Shooting The Breeze

It’s a wrap for Series 6!

Listen in as we wrap a momentous 10 months of podcasting that covered the WNBL, NBL1, Tauihi NZ developments & touching on the Paris Olympics. 

This series featured Dream Chasers - trailblazers in the sport as well as more live podcasts - including the ground breaking Roaming Mic Live at the Q and the WNBL Awards from the Orange Carpet!

In our final Dream Chasers installment we welcome special guest Sam Tomlinson to talk about her mission to help foster the US College Pathways for promising athletes as part of her business. With 20 years experience in helping parents & players understand their options & some pitfalls, we also touch on some challenges in this space. It’s a fascinating discussion!

Enjoy!

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Joining Shooting The Breeze is Bec Cole on a recent run of Championships, with her Waverley Falcons to take part in NBL1 Nationals Finals this weekend. Bec’s megawatt energy captures both spectators at the games and equally her audience whenever she’s behind the mic.

Born for big moments and with a competitive nature, Bec is attuned to her vulnerability and is authentic on her new YouTube series in partnership with ESPN - Triple Threat. She takes us behind the scenes of women's hoops with Australia’s finest but also global hoops issues. 

It’s a wide ranging chat, covering her recent championships, the Olympics of course and what makes Bec tick!

Enjoy!

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The Honourable Jacinta Allan, Premier of Victoria joins Shooting The Breeze for a unique perspective on basketball, not just as an active community member in her local area Bendigo but also as Victoria’s leader. 

In her leadership role Jacinta understands the impact sport and sporting communities can have in regional centres but also the ripple efffect nationally. We touch on the Paris Olympics and some inspirational female players alongside the importance of elevating the game through government support, with the recent pre-Olympic & Paralympic Ballin’ 24, bringing together all 6 Australian National teams both mens & womens in the one event! 

Enjoy!

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From our Nations Capital, UCCaps Weekly’s Simon Peters & Michelle Hocking join us on some huge changes in the WNBL Free Agency!

Mirroring these big movements is a new era in the WNBL with new team Geelong United, the new consortium of owners slated for April 2025 and competing for prime talent is the rebooted Tauihi NZ league! 

It's a Free Agency like no other. So while we soak up NBL1 Finals and 2 weeks of Olympics Opals & Gangurru’s … we catch our breath on a whirlwind of WNBL Free Agency changes!

Enjoy!

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In her first Aussie pod, country Vic player Jaz Shelley has circled back to regional Victoria as the first pick for inaugural WNBL team Geelong United!

She has cut her teeth in the US college system for the last 5 years mainly with Nebraska WBB as part of an exceptional era of players that have quite literally transformed women’s hoops… and we’re thrilled to have her back in Oz!

Currently playing with NBL1 Souths' Ballarat Miners alongside Coach Kennedy Kereama she’ll have her first taste of the Souths Conference Finals in coming weeks. We also get into her impressive college years which has shaped her on and off court, with a business savvy mind make no mistake her heart is set on her hometown roots and the desire to give back.

We’re grateful to get to know Jaz a little more in this episode… she made quite the splash eight years ago on the world stage as part of the historic Sapphires squad with Coach Shannon Seebohm - that won U17’s Women’s Gold in 2016 with that pivotal semi-finals game against the USA!!

Enjoy!

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In a very special episode we have joining us - Aussie Womens Wheelchair Head Coach Craig Campbell and Gliders Vet Shelley Matheson a.k.a  ‘Chaps’!

Shelley has come back out of retirement in a stunning return to form for the Gliders squad from which she has left an indelible mark to help navigate a rebuild of the team. 

Her passion to assist her beloved Gliders is clear, after narrowly missing a paralympic berth at Paris in what’s been a perfect storm of covid restrictions, limited games for our elite wheelchair teams and a transitioning squad, we get an amazing insight from Shelley and Craig on the hopes and possibilities to realise the full potential of our talented womens wheelchair athletes.

With a full home and away National Wheelchair league currently taking place alongside the rare opportunity for our Gliders to play at home amongst their peers at John Cain Arena next week the foundations are laid for a Gliders revival.

Enjoy!

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In this monster mixtape episode, we’re celebrating our Belated 4th Birthday!! We get into some STB listener ‘hot topics' such as thoughts on gambling in the sports ecosystem and Caitlin Clark after our recent poll.

Our crew also keep it real as we ride the ebbs and flows of some phenomenal growth & changes for women’s basketball, as well as navigate the growing pains around NCAA, WNBL, WNBA, Tauihi in New Zealand and UK Hoops!

Listen out for some deep cut mythology references as we let off some steam.

Thanks for joining us on our Belated 4th B’day pod!! Enjoy!

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Given the growth in professional women’s sports and increase in female athlete agency and marketability, it only seems fitting that a female led female athlete sporting agency has emerged to holistically cater for the evolving needs and opportunities of their athletes.

In the next Dream Chasers instalment Lauren Gandini joins us. A former baller, lawyer and businesswomen, who alongside fellow director Brieanna Mercer have co-founded Stella Athlete Management three years ago. As an athlete herself, Lauren has a unique perspective and talks about their vision and scope, challenges and the opportunties. Whilst female athletes across sportiung codes have indivual needs many share common concerns.

Enjoy!

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• Stella Website

Back on the pod, Justin Nelson, Head of Commercial & Fandom at Sky New Zealand joins us to share more on the recent news of the significant changes to the Tauihi League.

Justin joined us back in 2022 ahead of the launch of the Tauihi League and in this episode we talk about the continuing evolution of NZ women's hoops amidst some groundbreaking changes, the rationale and most importantly the vision in play and opportunities this presents for women's hoops - players, fans and sponsors alike.

At the time of taping, and in a complete coincidence we had just heard of the devastating loss of the Melbourne Boomers franchise in the WNBL; giving us a raw insight into not only the very personal disappointment for Justin but also the urgency to adapt with clear vision & purpose alongside the right partners as we witness momentous shifts in women's sports globally.

Enjoy!

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We’re grateful to have STB pod regular Cazzy B return to the pod, she’s recently been awarded for her volunteer efforts for WBBL team Manchester Giants, in her role as a commentator & livestreamer for womens British basketball. 

In this episode, Caz takes us court-side from her trip to London’s Copperbox, in this evocative re-telling of a fairytale ending for the London Lions in their EuroCup victory. A historic victory that in her words ’…is the biggest thing that's ever happened in British basketball, women's or men's, full stop…’ 

It’s an incredible moment for womens basketball, with packed stadiums and global viewership like never before, but it’s bittersweet for some teams that continue to grapple with the necessary level of investment required to match the appetite of fans. We talk about that paradox, as currently, the Lions, will not play in the European League next year to defend their title. 

We certainly know that for many hoops fans, they will remember the London Lions EuroCup victory in 2024! 

Enjoy! 

Don’t forget to like, share and leave a review so we can get more Hoops content to you! 

Join us on our socials - Twitter: @TheBreezePod and IG: @shootingthebreezepod and LinkedIn