBA's being growing exponentially, but it's still, was that ever an idea?

Did you think, oh, I'm gonna be playing professionally or were you just doing this for fun? I'm not gonna lie, Trevor. I didn't think I was gonna play professionally until I was like halfway through my thapapapapapapapapap................................. to. to. to. to. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. toe. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the.............................n.. treenn. trinn. trin. tri. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the think that is attributed to just how we were raised, but also not being, kind of being ignorant to the opportunities for women in sports. And for me to look back and understand how much I've grown in my intellect about that, and being able to educate people about that and also affect change in this current CBA, I feel like I found my legacy. It's kind of cool. That's really amazing. The WMBA is truly one of the most interesting stories because here you have this league that keeps on growing young.

You know, it does better and better. It makes more and more money. And yet there are so many complicated stories within it. You have amazing women who are athletes who play in this league. Most of them, I've heard, have college degrees? Almost everyone. Almost everyone? Yeah, yeah. That's special on its own. That's very special.

You have business owners, you have entrepreneurs. But then because of the pay structures in the league, most of the women have to go overseas to earn, and correct me if it's wrong, but more money from other countries playing in a basketball league. We have a 12-month season, and that is to, that gives us an opportunity to earn up to 10 times more. I'm sorry, what? Up to 10 times more? What do you mean up to 10 times more? Where? Compared to what we make here? You get paid 10 times more outside of America? There are players that do. And so we wanted to make sure that... Like, which countries are these? I mean, Russia's one. Wait, Russia?

So Russia is paying some of the women up to 10 times more what they make in America. Wow. Yeah. I never thought I would be saying to ladies, go to Russia. But that's what, so players in the WNBA have had to make this choice. You play the entire year just to basically sustain yourself as a basketball player.

Yeah, and you know, kind of what's reflected in our CBA now, we wanted to kind of, you know, we didn't want to make it an obligation. We wanted to create more disparity in the choices. So now with what we hopefully catalyzed in this current collective bargaining agreement, there's players that now have opportunities to not only make more money, but to be compensated in the league market, in the team market, so that they don't feel like they have to go overseas, which also affects motherhood and child planning. So now you don't have to decide when am I going to have my kid, or am I scared to those are the types of resources and implications that we wanted to change at

a foundational level that can hopefully create a much better future for women's basketball. That's brilliant. Yeah. How do you respond to those people who, some of which are trolls? How do you respond? How do you? How do you respond? How do you, some of throa? Some people like, some of which are true, th, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, who, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi, thi, thi, thi, that, that, that, that, thi, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thi, thi, thi, that, that, that, that, that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that, that, you know, genuinely from their side, say, like, I don't understand. They're all trolls.

Yeah, they're all trolls. Yeah, I like that. Some people are like, why do WMBA players want more money? They don't have as many fans as the NBA? You know, I just don't understand the ignorance because it doesn't make sense. boils down to the business being run properly, which our current commissioner now is really working hard to fix. Granted, basketball's basketball, but the game is different on the women's side and the fans that we do have, which are a lot, that is not true, we do have fans.

And I expect everyone here to go to a WBA game this summer. Including you. I'm gonna go. I love watching live basketball. But we do have fans. You guys go already? 23 years? Thank you. Thank you.

Wow. Thank you. Thank you. So, I told you we have fans. Wow. That's from the beginning. That's OG fans. So like, you know, it's just, it's not true that we don't have fans.

But the business is different. You know, we play differently, we appeal to a different market, and we have to tap into that in order for the business to thrive. When you look at the journey you've been on, when you look at the journey the league has been on, the players have been on. There's no doubt that the the league the league the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, the league, tho, tho, tho, that, that, tho, that, tho, tho, we'll, tho, tho, tho, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, we'll, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, toe, and toe, and toe, and toe, toe, toe, too, too, too, and, and, toeasease.ea, too, too, tape, tooananananananananananananananananananan know, like people go like, oh, maybe if the league makes more money, then the players can get more money, but is there also the argument of, oh, if you invest more in the league, then the league becomes more popular, if it becomes more popular, it makes more money.

That is definitely what we're dealing with right now. And instead of just talking about it. Right. Yeah. So what's your goal and your journey now? Because I mean, you are a legend both in and outside of basketball. You know, you've achieved so many accolades. Where do you see your journey taking you? Right now, I'm finally grabbing the wheel of the car that's taking me to wherever I need to go. But to be honest, I just want want want to to to to to to to to to e e want to to e want to e want to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea to ea, to ea, to ea, wo, their the woom-a, woom-a, woom-a, woom-a, what's their their their their the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their their, their their their their their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, the me to wherever I need to go. But to be honest, I just want to educate more people about the WNBA, women and sports, empowering women in general, especially educating other women on how to empower women.

We do need allies, of course. And so, that's just kind of what I want to do. I just want to educate people because ignorance really eliminates a lot of preconceptions and it changes actions in a very small way. And I tell everyone, okay, if you can't go to a WBA game, at least have the TV on and let it contribute to the ratings. Turn it on. If you absolutely have nothing to do, you can find a game.

