What Sue Bird’s Hall of Fame Speech Taught Us About Love, Life, and the Future of Women’s Basketball
Sue Bird (Brian Babineau/NBAE | Getty Images)
On Saturday, June 14th, 2025, women’s basketball legend Sue Bird was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
The now-retired Seattle Storm and UConn legend holds titles in the WNBA for most assists and most games played, is a 12-time WNBA All-Star, and has won four WNBA championships, two NCAA championship titles with the University of Connecticut, and five Olympic gold medals. While Bird’s stats are impressive, so is her absolute dedication to promoting and empowering all women’s sports and athletes. As a co-founder of the company Togethxr (creators of the Everyone Watches Women’s Sports shirt), Bird’s inductee speech is not only a testament to her career’s success but also her continued support of the game.
Here are some things we took away from her Hall of Fame inductee speech about love, life, and the future of women’s basketball.
Success Takes Help and Hard Work
As the eighth former University of Connecticut basketball player to be inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, Bird acknowledges in her speech that it wasn’t just her skills that led her to getting up on that stage. With former coaches Geno Auriemma and Chris Dailey in attendance, Bird notes the importance of them and their program at UConn in being instrumental in her success, as well as the support of her parents, fiance Megan Rapinoe, sister, and nieces. Auriemma and Dailey are known among women’s basketball for the development of their athletes, not just on the court and during games, but from high schoolers into women who carry themselves with confidence and poise. Bird gave the two their flowers for their support in her basketball career, all while poking fun at them for being 10 minutes late to the ceremony due to a delayed flight.
“So tonight, I honor the truth. That greatness is never a solo performance.”
Sue playing for the Seattle Storm (Steph Chambers | Getty Images)
The Power of Friendship
Bird mentions fellow UConn Husky and WNBA player Diana Taurasi, who recently retired, as another driving factor in her success so far. Bird and Taurasi played together at UConn from 2000 to 2002 and went on to become one of the most legendary duos in WNBA history. The two hold the record for both men and women for the most gold medals won by Olympic basketball players and continue to shape the game through their mentorship of recently graduated UConn players and their NCAA Women’s March Madness tournament talk show, The Bird and Taurasi Show. Bird is set to serve as the first-ever managing director of the USA Women’s Basketball team and will identify coaches and players to participate in the 2028 Olympics.
Honor Those Who Came Before You
A Photo from the First WNBA Game, The New York Liberty versus the Los Angeles Sparks on June 21st, 1997 (Kevork Djansezian | Associated Press)
Bird used part of her speech to thank the generation of players before her who paved the way for her career, just as she’s now doing for younger players. The WNBA’s inaugural season was in 1997, and it remains the oldest women’s professional sports league in the United States as of 2025, but even before playing professionally became an option, women were paving ways for themselves in basketball to eventually get Bird to the league in 2002 as the first pick to the Seattle Storm.
Pour Into Those Who Pour Into You
Bird met her fiance, USWNT soccer player Megan Rapinoe, during a photo shoot at the 2016 Rio Olympics, and the rest was history. It’s clear that their understanding of being elite athletes is an essential part of their relationship, but Bird makes it clear that it’s what happens off the pitch and court is just as important to her and her success as an athlete and person.
“Megan, my partner in everything, you’ve taught me that greatness isn’t just about what you achieve on the court or field, but that the most meaningful victories happen when you use your voice for something bigger than yourself. You’ve been my biggest fan, my voice of reason and my softest landing place. Thank you for seeing me, really seeing me and loving all of me.”
Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird (Steph Champers | Getty Images)
Appreciate Your Hard Work
Bird will also be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in September alongside another UConn legend, Maya Moore, making their jersey numbers eligible for retirement at their alma mater.
In a school full of rich basketball history and a long Huskies of Honor list on the wall, only four numbers hang in the rafters at Gampel Pavilion in Storrs, Connecticut - Rebecca Lobo’s #50, Ray Allen’s #34, Swin Cash’s #32, and Richard Hamilton’s #32. Bird and Moore’s potential jersey retirements would make history at UConn, sure to be highly attended by a generation of young women who were able to watch them play professionally before retiring in 2022 and 2023.
Geno Auriemma Coaching Sue Bird at UConn (Jay L. Clendenin | HC)
Cheer on the Next Generation
There’s no secret that the recent explosion in women’s basketball fans has everyone looking back in history at the players like Sue Bird who paved the way for the modern female basketball player - bold, confident, talented, and authentic to themselves. Bird explains her mission to leave women’s basketball better than she found it, and it’s clear that she has been successful in both the journey and the outcome.
“Today, as I watch the explosion in women’s basketball, I am filled with overwhelming pride. We all should [be]. The game isn’t just surviving, it’s thriving. To witness this generation of players stepping into their power, being unapologetic and celebrated for their talent, that’s the real dream come true.”