Stanford’s Jones expands reach with podcast
Haley Jones doesn’t love to talk about herself to the media. As an All-American, national champion, and Final Four Most Outstanding Player, the Mitty alum is used to having microphones in her face and her accomplishments being discussed.
She does, however, love talking about basketball, her teammates, and women’s sports. When the Players’ Tribune came to her with the idea of hosting a women’s basketball podcast, it felt like the perfect opportunity to hone her voice before transitioning to being a professional.
Thus was born the “Sometimes I Hoop” podcast. “It felt like a great thing to start doing while I’m playing,” she said. “Get into the mind-set now and practice at it. It’s been really fun.”
Jones has taken some broadcast and journalism classes at Stanford, including one about interviewing. She said her challenge is making interviews sound conversational. That’s a bit easier in the first few episodes, in which she chatted with two of her close friends, South Carolina forward Aliyah Boston and Tennessee’s Jordan Horston.
As the first college athlete to host a podcast at the Players’ Tribune, Jones is looking to give a voice to women’s basketball players about topics ranging from the sport’s landscape to mental health. With Boston, she talked about how name, image and likeness (NIL) issues affect athletes, particularly Black women.
“Every episode is in the realm of women’s college basketball,” she said. “It might be about rivalries or individual experiences. With Aliyah, we talked about hair, which was something we really wanted to do. With Jordan, we talked more about Team USA.”
Though Jones said women’s basketball coverage as a whole is important, it meant something to go beyond stats and results, and hit on topics players care about, including social activism and identity.
The Players’ Tribune edits and produces episodes, while Jones prepares for her guests and topics. She said she has been interested in getting into the media space for sometime, and it’s something she would pursue when she’s done her basketball career.
Playing at events like the Final Four, having had media training, and being one of the faces of the sport have helped Jones determine what she likes in a broadcaster and how to translate that. The podcast from WNBA players A’ja Wilson and Napheesa Collier was an inspiration as well as former players and other broadcasters Jones has encountered.
“Like Andraya Carter and Holly Rowe, it’s cool to see what they do,” Jones said of the ESPN reporters. “Having way more women doing it now too, I want to continue the path they’ve trailblazed.”
Cal matches Pac-12 win total: Cal finally saw the ball bounce its way. Following close Pac-12 losses, the Bears grabbed their first win in almost a month with an 18-point fourth quarter to defeat Oregon State, 6462, on Sunday.
The Bears (11-10, 2-8) played well against Stanford, UCLA, and Colorado in recent weeks, but hadn’t won a conference game since defeating Arizona State on Jan. 2. Cal went 210 in conference last season. Cal came back from down eight in the fourth quarter against the Beavers with a defensive effort it has been searching for all season. Evelien Lutje Schipholt blocked an Oregon State jumper with 16 seconds left after hitting the go-ahead layup.
Next up for Cal are games at Washington (Friday) and Washington State (Sunday). Like Stanford, the Bears will play six of their remaining eight regular-season games on the road; UCLA and USC are at Haas Pavilion on Feb. 17 and 19, respectively.