Basketball is home for LaChina Robinson

Story by Michelle Fenelon. 
Photo from Robinson's Instagram page

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Women in LaChina Robinson’s family don’t play sports. It’s not what they do. So, when a man approached Robinson to play basketball when she was 14-years-old, she says her and her mother initially shrugged him off.

Robinson wanted to be like her friends and cheer for athletes on the sidelines as a cheerleader, but she kept growing. With a 6-foot-4 frame, Robinson was destined to be on the court while others cheered for her.

Although basketball wasn’t her first choice, she found it was the best decision for a young girl who needed to learn how to be comfortable within her own skin – and height.

“I felt like I belonged on the court," Robin said in a telephone interview.

 When she played basketball she didn't feel out of place despite her height.

"When you’re a 6’4” girl, there’s not a lot of places where you feel comfortable as you’re growing into yourself and your self-esteem and your confidence and things. So, I really felt empowered on the court. I made friends; I was learning so many life skills.”

After four years at Wake Forest, Robinson took different paths before landing a job as a sports broadcaster, working college basketball and WNBA games for ESPN and Fox Sports South. She never had dreams of becoming a sports broadcaster; much like basketball, the career found her.

She tried to become an Athletic Director. She thought about becoming a lawyer. She even took sociology classes, which she enjoyed, but she didn’t know what career she could pursue. Despite her 

willingness to explore different careers, her journey led her back to basketball.

When Robinson was asked to do radio for the Georgia Tech women’s basketball team, she accepted. And after her first broadcast, she knew right away it was her calling. From then on, she searched for any opportunity to help advance her career.

"I wasn’t a Broadcast Major, I wasn’t a Communications major," Robinson said. "So I just tried to find ways to get in front of the camera, and try to find ways to network and let people know this is what I’m passionate about."

Through broadcasting, Robinson found her way back to basketball. Although, she wasn’t on the court battling defenders to grab rebounds, or forcing her opponents to alter their shots when they entered the paint. She wasn’t lacing up her sneakers anymore, but she was home. 

Michelle: Hi, I’m here with LaChina Robinson, a sports broadcaster. Can you explain to me how you became so passionate about basketball?

LaChina: Well, yeah. It definitely started when I was a teenager. I didn’t start playing basketball until I was about 14 and I kind of fought it my whole life because I wanted to be a cheerleader and be like the rest of my friends. But I kept growing so cheerleading didn’t really fit me or I didn’t fit cheerleading I guess you can say. And there was a guy in my neighborhood who would always come by and say “you should play basketball. You should play basketball,” because at 14 I was 6-foot-4. So, he kept coming back and my mom – I was a first-generation female athlete. My mom’s generation didn’t play any sports; my grandmother’s generation didn’t play any sports. My older sister did, but my mom was like, “no, you don’t really want to play basketball, they’re going to step on your feet. Your hair’s going to get messed up.” Kind of that prima donna thing and then one day this guy says, “well, you know she can get a college scholarship and my mom was like, “we’ll be there tomorrow.” I felt like I belonged on the court. When you’re a 6’4” girl, there’s not a lot of places where you feel comfortable as you’re growing into yourself and your self-esteem and your confidence and things. So, I really felt empowered on the court. I made friends; I was learning so many life skills, which I didn’t realize. It just felt like I was important and so all of the things that I learned on the court really helped me grow as a person, so has been a great value to life overall.

Michelle: And obviously playing basketball did get you that scholarship and you played basketball for Wake Forest. Can you talk about your experience at Wake Forest and playing in the college level?

LaChina: Yeah, it was great for me. It was definitely an eye-opener. You think you know it all when you’re 17 years old so I felt like – my mother did go to college, my father only did make it through high school, so I had somewhat of an idea from my mom what to expect from the academic side. But as far as the basketball court, I was quickly learned that I had no clue. So I had to learn how to push myself physically and mentally and kind of find that next level of strength, of toughness, of focus. And then it was also a challenge because Wake Forest did not have a large number of minority students so here it is I come from a neighborhood – a predominately black neighborhood and into this environment. And so I had to probably do the most growing socially, I would say, more than anything. And then in terms of just the requirements on the basketball court that was a challenge. But it was – Wake Forest was one of the best decisions that I’ve ever made in my life. It really opened my eyes to different cultures. It’s a Liberal Art school so there’s a lot of freedom in terms of developing who you are as a person, but it was definitely a different – it was a change for me coming from high school to college.

Michelle: And how did you find yourself broadcasting, reporting games and becoming a sideline reporter for ESPN and Fox Sports? How did that happen?

