Posts by Michelle Smith

Michelle Smith has covered women's basketball nationally for nearly three decades. Smith has worked for ESPN.com, The Athletic, the San Francisco Chronicle, as well as Pac-12.com and WNBA.com. She was named to the Alameda County Women's Hall of Fame in 2015, is the 2017 recipient of the Jake Wade Media Award from the Collegiate Sports Information Directors Association (CoSIDA) and was named the Mel Greenberg Media Award winner by the WBCA in 2019.

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert, Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob and others answer the questions from Malika Andrews during the introduction of the Golden State WNBA team, set to play in 2025. (Photo via Alex Simon/SFGate)

Sights and sounds from WNBA expansion day at the Chase Center

October 5, 2023

‘Right team, right place, right time’

WNBA logo

Column: WNBA in the Bay will be worth the long wait

September 28, 2023

VanDerveer: ‘I think it’s going to be awesome’

Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer sits at the podium and speaks at a press conference. Two of her players are on either side of her, and a backdrop of Stanford and Pac-12 logos is displayed behind them.

Institutional Knowledge: Stanford’s Tara VanDerveer talks about grief and excitement in move to ACC

September 2, 2023

‘You invest 40 years into something, and to watch it unravel in 40 minutes, it’s sad’

Institutional Knowledge: For now, women’s basketball is along for the realignment ride

August 28, 2023

Football moves have created major instability for women’s basketball, other NCAA sports

Team USA players, wearing their red jerseys, raise their hands in the air in celebration after winning the gold medal in the 2022 FIBA Women's World Cup.

Institutional Knowledge: FIBA looking to elevate its own World Cup in soccer’s shadow

July 30, 2023

The FIFA Women’s World Cup has been a major success with major growth, and now it is FIBA’s turn to work on following suit.

Uncasville, Conn. - May 24, 2018: Los Angeles Sparks guard Alana Beard (0) warms up before a WNBA basketball game between the Sparks and the Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena. Photo Credit: Chris Poss

Institutional Knowledge: When the WNBA expands, it has to be Oakland

June 11, 2023

Column: With multiple interested parties, and a painful history of having the rug pulled out, Oakland deserves this

Brea Beal dominates on both ends against UCLA during Sweet 16 matchup at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on March 25, 2023 (Photo credit: South Carolina WBB Twitter).

Institutional Knowledge: Why did this year’s WNBA cuts resonate so much?

May 24, 2023

‘I hope we see a roster expansion soon because I feel like that’s low-hanging fruit’

Phoenix head coach Vanessa Nygaard holds a clipboard while talking to Mercury players Tina Charles, Diana Taurasi, and Brianna Turner

Institutional Knowledge: Vanessa Nygaard heading into second season looking for normalcy

May 17, 2023

‘It’s like writing. The first draft is always crap. I’m doing a lot of things differently.’

Lynx rookie Diamond Miller and team captain Napheesa Collier celebrate after defeating the Washington Mystics 72-69 in a preseason game on Friday, May 5 at Target Center in Minneapolis (Photo Credit: John McClellan)

Institutional Knowledge: The legend replacement plans commence in Seattle and Minnesota

May 11, 2023

A look inside life after Syl and Sue

Michelle Smith with Kayla Pedersen of Stanford. (photo courtesy of Michelle Smith)

Closing a door on history: Ruminations on WNBA locker room access

April 12, 2023

One woman in sports media’s experience with locker room access