Power Players Podcast

“People like a comeback story.” - Denise White A young girl and her twin sister overcome a rough childhood and the foster care system- one starts her own company and becomes the most powerful athlete crisis manager in the world. It sounds like something out of a movie, right? Well that's because it WILL be.  Three A-List celebrities were considered to play Denise White... and one chose her. This celebrity will not only be playing her in an upcoming movie, but has contracted a TV show, inspired by Denise's work, for her production company and Apple TV. The movie, preliminarily titled "The Fixer", is based on the life of Denise White, founder of EAG Sports Management (1996): an agency (the only one of its kind owned by a woman) that provides crisis management, philanthropic ventures, media engagements, etc. for world class athletes.  We'll tackle: Athletes being "more than athletes" today... and how that coincides with 'using their platform' to initiate change.. while possibly creating divisiveness within their respective sports But what about those that use 'company time' to do so? How the advent of social media (and the 24-hour news cycle) has drastically changed her industry Denise takes us into the crisis management 24/7 playbook: jarring middle-of-the-night calls, evidence mounted against her clients, preventative measures, and cases she would NOT take on  Is "all publicity 'good publicity'"? Business morals and ethics Denise opens up about her propensity to want to "fix" these athletes Erin Brockovich advises the adviser Denise responds to some heartfelt compliments by some of her clients in the media over the years: Tyrann Mathieu, DeSean Jackson, and Ephraim Salaam. ...and SO much more!!

“Just thinking that I lost this love of my life was something that I was really having a hard time to come to terms with.” - Amanda Kessel Olympic gold and silver medal winning professional hockey player Amanda Kessel and Danielle McCartan have an open conversation about Amanda’s concussion-related mental health struggles and discuss a pragmatic plan to grow the women’s game efficiently and effectively. What took the NHL so long to get involved? Furthermore, we’ll contrast the way of life of NHL players (of which Amanda has intimate knowledge: her brother Phil Kessel is alternate captain of the Arizona Coyotes AND she is a New York Rangers ambassador) to that of professional women’s league. Amanda outlines the impetus behind the 200+ player boycott of the NWHL and USA Hockey. We'll also tackle: NHL’s return to play plan A deep dive into concussion-related depression Competitiveness in the Kessel household Playing on boys teams The manifestation of statistical growth in girls hockey by being a New York Rangers hockey ambassador Being part of NHL's All-Star weekend 2019 What would a W-NHL look like? AK28 clothing line ...and SO much more!! A listener question from Joe in Long Island: Would a 12 team women's league (2 six team divisions) and a 54 game schedule be plausible?

“What’s the alternative, I quit? … I can’t let them break me. No way.” - Kara Goucher World Championship (now) silver medal winner and 2x Olympic distance runner Kara Goucher and Danielle discuss ethics at the highest level of sport.  Against the background of ESPN’s newest 30 for 30: “Lance”, Kara shares her experience at the now infamous Nike Oregon Project. She defines, for the listening audience, popular doping practices (EPO, AndroGel, IV treatments) and their effects on the body and individual competition. She describes the institutional grooming process that athletes (including herself) are subjected to, and the David and Goliath lawsuit she is still fighting, against her former Nike Oregon Project head coach and father figure Alberto Salazaar. Kara exposes a dark side of Nike: these testosterone experiments were performed on the Nike campus, in their labs, and CEO Mark Parker know about them.  For the baseball fan, we extrapolated her experiences in running to determine the psychology behind and monetary/popularity windfall following the HR chase between dirty Mark McGuire and dirty Sammy Sosa. Didn’t the dirty Nike Oregon Project achieve that same goal for USA running? What is the difference between 'banned' and 'unethical'? Kara also opens up about how her former teammate and brother-in-law secretly developed a Nike shoe that single-handedly kept her from competing in her 3rd Olympic Games.  We'll also tackle: 2020 NYC Marathon: will it still happen? What changes, from a runner’s perspective would she like to see implemented? What about a virtual marathon? Kara's tips for the avid runner... and the "Quarantine Runner", like myself The ramifications she felt (and still feels) about bringing the situation to light... and how she still feels 'unsafe' during a race. How, for her, a 3rd place finish turned into a silver medal after 12 years following a positive banned substance test A solution: who, ultimately, is in control of stopping the unethical behavior and doping: the corporations, the athletes, a governing body? Listener questions from: Erin in Palisades Park, NJ: What is your favorite workout? Vanessa, a track and field coach from Florida: Kara's mentorship of younger women in the sport, in particular- Mary Cain

