Bird is a proud lesbian, but she recognized that “I pass for a straight woman to some.” She continued, noting that she’s also white, “small so not intimidating compared to Syl who’s black, swarthy, and of a certain build, yeah, that’s 100 percent a factor here.”
Fowles admitted that but didn’t seem in the mood to analyze it.
“You think you should do everything right, and then when you do everything right, you get noticed,” she said. “But that’s not the case for a number of reasons.”
Fowles’ voice cracked.
“Why do I have to work twice as hard just to get noticed?”
She wished for a brighter future: that the next generations of greats who look like her would be much better known, that the WNBA find a way to promote all of its players. “Eighty percent of us are black women, and you have to figure out how to market to those black women,” she said. “I don’t think we’re doing very well.”
Fowles did what she could to pave the way for these changes. She played in a way that will stand the test of time. “I’m proud of myself for being the same person from 2008 to 2022,” she said. “I’m not a wimp. I am a leader and not a follower. I stand up and talk about things I believe in.”
In her final season, playing the role of on-court coach for a young and struggling Lynx team, she averaged nearly 15 points and nearly 10 rebounds per game in Minnesota’s 81-71 win over Atlanta on Sunday .
The fight for respect will now fall to other players as Fowles embarks on a career path that perfectly suits what Bird described as a motherly personality.