Brooke covers basketball as an analyst for ESPN.
Before that, she was a two guard.
“I have no favorite teams.
I root for the last second shot.”
BROOKE WEISBROD
Ball is Life.
People say it for a reason – one second, one shot can change your future. One moment I was a 21-year-old playing professional basketball in Europe, and the next I was retired with a back injury well before I was ready to say goodbye.
I remember that flight home from Germany in 2002 thinking who AM I, and what do I want to do NOW?
The answer showed up just a few months later.
The AHA Moment.
I was catching a game at my alma mater Coastal Carolina University when Matt Hogue, the voice of the Chanticleers and now Athletic Director, called me down for an interview. In the middle of our conversation, it hit me. My calling was calling the game!
Since 2004, I’ve covered events for ESPN and other networks as an analyst, sideline reporter, radio and television host. The rush of a live game feels incredible whether you play or call it, and I’m so grateful to be a part of it all. The road to becoming a sportscaster taught me a lot about patience and persistence, and how to push past my comfort zone while staying true to myself. Who knew improv and acting classes built confidence?
Why I love it.
I love to learn the process behind the smartest minds in the game. What works for Lebron and Maya, for Geno and Muffet? There’s always more to learn, and yet there’s only so much you can prepare for – that keeps me on my toes, constantly curious. I love the unknown.
Every game takes on its own personality, and our production crew loves the challenge to creatively connect fans with the key moments that make a season. The magic really happens behind the camera, where the production and coordinating teams make thousands of moving pieces work together.
What matters most.
Calling men’s and women’s games has opened the door to conversations about equality and why perspective matters in the mission to connect us all. My goal is to open as many doors and minds as I can. Equality is what inspired me to create Skills and Score, a program offering sports camps and workshops celebrating Chicago’s Public School students. There’s nothing like seeing the happiness and confidence on the face of a kid who just learned something new.
It’s gotta be the shoes.
I believe sneakers go with everything! My fascination started in 5th grade when I convinced my mom to buy me my first pair of Jordans. In high school, I wanted to be a sneaker designer, and I still do.
The style of the game has my attention as much as the X’s and O’s. And one day, I want to own a WNBA team.
Off the court.
Born in Cincinnati, I’ve called the lovely city of Chicago home since 2002.
My loves, other than the game: Summertime tennis, family time, taking my chocolate lab Willis to the dog beach at sunrise, ‘90s R&B, experimenting in the kitchen, and an occasional late night out dancing.
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Skills and Score is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization celebrating Chicago’s Public School students offering sports camps designed for the competitor in all of us. When you support Skills and Score, you give Chicago’s youth a safe space to play.