“Let me tell you about my daughters. I’ll start with the one that’s coaching for the Yankees.” - Rachel Balkovec channels her father. Rachel and Danielle discuss surprisingly similar childhood aspirations, deliver a message to "old school" baseball fans, and compare and contrast the pitch sequencing and mechanics of the highest level of baseball and softball. Two Master's degrees later, Rachel discusses her "baseball nerd" mentality, how it brought her to Amsterdam to study under the leading researchers in baseball analytics to Driveline, the most well-respected American advanced metrics company. Now, as a hitting coach for the New York Yankees, Rachel reflects on a time where she had $0 in her bank account, pushed it "all on red", and took a gamble on herself. We'll also tackle: Fulfilling the American Dream Putting on the iconic pinstripes every day for work Girl Dads Practicing advanced metrics techniques... before it was "a thing" Level of vulnerability needed to be each other's "Rosetta Stone": when working through a language barrier with players in the Dominican Republic From a coaching perspective: practice philosophy, player acclimation (to a female coach), and how to create a healthy tension in coach/player relationships to elicit the best from the athletes. The return of baseball in 2020? and how a Marcus Aurelius quote applies to today's COVID world. A listener question from Kevin in Camden, NJ: Who has been your biggest career influence so far?

“Hang in there, you’re not going to believe how good it’s about to get for you.” - Laura Okmin Laura goes "5 levels deep" into conversation with Danielle about feelings of her loneliness on the road, family planning sacrifices due to her profession, and the personal and professional impact of losing her mother to cancer at a young age (for both of them). During her third decade in the field, Laura also opens up about the impact of saying "no", how her perspective of "The Top" changed, and why, a ceiling crasher, she turned down the position of first 'female NFL insider'. We'll also tackle: The lesson that Michael Jordan personally taught her, as a young reporter In-depth thoughts and analysis on ESPN's The Last Dance after winning an Emmy for her coverage of her hometown Bulls during their run to greatness. Genesis for developing GALvanize, a media bootcamp for NFL rookies and female reporters- and why her mother would be surprised Friendship with the late Stuart Scott Coaching the coaches: being a personal media coach to many NFL head coaches: philosophy, most difficult encounters What she hopes, for the sports world, will come out of the time in 2020 when the world stopped

“We need to take care of the world first: the Olympics is the world’s game”. -Monica Abbott Softball, after a 12 year hiatus, is again recognized as an olympic sport... but we have to wait one more year to watch Team USA pitcher Monica Abbott and company potentially win gold in Japan. Abbott and fellow pitcher Kat Osterman are the only two players to bridge the gap between the 2008 silver medal winning team and on the upcoming olympic team. Abbott and I talk about: The emotions when USA Softball was informed of the Olympic delay on a team phone call “Life put on hold another year”: A world-class female athlete's perspective on sacrifices “We had a big talk about that”: Thoughts on the possibility of playing in front of not one, single fan  Amidst the pandemic, additional significance in wearing "USA" in these upcoming Olympic Games As players, we always replay the plays that we could have changed. What is one play from the 2008 loss in the Gold Medal game that Abbott would change the outcome of?  An Olympic delay: staying motivated physically and mentally Pushing the naysaying thoughts from out of your mind A unique perspective on the impact of COVID-19 on those athletes that have lost a season of ball How could the players work to overcome the “lost time” from COVID-19 AT HOME WORK FOR PLAYERS OF ALL AGES: Abbott's conditioning and skill work (with minimal equipment) recommendations How to refocus after a stray thought pops into your mind while playing- examples she’s experienced 2021 OLYMPICS Leveraging experience of playing professionally in Japan to benefit 2021 Team USA softball Has the US Olympic committee debriefed the athletes about the radioactivity in Fukushima? Is Abbott worried? MY FORMER PLAYER'S QUESTIONS: Anna from NJ: What are your thoughts on the mound during an Olympic game? Jenna from NJ: What is your favorite pitch? Why is it so effective? Favorite part about being a pitcher? LISTENER QUESTIONS: John from Long Island Josh from Connecticut Mike from New Jersey For more information about the Abbott Academy, visit: www.monicaabbott.com