It's not impossible to find a game. It's not impossible to find a game. Turn it on, watch it. Follow me now. You know me now, you know, in whatever way you can. I know a lot of people probably know my teammate, Hanis Parker. I'm sure you can follow her. Don't just watch her as an analyst. Watch her play. And if you can't see her, then you can't be her. And that's what I want to change. Let's let's talk a little little tho t t t t t tell tell tell tell tell tell tel tell tel to tell tell to to to to th. th. th. th. th. thi the the the. thi. thi. thi. the thi. thi. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. the the the the the the the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way the way. the way. the way. the way. the way. the way. the way. the way. their their their the. the. the. the. to try. tm. tm. tm. tm. today. tm. tm. today. try. tha. the. the. the. the of the one of the more interesting and also heartbreaking stories is undeniably that of G. G. G. Bryant's. Yeah. We saw all these images of her and there was there were seldom images of her that didn't involve basketball. You know whether it was her playing in in her dress and in her heels you know that that video that went around whether it was pictures of her practicing with her dad Kobe, whether it was images of her that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that thly thly thly thly thiably thiably thiably thyably thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thly thably thably thably thiably thiably thiably thi thi thi thi thi thi the the the the thi the the the the the the thi the thi thi thi thi thi thi you know, that video that went around, whether it was pictures of her practicing with her dad Kobe, whether it was images of her at a game staring at you,

you know, almost looking at you like, wow, this is where I dream of being. There's no denying that Gigi Bryant in many ways represented the future of what the WNBA could be, you know, because she was, she wasn't just playing basketball to play basketball. She was trying to get somewhere and that somewhere was the WNBA. She looked up to you, she looked up to many other players in the WNBA. What do you think that's done for the sport and what do you hope young girls out there who are playing right now will have that your generation doesn't? You know, losing Gigi, I think, I th th th th th th th th think, I think, I th, I th, I th, I the, I to to, I to, I to, I to, I to, I to, the, to to to to to to to to to to the, thi, the, and tho, and tho, and tho, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and the, and to to to to to the the the th, th, th, the th, the the th, the th, the the their, th, their, their, th, the, the, thr, thr, thr, thrown, thrown, thrown, too, too, too, tooooooooooooooooooooooooo, the, the, the, ththink, to the world, it exposed people to a lot that they didn't know, not just about a young girl who wanted to aspire to be like her dad, but a young girl that was moving things for women, without even realizing it.

She was authentically herself. And by her being authentically herself, you know, we saw a living legacy in her, not just through her father, but also for women in sports and for the WNBA. When we got to experience her, we were looking at what we were working for. You know, we're not just here to make a difference for the current players, for the rookies coming in. We're here to make a difference for those girls like Gigi, whose eyes lit up every time that they saw us. And that is out there, and people need to know

that that is out there. We were tragically alarmed by it, but it certainly was a wake-up call. And it really hit hard for the women's basketball community to lose her, but we're gonna live in her honor. I think you do that every single day. Congratulations and everything you've done. Congratulations for making history. Thank you. Nekwa Obamique of the WNBA superstar Candace Parker.

She's here to talk about what it's been like returning home to play for the Chicago Sky Sky and D. Wade on TNT. Candace Parker, welcome to the Daily Social Distancing Show. Thank you for having me. I'm excited. I'm a fan, Trevor. Just so you know. I'm not a casual fan. I'm a fan. Oh, wow. Okay, that puts a lot of pressure on me because now. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. th. th. to to to to to to to to to to to to to to th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. the. the. to to to to toe. toe. toe. to. to. to. to. to. to. to to to the.'m not a casual fan. I'm a fan. Oh wow, okay that puts a lot of pressure on me because now I'm a fan of yours because it's not often I get to talk to anybody who is considered the greatest at anything that they do. I'm gonna read just a small list of some of your achievements. You've won an WNBA title, two Olympic gold medals, two regular season MVP, and a finals MVP. You're also the first player to win rookie of the year and MVP in the same season.

Last year you were named the Defensive Player of the Year. My question to you is, have you already started writing your whole of fame, speech? Like, what do you, like, you plan ahead or are you are you gonna try and make it seem like you didn't know at the, is it gonna be one of those like, oh, modest, oh, what a surprise. Listen, I'm just realizing now, like I've been in this thing for 14 years, and like I have a daughter,

and the people that I'm playing with are, thoe that I'm thi thi that's that's thi that's thi thi thi thi................. that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that's, that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm, that I'm playing, that I'm that I'm, that I'm, that I'm, that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm that I'm thi...... thi. thi. thi. thi. th th th th th th th th thi. th th th th th thi. th th th thi. that that that that that that that that that that how my socks are if I'm not looking like an old lady, all those things. You say that, but you are still competing at the highest level, you know? The season's about a kickoff. Everybody in Chicago is excited because you have just switched to a new team. It's almost a homecoming for you because you're from Illinois. What are your expectations for the upcoming season? And how do you deal with that pressure of a whole city going, all right, Candace, we need you to fix what happened last year. We need you to take us to the top.

