New Storm co-owner Sue Bird hopes to bring players’ perspective to WNBA negotiations

Is new Storm co-owner Sue Bird, who for years bargained against the WNBA and league owners, a double agent secretly working on behalf of the WNBA players?

“Did you just call me a mole?” she said before breaking into a smile during a news conference Monday. “I’m joking.”

Given her previous role as vice president of the WNBA Players Association, Bird, who played 19 seasons during a legendary 21-year career in Seattle, is uniquely qualified to assist the league, team owners and players as the WNBA approaches two consequential negotiations in the coming years.

“One of the most valuable things in business is experience and obviously I have a ton of experience on the court,” Bird said in her first interview since joining the Storm’s ownership group last week. “I also have a ton of experience off the court and in my 20-year career, but that is from a player’s perspective. So, the way I view it is, I can take that with me and bring that to the room.

“But I also understand there’s a lot to learn. There’s a lot of curtains to pull back. And I’m really excited about understanding the business side of things and then combining all of that and bring whatever value I can bring.”

While playing with the Storm, Bird co-founded the media and commerce company “TOGETHXR” and bought a share of the NWSL club NJ/NY Gotham FC.

Since her 2022 retirement, Bird launched the production company “A Touch More,” founded with fiancée Megan Rapinoe, began a broadcast career with ESPN and now adds Storm co-ownership to a robust business portfolio.

“I don’t really look at it like an accomplishment,” Bird said. “I look at it like a really great investment. I think women’s sports right now is in a place where there’s really no better business.”

In 2023, viewership in WNBA regular-season games reached a 21-year high, last season’s attendance was the highest since 2018, the popularity of the league is at an all-time high, thanks in part to Indiana Fever rookie Caitlin Clark and next year the WNBA will add a team in San Francisco — the league’s first expansion franchise since 2008.

Still, Bird believes the WNBA is at inflection point that will ultimately shape its future. The league’s media-rights contract expires next year, and the CBA ends in 2027.

“I’ve been saying and definitely (believe) the media-rights deal is probably going to be one of the most important moments in WNBA history,” Bird said.

The WNBA receives about $60 million annually from its TV and streaming deals with Disney, Amazon Prime Video and other companies.

“We hope to at least double our rights fees,” WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said this month during an interview with CNBC. “Women’s sports rights fees have been undervalued for too long, so we have this enormous opportunity at a time where the media landscape is changing so much. We’re really excited to get out in the marketplace.”

Bird, who is the third retired WNBA player to invest in league ownership along with Lisa Leslie with the Los Angeles Sparks and Renee Montgomery with the Atlanta Dream, believes the trio provide an invaluable perspective in leaguewide discussions.

“When I think of businesses … and the rooms, that mythical and metaphorical room, I think you always want to have a diverse amount of people in that room,” said Bird who helped negotiate the WNBA’s landmark 2020 CBA. “Whether it’s diversity itself or whether it’s diversity of experience. That’s really what players are going to bring to these ownership rooms. They’re just going to bring their experience and they’re just going to be able to share what that is. And that’s going to be so important when it comes to conversations around the CBA.

“What you hope to have happen in that room is that you’re able to come together and be able to share, be able to learn and then of course, ultimately come to the best conclusion and the best thing that’s going to push the league forward.”

Admittedly, Bird is unsure about her role as Storm co-owner. Right now, she just hopes to get a key fob to the team’s new $64 million practice facility/headquarters.

At some point, the Storm’s No. 1 overall draft pick in 2002 will lean into the skills and attributes that made her a four-time champion, 13-time WNBA All-Star point guard and the league’s career assists leader with 3,234.

“This actually feels reminiscent to my rookie year in a sense,” Bird said. “I’m the type of person that likes to see what’s going to fit and see how things feel. I don’t have anything preconceived on what kind of owner I’m going to be. I feel like that usually naturally works itself out.

“If my playing career tells me anything, it’s that all you can do is show up and bring the value that you have. Bring the intangibles that you bring and then see how it all fits. That’s how you create good teams. That’s how you create good team environments. So, that’s how it’s always played out for me and I’m assuming it’ll be the same on this side of things.”