Timms reflects on early rockstar days of WNBA

Crowded shopping centres, peroxide blonde hairstyles and a donkey. Welcome to Michele Timms’ initiation to the WNBA.

Michele Timms in action for the Phoenix Mercury Source: WNBA

The WNBA returns to Australian screens this season – with a host of games LIVE, FREE and in HD on SBS VICELAND and SBS On Demand.

The legendary Australian point guard was drafted to the US women’s league ahead of its debut season in 1997 and as the WNBA celebrates its 25th anniversary, Timms this week reflected with SBS Sport.

“I can’t believe it’s been 25 years, I just shake my head,’’ she said.

“When I first arrived at the airport at midnight there was a crew of people there with ‘Welcome Michele Timms’ signs, banners and flags. And then it just got bigger from there, 15,000 people at the opening night game.

“There were people lining up for hundreds of metres at a shopping centre to get our autographs. We were there for two or three hours signing autographs and there was still massive lines of people. I remember we wrote a public apology to our fans because we felt so bad we couldn’t get to everybody.

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“It was huge, especially those early years with packed out, sold-out stadiums. VIP treatment, you hardly paid for a meal in a restaurant. You walked into a restaurant and people started clapping, it was an unbelievable experience and something we absolutely loved.”

Timms, with her trademark bleached blonde short hairdo, quickly won a fan base. Many of whom would sport the same haircut.

“I couldn’t believe it, all these different shades of blonde were up in the crowd,’’ she recalled.

“Some lady, god love her, in the crowd came down and said ‘I named my ass after you.’ She was from the farm and named her donkey Timmsy.

“It was great stuff, just wow. We really touched people’s lives and caught the imagination of the USA.”

Timms said the players who contested the inaugural campaign had a sense of what they were a part of and the pathway they were forging.

“In the early days there was a lot of talk about how players were only on $50,000 but we wanted the league to be around for our kids and now they are 17, 18, 19, 20-year-olds.

“They were great days, being part of the inaugural season at Phoenix was phenomenal.

Michele Timms, of the WNBA Phoenix Mercury holds a WNBA basketball as she stands beside Mercury merchandise at the team store in the America West Arena, Wednesday Feb. 18, 1998.

Michele Timms, of the WNBA Phoenix Mercury Source: AP

“As female athletes, we got a taste of what it was like to be a male athlete. All the shallow sort of things, but it was big time and something none of us were used to not even the college kids. I was playing in Europe and the WNBL at the time and we definitely weren’t used to it.”

Timms showed the way for a host of Australians, including Opals medallists and WNBL stars, who would take their game to the best league in the world.

“I’d say hands down Australia’s been represented the most in the WNBA outside America,’’ she says.

“I think we were refreshing, they loved our hard work ethic, our sense of team and team spirit. The ability to come in and just slot it and pick up things. I think our IQ was something that they, the coaches, really respected. I think Australians come with a very high IQ, albeit at times maybe we weren’t as athletic as some of the American players but our IQ got us through.

“Then our athletes started to evolve and boy then we had Lauren Jackson, Penny Taylor, Tully Bevilaqua, we’ve had Sandy Brondello, Kristi Harrower.

“Jessica Bibby was picked on a team. I think she’s one who would have done really well. She had the showtime, the razzamatazz they loved over there. It’s just a pity that her health wasn’t up to it and she wasn’t able to play over there.

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“Now we’ve got Liz Cambage of course and the young ones coming through, it’s just a smorgasbord.

“It’s been great. We had a bit of a lull there for a while but we’ve come back with our numbers.”

Aussies Liz Cambage (Las Vegas Aces), Leilani Mitchell (Washington Mystics), Ezi Magbegor, Steph Talbot (Seattle Storm), Sami Whitcomb, Bec Allen (New York Liberty) and Alanna Smith (Phoenix Mercury) are all playing this year’s WNBA season with Brondello head coach of the Mercury.