“It’s not about survival of the fittest, it is: survival of the ‘most adaptive’" - Courtney Banghart channels Charles Darwin. After having accumulated, in her twelve years as head coach of Princeton University's women's basketball program, seven Ivy League titles, eight NCAA Tournament births, and a Naismith National Coach of the Year award, Courtney Banghart packed up her family and headed south on I-95 to Chapel Hill. After inking that chapter in the story of her life, Banghart, a year ago, began to write a new one as head coach of the University of North Carolina's women's basketball team. We'll discuss the build-up to that difficult decision and her professional growth because of it. Through a coach's lens, we discuss the impact of COVID-19 on collegiate and professional basketball. COLLEGIATE: How are off-season programs, with gyms closed, affected? What is it's the impact on scouting and recruiting? NCAA's decision to cancel March Madness 5th year of eligibility? PROFESSIONAL: Effect on WNBA's scheduling, draft, and overseas players AND, if she were to be stuck in quarantine with any living athlete, who would it be? We'll also tackle: Has she met Michael Jordan yet?! Advice to former Princeton Tiger Bella Alarie as she gets set to have her name called on draft night. Why does Becky Hammon keep getting passed over in Gregg Popovich's absence? 1/3 of all NBA teams employ a woman on their coaching staffs Does she have professional coaching aspirations?

“Don’t be afraid to ask for it” - Danita Johnson, President and COO of the Los Angeles Sparks A meteoric rise over 14 years in basketball to the office of president and COO of a major market professional organization, Danita offers a valuable, front-office perspective on a wide variety of pertinent topics in sports: the USWNT's fight for Equal Pay, the new WNBA CBA, the Sparks as a ‘multi-dimensional company', how revenue streams differ from her experience in an NBA front office to a WNBA front office, ways to increase the visibility of the game, and ways to increase star player marketability. We'll also tackle: The Kobe Bryant Effect on women’s professional sports; is there an LA Sparks tribute in the works?  The impact of COVID-19 on the WNBA’s upcoming season: could the WNBA as a league, economically, sustain stretches of games without fannies in the seats? The absence of merchandise in sporting goods stores, especially those who take an active, PR-style role in the WNBA championship series. Kristi Toliver and Becky Hammon ‘infiltrating’ the NBA’s coaching ranks. What about Hammon being skipped over for the likes of Tim Duncan on Gregg Popovich's staff? Featuring listener questions from: Genna in Miami asks about Kobe's impact and which NBA player will take the reigns  in carrying out his goal to promote the women's game

“I never wanted to always wonder: ‘what if?’ - Danielle McCartan How does a three sport high school athlete turned high school teacher and coach end up hosting a weekly show on our nation's original all-sports radio station? Well, I can tell you that I didn't go to school for this! Here is the story of my journey... from the classroom at a small college in northern New Jersey to the studio at WFAN radio in Manhattan... and all of the stops in between. I'll talk about the importance of: networking, "knowing your stuff", and investing in yourself.  You'll learn of the people who have served as signs on my highway: pointing me in the direction of a destination unknown. Some acting as yellow cautionary signs Some acting as red stop signs (I name four athletes that have ever tuned me down for an interview!) Some acting as green lights, pushing me to keep my foot on the gas. Some names you'll recognize, while others have been purposefully kept anonymous. Like Suzyn Waldman’s… my journey is far from over, and I’m excited to see where this road will take me! LISTENER QUESTIONS: Erika from New Jersey Kevin from New Jersey My life motto: “My confidence comes from my work ethic” - Hope Solo

“Tolerated but Not Accepted”- Suzyn Waldman Receiving feces in the mail, getting bullied out of a clubhouse, receiving death threats... oh my! Suzyn Waldman discusses her beginning in sports media in New York City: from being the first voice heard on the first all-sports station in the country to splicing together her own highlight reel.   We'll also tackle: Forging a working relationship with the late George Steinbrenner: was he an ally or a detriment to her career? Why is there stagnant growth in female hires 'on the team side' across the MLB? Advice on how to cover convicted/punished domestic violence offenders Featuring listener questions from: Dorian from Little Rock seeks advice in dealing with contentious social media comments Rachel from Washington, D.C. asks Suzyn what events she'd put on career highlight reel