LaChina: Well, when I left Wake Forest, I thought I wanted to be an Athletic Director. I decided I wanted to stay around basketball. I’d gone through all these different career paths. First I wanted to be a lawyer, then I wanted to be a psychologist.  So I have all these ideas, but once I took some of the classes, I was like no this isn’t me. So I settled on sociology. I didn’t know what I was going to do with the degree but I enjoyed the classes. I got to take social inequality, death and dying, marriage in the family; they were all interesting to me. So when I was done, I was like wow I would really like to stay around basketball but I knew I didn’t coach. So I decided to be an Athletic Director and I went for an internship as part of the ACC – they have these internships called the Future Interns and one of the internships available was at the ACC office. And so it was a wonderful transition for me because the standards of excellence at the ACC is very high so I right away understood how to conduct myself as a professional, what the expectations were, even in sports from an administrative standpoint. And then I had some great mentors. I got to learn from people like Bernie McGlade and obviously the leadership of John Swofford so that was great, and I got my first job from there at Georgia Tech through some of the people I met because I worked in championships as an intern, so I visited all the schools and did all the sports. And it was great because I met some people at Georgia Tech. When I was done with my internship, I got a job, working with women’s basketball as an administrator for recruiting and again, this was me getting on the road to becoming an Athletic Director. Well, I went from Administrative Assistant Recruiting to Director of Ops, a special assistant to the head coach and about five years then I decided I don’t want to be an AD. So, I didn’t know what I wanted to do but I had started to call the radio games for the women’s basketball team because I used to travel with the team, I planned travels as part of my responsibilities and I started traveling with the team and they asked me one day to do the radio, so I was like cool, yeah shoot, I know the game, I played it just talk about what I think is going on. And that’s exactly what I did and I loved it. Right away I knew that this was something that I wanted to do more of, so I started to just do more radio and I had some people sit down and listen to my games, and critique me, and give me feedback and then also I tried to pursue outside opportunities, whether it be on web. I actually ended up getting a radio gig with the Atlanta Dream, where they didn’t necessarily have the resources to pay me but I needed the experience. I wasn’t a Broadcast Major, I wasn’t a Communications Major, so I just tried to find ways to get in front of the camera, and try to find ways to network and let people know this is what I’m passionate about. And finally I got enough reps that I was able to get a reasonable spot on television and then ultimately ESPN and it really didn’t take as long as some people have in their journey in getting into television, and I think that was only because I had built a very strong network and honed a lot of skills that I would later use in television while I was at Georgia Tech. 

Michelle: In your experience as a broadcasting, starting off, how was it for you. Were you nervous? Were making a lot of mistakes because you were so new to this?

LaChina: Girl, yeah I was so nervous. I remember my first game, I was wondering if people could see my teeth chattering and my legs shaking like under the table. I was like, can people tell I’m shaking? But they actually couldn’t and that was a valuable lesson for me because I continued to be nervous even after that, but it didn’t come across that way on television so that was the good part. But yeah, I was nervous but at the same time I was right at home because one thing that’s so important is your preparation. And if you’re prepared, if you’ve done your homework and you’ve done your research then you can relax. That’s where you get your confidence from, is your preparation so I was probably way over prepared for my first broadcast but working with good people also helps – people that can help you feel comfortable. But I was extremely, extremely nervous for my first game.

Michelle: Which is expected. Much like basketball, this wasn’t something you always wanted to do. And basketball wasn’t something you always wanted to do but it seems like something just kept pulling you towards basketball. Do you ever sit back and think about your journey and think about how you got to the place your are now?

LaChina: Yeah, I do. It definitely starts with my faith in God. I think he has opened doors that I would’ve never imagined could be open so it kind of starts there. Then it starts with people that are just willing to help you along the way. Mentors and even some people that may have said “hey, you’re pretty good at this. Stick with it.” Or whoever decides to take that first chance on you or say, “hey, LaChina, do you want to do the radio?” I think it’s the people that have really opened the doors for me and made this possible and then a lot of hard work. That’s something I learned through basketball.  That’s why you asked me earlier why I’m so passionate about the game, it’s because I have learned so much and gained so much from the game of basketball. Whether it’s how to set goals and achieve them, accountability, and communication, things that have helped me in so many different aspects of life. And it’s given me some of my best friends. My teammates, people that I’ve interviewed of worked with. We all love the game and that love of the game has brought some wonderful people into my life, that I even consider family, into my circle. So it’s just the value that the game has given me. But, I’ve definitely have gotten here with those three things. I would say God, the willingness of people to help me along the way and then a lot of hard work.

Michelle: Speaking of people who’ve helped you along the way, you’ve been very involved with young aspiring broadcasters. Why is it so important for you to become a mentor and help others the same way others have help you?

LaChina: I think what you said is exactly right. I was once that young aspiring broadcaster who wanted nothing more than to break into the business and help to grow the game. I felt the responsibility to grow the game of basketball because it has given so much to me, so in continuing to grow the game I feel like reaching back and helping others is part of the cycle. There’s a cycle of giving that happens and I won’t be around forever. And you just never know when your career could come to an end, but even when I am done with broadcasting I want other young women to come behind me and be even better than I am. So, if I want that – that’s my vision for the game – I’ve got to take the responsibility for it and to try to help young women the way that people have helped me to get to where I am.

Michelle: ok, thank you so much for taking time out and speaking to me. I really appreciate it.

LaChina: Anytime. Well congrats to you and good luck and yeah, if there’s anything I can do to help let me know. Good luck with everything.

Listen to the full interview here.