Women's Basketball Online In the News
Who are you?
No one of consequence (bonus points to those of you who know what movie that's from).
Do you have a life? Yes.
Why are you so ornery? It's a gift.
Why did you make this website?
Because there was no women's basketball site in existence with comprehensive, up-to-date links. Now there is. People seem to like it, so I keep working on it. And working on it. And working on it...
Who is this Helen Wheelock lady? Helen Wheelock is a longtime supporter of and contributor to Women's Basketball Online. She is a fanatical New York Liberty and Connecticut Huskies fan, but more importantly is an ardent supporter of women's basketball at all levels. Helen is a freelance journalist covering the sport she loves. And sometimes she even gets paid for it (thank goodness she has a day job!) Her engaging writing style showcases both her enthusiasm for women's basketball and astute understanding of the issues surrounding the game. She now has her very own section on this website.
If you want to play professionally, take a look at the International page and get in touch with some of the agents listed and ask them for advice and referrals. Keep in mind that you must be absolutely serious about it, committed to it, and follow through. If you're currently in school, talk to your coach about it. While it's great that you or someone you know is interested in playing professionally, again, I cannot assist you in any way. The Basketball and Beyond: Basketball Overseas website has some great information on the ins-and-outs of playing overseas from someone who has been there. Bottom line: you must find an agent that is familiar with international women's basketball and who will be able to give you assistance once you're there, you must do your own research, and you must be willing to expect the unexpected.
For the WNBA, Renee Brown may have answered some of your questions here. Otherwise, contact each team directly as some hold their own tryouts.
If you want to join an adult recreation league, contact your city's recreation department, scan your local newspaper for announcements, and try scanning the yellow pages to see if there are any sports facilities or a YMCA/YWCA in your area. Try joining a gym that has basketball courts, or check out some local parks that have basketball courts, you're likely to find someone there with information. You could try contacting high school and college coaches in your area to see if they know of any rec leagues or even good pick-up games. If you're in college, check out your school's intramural sports program - the competition may be better than you think. Again, I cannot personally assist you in any way as I cannot possibly keep track of league information for every city even if I wanted to.
If you want to play AAU, contact the AAU and talk to your school coach as well as other coaches in the area. Don't forget to look into other youth recreational leagues as well, most cities have them. Always be skeptical about promises to get a scholarship or to be "seen", especially if the team's fees seem high. The most important factors should be having fun and improving your game. You should also be comfortable with the coaching staff and other players. Also note that there are other youth leagues out there both national, regional, and local that provide excellent competition. Find which is best for you.
If you want to play college basketball, first talk to your coach and let them know you are interested. If they aren't prepared to help you, don't shy away from talking to other high school or club coaches in your area and asking their advice, especially if they have had players who received scholarships. Look at the websites of each college association for information on prospective college athletes. Most athletic websites have athlete interest forms you can fill out online as well as contact information for their women's basketball coaches or athletic department. Never discount lower division or non-NCAA schools such as NAIA or junior colleges - the competition is tougher than you may think and the percentage of high school players who go on to play Division I NCAA basketball is small. Practice regularly and consider attending basketball camps to improve your skills and make contacts. You must be proactive and start contacting college coaches yourself - and do so early. Don't forget about pursuing academic scholarships and other monetary grants even if you have your sights set on an athletic scholarship. While not an ideal option, there are also a variety of federal loans available for both you and your parents/guardians. Remember: a scholarship, or lack of one, is not a measure of your talent. The most important thing to remember is that basketball should be one of your secondary concerns when choosing a college.
Why do you update your Daily News so page so late?
I have a job. I have a life. The "Daily News" page is very time consuming. I am not getting up at 3am to do this, I am not getting paid to do this, and frankly, there are days I don't feel like doing this at all. P.S. I do this for FREE.
Why do you list the WNBA first?
That's just the way I prefer to organize it and I want to keep it uniform throughout the year instead of constantly switching things around depending on the season. The section takes up little room in the off-season and it takes little effort to scroll past.
How come you don't have any links for....?
Either there aren't any, or they haven't come to my attention. I am only one woman and can't possibly find every link there is to link. If there is a link that you think should be on this website, send it to me. If I think it's relevant, it will be added as soon as possible (which can sometimes take a little while so don't email me forty times.)
Are you going to have a section for....? Maybe.
Are you ever going to add a message board? No. Never.
How about an e-mail discussion list? No. Never.
Do you make any money off this website?
While there are a few affiliate programs in place and a few kind souls have donated money for the website, it's about enough to cover the website fees, but that's about it. And before you ask, no, I don't receive free tickets, free media guides, or free anything else. Not that I would turn those things down necessarily...
There are numerous reliable antivirus and/or firewall programs available, including several free ones. Trend Micro offers a free virus scan of your computer (Note: this will not protect your computer against viruses, just check your computer for them.) Here is a list from Google. I recommend Norton Anti-Virus and Norton Web Security are the two I use. I also recommend Zone Labs free programs. Most are very easy to use and often set up most of the major features, such as e-mail protection, automatically and can be set up to update themselves automatically whenever you log on to the internet. For those having difficulty, the instruction books and help sections are usually easy to read and there's plenty of places online which can offer help. Most ISP's will also offer their customers assistance in this area - they WANT you to protect your computer.
One way to protect yourself from viruses without an antivirus program is to set the options in your e-mail program to reject, or limit the size of attachments you receive. Common sense also goes a long way in protecting yourself. If you receive an e-mail from someone you don't know that contains an attachment: don't open it! If you receive an e-mail that appears to be from someone you know that contains an attachment you weren't expecting: don't open it! Send them an e-mail first and ask if they sent you an attachment. If you receive an e-mail that appears to be from someone you know that contains an attachment and a curious subject header and either no text in body of the message, nonsensical text, or text written in broken English (when the person normally doesn't write that way): delete the message immediately! I know of one person that requires everyone to e-mail them first before they send an e-mail with an attachment, otherwise they ignore the attachment.
There's also tons of reliable, up-to-date information available online about virus protection, particularly from Symantec and McAfee. You'll also find plenty of useful information in computer magazines such as PC World and CNET, both of which include reviews of antivirus and firewall programs. About.Com has informative sites on email and anti-virus software.
Bottom line: there is no excuse for someone not to have their computer properly protected, no matter how much of a computer novice. Most people take preventive measures to protect themselves from illness or install security devices in their cars, computers need just as much attention. There are literally tens of thousands of viruses out there with new ones being created every day. It is also wise to install programs such as Ad-Aware or Spybot to protect against spyware which can sometimes be installed on your computer without your knowledge. Yahoo also now offers a free Spyware program.
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