UNGUARDED

Host Jori Davis is joined by co-host L’oreal Gamble and guest Stephany Skrba to discuss having kids while being a professional athlete, navigating the dating scene as a single mom while playing overseas, differences between men and women in the industry, the lack of support to women and the community the kids help build. Edited by Víctor Revenga.

Host Jori Davis is joined by co-host L’oreal Gamble and guest Vernon Taylor to discuss a the changes and challenges for pro athletes making their living overseas. The trio discuss safety when going out as an athlete overseas following the recent assault of Corey Manigault in Cyprus, as well as advice for new athletes moving overseas when it comes to lifestyle and relationships, using your background to embrace your journey, achieving your dreams even when they don’t come in the amount of time you expected, interactions between leagues, teams, and players while in Europe, new FIBA rules, previous personal experiences and future plans in Europe, and problems with the current agent and sport business culture. Unguarded is brought to you by Wevolv. Edited by Kayla Kamil. Jori Davis is a pro basketball player and founder of Wevolv, a platform empowering elite athletes around the globe to manage their own careers and ways of life. L’oreal Gamble is a former pro basketball player now taking on the challenge of motherhood abroad while also opening her own consulting firm for expats and athletes, Crossover the Net Consulting. Vernon Taylor is a 10-year pro basketball veteran currently playing for SAM Basket Massagno in Switzerland.

Host Jori Davis is joined by co-host L’oreal Gamble and guest Ike Udanoh to discuss a the changes and challenges for pro athletes making their living overseas. The trio talk everything from motivations in going pro overseas, the mentality needed, asking for help from those around you, standing together as an athlete community, the function of players’ unions, how social media has changed, the benefits and problems with new athlete-led leagues, and whether L’oreal and Ike would let their kids play in a high school pro league in the future. Unguarded is brought to you by Wevolv. Edited by Kayla Kamil. Jori Davis is a pro basketball player and founder of Wevolv, a platform empowering elite athletes around the globe to manage their own careers and ways of life. L’oreal Gamble is a former pro basketball player now taking on the challenge of motherhood abroad while also opening her own consulting firm for expats and athletes, Crossover the Net Consulting. Ike Udanoh is a 9-year pro basketball veteran currently playing for SIG Strasbourg in Strasbourg, France. 

Host Jori Davis is joined by co-host L’oreal Gamble to introduce and discuss a brand new season of the Unguarded Podcast: Unguarded Phone Calls. The duo talk everything from the challenges of moving and playing overseas to current events, social media, and plans for the upcoming season. Unguarded is brought to you by Wevolv. Edited by Kayla Kamil. Jori Davis is a pro basketball player and founder of Wevolv, a platform empowering elite athletes around the globe to manage their own careers and ways of life. L’oreal Gamble is a former pro basketball player now taking on the challenge of motherhood abroad while also opening her own consulting firm for expats and athletes, Crossover the Net Consulting.

D'Andra Moss used her downtime during her pro basketball career to explore and learn new topics and skills that interested her which eventually lead to her current job as a product manager at LinkedIn. She got Unguarded about the importance of trying new things, how her experience as a pro athlete prepared her for rejection and success in the workforce, and tips on how athletes can use LinkedIn to frame their sports careers for a career after sports. Over her 10 year playing career she played in Spain, Switzerland, Ukraine, France, Turkey, Italy, Chile, and Finland. .

Tony Easley gets Unguarded about deciding to retire as an international pro basketball player after a serious injury. He talks about how he dealt with that setback by turning it into something positive and the lessons he learned during his playing career that set him up for his current job as an assistant coach at a boarding school in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Auburn, Alabama-native and Murray State-grad played 11 years in eight countries including Italy, Germany, Turkey, and Israel.  Don't forget to subscribe, like, comment, and share. 

Josh Owens knew exactly when he'd retire when he started his pro basketball career. And he did just that after last season. Over his 10 years overseas he played in Israel, Italy, Greece, Turkey, and France. The Stanford-grad got Unguarded about designing mini-internships for himself, reflecting on inflection points in his life and career, the importance of establishing a routine post-playing career, and using social media to say goodbye.

Val returns as Unguarded's first ever return guest! The Ukrainian-born,  14-year-pro retired at the end of last season after playing pro basketball in France, Poland, Turkey, Spain, and France. She talked to us about the highs (buying your own pots and pans) and lows (lack of a steady pay check) of retirement life, how the war affected her last season, being able to explore hobbies, self-healing, forgiveness, looking back, and psychedelics. Featuring guest host, Hyun Kim.