First, I'm really excited. I grew up in Naperville, which is western suburbs of Chicago. And I the their their their their their their thia thia thia, and I, thua, th. th. thuan, thuan, thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. to to to to to tapes, thu. to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to do. And, to do. And, th. And, tape, tape, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, t. And, toda, the te, te, te.a. te.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a. And, te. And, te. And, and, started playing basketball here and you know just to be able to come back to where it all started because around the Chicagoland area I grew up in the 90s so it was all bulls, all who's next, all prep high school, college, everything. Like they follow basketball and so I would always run into people and they would always be like, I remember seeing you when you were in high school or whatever. So now to come back and just play and, you know, to be able to have dinner with my dad and have breakfast with my mom, my grandma can come see me play. I mean, all that stuff is so special to be a part of and I'm excited.

I'm, you know, with the challenge, you know, to try to win because if you're not trying to win at the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning at the beginning at the beginning the beginning at the beginning at the beginning the beginning the beginning at the beginning the beginning the beginning at the beginning the beginning at the beginning at the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning the beginning to be the beginning the beginning to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be because if you're not trying to win at the beginning of the season, yeah, I don't know what you're doing. You aren't just the best on the court. You're also one of the best off the court as well. People who love you. I love your commentary on TNT with Shaq and DeWade. I love the camaraderie that you guys have formed. I love how you go at it with Shaq. Like that relationship seems so authentic.

Like you guys are fighting, you're laughing, you're arguing, but it's like you're in the same space. How long did it take for you to form that? Like is that a natural thing? I grew up watching these guys. Like I grew up as a fan on a couch debating with my two brothers, who are fans, by the way, Trevor, I have to shout out Anthony and Mark. They are extended, we won WMA championships, we've done all these things, gone to the Olympics,

it's like you're going to be on the Daily Show, are you kidding me? So, huge hit. But I will say that my childhood coming up debating my brothers and being around them all the time kind of prepared me for Turner because honestly like that's what it's like on set you debate you might not have any facts to debate it but you try. There's a lot of yelling and screaming and just saying you don't understand and that's what it is and honestly like when I came in you know I know there's a lot to do with like me being the only woman on set and things like that. And I told him immediately, like, I'm not trying to be one of the guys, I'm try to be one

of the players. Oh, nice. And they've embraced that, honestly, like I'm a teamate. But we just have fun. I wish we had cameras to be the show after the show. I feel like you could just add it to the list of things you're doing because you're playing, you're in front of the camera. Rumors are that you're starting a new podcast now, is that true? Can we confirm that? Yes, I'm very excited to be starting moments with Candace Parker.

I have a 12-year-old daughter and she is just the center of my entire world. And just th and just th, got Tio Maury that was a guest, D. Wade, of course, and Gabby are amazing parents. So just really excited to chat with a lot of different experiences because I think there's no blueprint when it comes to raising a child. Is it, is it harder or does it get easier raising a child when you are an elite athlete? Because so much of your time is taken up by the game. Like, how do you create a stable base for a child in a world that is so unstable because of sports?

Layla has been with me from day one. We didn't spend a night away from each other until she was almost two or three. I nursed for 15 months, so my coach saw a lot of, you know, switching in the locker room while he's going over plays, but that's just the way it was. And I wanted to balance both. And I'm very lucky because I have an amazing family that helps me with my daughter. And I have amazing kid. She gets it.

She's one of the best travelers. She's been to Russia, China. Like, everywhere in Europe, she's, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, thiiiiiiii, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, I'm, I'm, I, I, I, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, I, thi, I, thi, I I, I, I, I, and I, I, and I, and I, thi, thi, thi, and I, thi, and I thi, and I'm, thi, and I'm, and I'm, thi.a.a. And, thi.a. And, toooooooooooooooooo. And, and, and, thi. And, thi, th's been to Russia, China, like everywhere in Europe. Like she's amazing. But I will say this, I think a lot of people give professional athletes credit for being able to balance motherhood. But there's a million other women out there that have it way harder. That's jobs don't let them bring their kids to work that, that don't let them take off when they're sick and just different things like that. So, I am very happy to have that balance of motherhood and I realize, you know, you have tough

days but, you know, it's all worth it. Oh man, yeah, I hope everyone listens to the podcast. It must be fun hearing some of the behind the scenes of everyone's moments as a mom. Good luck with your next venture out in Chicago. Good luck with your new podcast. Thank you for joining me on the show, and I hope to see you again. Thank you so much. Explore more shows from the Daily Show

from the Daily Show. to the Daily Show. Woaknighs at 11.10 Central on Comedy Central. And stream full episodes anytime on Fairmount Plus. This has been a Comedy Central podcast.