Arielle Chambers, host of the WNBA show ‘Her Time To Play,’ holds court during 2023 NBA All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City.
For the past five years, the WNBA and NBA have championed change on behalf of girls and women through “Her Time To Play.” This global initiative aims to provide them with resources to connect, collaborate and build life skills through basketball.
This year, on International Day of the Girl, the WNBA has announced the launch of “Belonging In Basketball,” a new curriculum of core resources centering personal development, mental health and keeping girls in the game. Nonprofit partner Girls Leadership developed these new resources with a focus on building strong, successful women.
Simone Marean, the co-founder and co-CEO of Girls Leadership, says she wants to build on the conversation of the challenges she says girls are facing.
“Our girls are in the midst of a national health crisis with trauma and COVID disproportionately impacting them,” Marean said. “As well as the systemic barriers that they face going into sports and basketball.”
Marean added her main priority is creating a space of belonging.
According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, girls are more likely to drop a sport at twice the rate of boys by the age of 14. As a result, there are 40% of teen girls who are not actively participating in sports today.
To further emphasize the importance of good coaching, HTTP’s new curriculum requires coaches to take a one-hour self-paced training prior to gaining access to a digital hub featuring the curriculum, activities and other resources to support how they work with girls in sports. The goal is to help the coaches excel in leadership and coaching roles within their communities and build stronger ties across cultural, racial and gender-role based biases.
HTTP’s curriculum and training was co-designed by girls in the program and the resources aim to build foundational, life-long skills for them as they mature. HTTP also emphasizes the importance of mental health and wellness check-ins are also among the program’s new resources.
“Taking the time before a practice, drill or a game to do wellness check-ins will build trust between players and coaches, both on and off the court,” Marean said.
Journalist Arielle Chambers, sports media host and ambassador for “Her Time To Play,” used her voice in the media and creativity to help promote women in sports. Chambers has detailed how the impact of representation in women’s sports influenced her to build her career.
Arielle Chambers continues to build on women’s empowerment, whether it be culturally or within athletics.
Growing up in North Raleigh, N.C., Chambers said her inspiration was NC State women’s basketball coach Sandra Kay Yow, who shaped Chambers’ passion that she carries to this day working in women’s sports.
Chambers said she believes anything is possible in life if you work hard and have a passion for whatever it may be. Although her success in climbing the ladder in women’s sports wasn’t easy, Chambers said she wants to build on women’s empowerment in all areas of life.
She said HTTP is important to her because “creating an outlet for young girls to feel heard, seen and shown that they matter in athletics is important in society, especially today.”
Chambers said role models in her life — such as her mother, grandmother and Yow — shaped her pathway. To her, being a part of HTTP is a worthwhile, full-circle moment in which she can ensure girls have the resources to make a positive impact on and off the court in their lives, too.
Her Time To Play goes beyond the four lines of the court to empower girls and women make a difference. The foundation on which HTTP is built is to give a voice to every girl and ensure they know that they are seen and they matter.
For addition information and to join Her Time To Play community on registration please visit Jr.NBA.com/HerTimeToPlay or email with any questions Jr.NBA@nba.com