Angie retired (for the 2nd time) after last season in Spain and has since focused on building up her Mindset Coaching business, running a basketball academy for kids, earning a Somatic and Body Oriented Coaching Certificate, and writing openly and vulnerably about the new phase of her life on her blog.  She gets Unguarded about how therapy has helped her with her transition and all the healing and unlearning she's had to do since leaving the game, how she wants to help the next generation of athletes live happier and healthier lives, and not getting that final game curtain call. The Spokane Valley, Washington-native currently resides in Gernika, Spain with her partner who still plays for the team where the two played together last season.  You can connect with her on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

NATALIE VAN DEN ADEL gets Unguarded about working with a psychologist to work on her self-esteem and learning how to love herself. She talks about finding herself unmotivated after playing non-stop for different teams, leagues, and tournaments and how working with a mental health professional allowed her to let go of her perfectionist and self-critical ways. She played one year at Colorado State before playing pro in Holland, France, Australia, and Spain. She has also played for the Dutch National Team. Episode features guest host Hyun Kim.

POKEY CHATMAN gets Unguarded about her thoughts, experiences, and feelings about the past, present, and future of women's basketball as well. The Louisiana-native talks to us about how she was able to re-center herself during her time in Russia when she was the coach of the Spartak Moscow team. She is a legend who has achieved success as a player and coach of the LSU Lady Tigers, as well as the head coach in the WNBA for the Indiana Fever and Chicago Sky, where she was also a GM. 

TAMARA SEDA gets Unguarded about the importance of having a positive attitude and staying focused on her goals during different transitions in her life and career. She had never traveled outside of her native Mozambique until she flew to Liberal, Kansas to attend a community college. Although she'd only played volleyball until she was 17, she blossomed into a basketball star and was able to transfer to UTEP. Since graduation she has played pro in Spain and has also played for the Mozambique National Team. Episode features guest host Hyun Kim. 

IKE UDANOH gets Unguarded about how he was able to use jealousy, envy, and anger to further his career while admitting that it got in his way at times. The graduate of Wayne State, a DII school, started his pro career playing in Uruguay and Qatar and always felt like he could compete at a higher level while comparing himself to other players who were already doing so. In addition to those two countries he has played in Austria, Finland, France, Kazakhstan, Italy and is currently playing in France. The Detroit-native of Nigerian-descent is based in Milan where he lives with his wife and daughter. Catch up on his life and funny antics on YouTube and TikTok. Episode features guest host Hyun Kim. 

Valeriya Berezhynska gets Unguarded about her past struggles with self-confidence and how that's motivated her to apply her life coach certification to help pre-teen girls with their sense of self-worth. She talks to us about growing up in Ukraine and later adjusting to life in America as a high school student. She has played professional basketball in France, Poland, Turkey, and is currently in Spain. The 13 year pro is a graduate of Rice University. Episode features guest host, Hyun Kim. 

Toccara Renee gets Unguarded about the importance of embracing her sexuality and standing in her truth after the death of her mother as well as healing from the trauma of sexual assault. She talks about how identifiers can be empowering and her mission to show up and support the communities she identifies with. The Southside Chicago-native graduated from Iowa State before playing pro basketball in Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Colombia, Taiwan, Finland, Romania, Israel, Switzerland, Australia and France over 11 seasons. She currently lives in Los Angeles where she serves as an advocate and mentor for LGBTQ athletes when she's not busy working on her publishing company that focuses on telling the stories of the communities that hold meaning for her life.

Esther Wallace gets Unguarded about the importance of vulnerability in her life and career. She talks about her struggles with admitting that she was suffering from injuries such as concussions and her need to always have things in perfect order. A former overseas baller who played and coached in England, she is the founder of Playa Society, a successful clothing brand celebrating women that has been worn by stars from the WNBA, NBA, USWNT and more. The Springfield, MA native played and graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson, has a Masters from England and previously worked at MIT. 

Taylor Wurtz gets Unguarded about her Christian faith and what role it has played at different moments in her life and career. A graduate of University of Wisconsin she is currently in her 7th season playing basketball overseas where she has played in Luxemburg, Norway, and France. The Bard, Wisconsin native is currently playing in Spain where her fiancé Preston Purifoy, a fellow overseas baller, is also playing. 

Peter Philipakos gets Unguarded about his struggles finding his footing after retiring from his soccer/football career, managing with his OCD and finding new creative passions to pursue. A native of Glen Cove, New York, Peter attended St. John's and American University and played professionally for nine seasons in Greece and Czechoslovakia. He currently lives in Athens.

On the 1st episode of our 3rd season Abiola Wabara gets Unguarded about how she deals with anger and racism stemming from growing up Black in Italy. Abiola played pro basketball for 10 years which included stops in Israel, Spain, Hungary, Italy and UK. She currently lives in Houston and in addition to her full-time job as a digital strategy consultant she is a successful painter and runs Globall Life, a service that helps athletes prepare for the workforce outside of sports.

Liad Suez-Karni and Katia Levitzky get Unguarded about the 2011 strike of the Israel women's basketball league (Jori's rookie season in Israel) which involved limiting the number of American players on the teams in an effort to protect the development of national players and how others tried to pit American players and Israeli players against each other. They also discuss how both sides can help each other improve. Liad was a captain of the Israeli National Team and has played in Poland, France and Israel. Kat was born in Ukrania but is a naturalized Israeli citizen who played in Romania and Israel. They both played at Villanova University and are currently retired.