# news 1/9



## truebluefan (May 27, 2002)

*L.A. Sparks Promote McGowen to Chief Operating Officer*

LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Sparks appointed Allison McGowen chief operating officer, it was announced. 
McGowen, who joined the Sparks in January 2007, had been senior vice-president of Business Operations. In overseeing all day-to-day operations for the Sparks, McGowen further strengthens an already robust strategic and operational team. She will manage cross-functional operational efforts, signature events and business development.

"Allison has done an outstanding job in helping to expand the Sparks' brand and we are confident she will continue to help fuel the team's business growth in 2008," said co-owner Kathy Goodman.

"The Sparks are looking forward to the 2008 season being our best ever and we are excited about the skills Allison brings to the endeavor," said co-owner Carla Christofferson.

"I am very excited and energized about taking on the challenges that my new duties represent," McGowen said. "The Sparks' organization is determined to make the experience of attending a Sparks' game memorable for all our fans." 

McGowen has a strong background in marketing, sales and strategic partnerships. She began her career at Kolar Advertising, a leading advertising agency in Austin, Texas. In 1999, McGowen joined Rainmaker Systems, Inc (formerly Sunset Direct), leading the Channel Development & Support team which assisted companies ranging from Fortune 500 to dynamic start-ups raise their return on investment by leveraging and measuring the success of customized direct marketing programs. Prior to joining the Sparks, McGowen worked with CompassLearning, a software company that produces assessment, curriculum, and management tools for grades K thru 12. McGowen specialized in partnerships with school districts and other academic organizations to ensure that students achieve academic success and played a critical role in securing many multi-million dollar state and district contracts in five states. During her tenure with CompassLearning, she worked heavily with the Los Angeles Unified School District's Beyond the Bell program. 

For Sparks' season ticket information, call 1-877-44-SPARKS.


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## truebluefan (May 27, 2002)

*Learn From A Legend*

Your 2008 is about to become legendary, as Liberty alumna Kym Hampton will be appearing at the Asphalt Green girls basketball clinic on Wednesday, February 20. Learn tips, run through drills, get autographs and more from a professional! All clinic participants will also receive a Liberty game ticket and t-shirt. http://msgnyc.com/index.cfm?n35043s6321c12475238t6352o33895 
The clinics at Asphalt Green are open to girls ages seven to 15, and will run from February 18 through the 22nd. Get on the ball now, click below to log onto NYLiberty.com for more details and how to register for the clinic with Hampton.


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## truebluefan (May 27, 2002)

*Minnesota Lynx Name Julie Plank Assistant Coach*

Minneapolis/St. Paul - The Minnesota Lynx announced today the hiring of Julie Plank as an assistant coach. Per team policy, terms of the agreement were not disclosed.Plank, who has amassed a 510-243 record in her 23-year career as an assistant coach, was most recently an assistant coach and director of scouting for the Indiana Fever from the team's inception in 2000 through the 2007 season.
"I am very excited to be joining the Minnesota Lynx coaching staff at such a crucial time as we continue the process of developing a championship contender," said Plank. "I am anxious to continue watching the nation's top college players for the next round of talent that will join the Lynx in the 2008 WNBA Draft. I am extremely thankful to the entire Minnesota Lynx organization for giving me this opportunity, and I am looking forward to the day that we can bring home a WNBA Championship to the Twin Cities."
"Hiring someone of Julie's stature for our coaching staff is a tremendous addition to the Minnesota Lynx Organization," said Lynx Chief Operating Officer Roger Griffith. "With 23 years of experience assisting with the development of the greatest players in the game at the collegiate, international and professional levels, Julie will be a great influence on our team. She is a big part of the coaching staff that we are assembling in Minnesota for our 10th Anniversary season in 2008."
With the Lynx, Plank will be responsible for the team's scouting efforts, talent evaluation, and player development with a focus on the guards.
"Julie was in a similar situation in Indiana to what we are going through here in Minnesota," said Lynx Head Coach Don Zierden. "When she first started in Indiana, they won nine games in 2000. She knows what it is like to try to rebuild with young players. She has been there through the entire process, starting with the nine wins in 2000 to the 21 wins the Fever have recorded in each of the last three seasons. We are trying to build a championship contending team here in Minnesota, and Julie has the experience of doing that in Indiana. We also wanted to hire someone who is going to be able to work with our guards. Julie, along with her 23 years of experience, brings a lot of knowledge that will help our young guards develop."
Prior to joining the Fever, Plank was an assistant coach with the U.S. Women's National Team from 1999 through the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, where she added two gold medals to her impressive coaching resume after helping to lead the United States to gold-medal victories in the 1999 U.S. Olympic Cup and the 2000 Olympics and a 38-2 overall record in 1999-2000.
Plank's 23-year coaching resume includes 10 years (1986-95) on the sidelines at Stanford University as an assistant to 1996 gold medal-winning Olympic head coach Tara VanDerveer. Reunited with her head coach in college, she helped direct the Cardinal to eight consecutive NCAA Tournaments (1988-95), four Final Four appearances (1990-92, 1995) and two NCAA championships (1990, 1992). While helping Stanford to a 251-62 (.802) overall record, Plank's duties included overseeing the Cardinal's scheduling, scouting and conditioning efforts, in addition to working closely with the development of the team's guards.
From 1997-99, Plank, an 18-year coaching veteran, served as an assistant at Vanderbilt University where she directed the school's recruiting and scouting efforts and acted as the lead assistant during games. At Vanderbilt, she was ranked as the fifth-best NCAA Division I assistant coach in the nation by Women's Basketball Journal in 1998.
Plank began her assistant coaching career at Capital University (Ohio) in 1984, where she spent two years as an assistant, helping Capital to a 38-9 record (.809). Overall, she has helped three different NCAA women's basketball programs to a 343-104 record (.767).
A native of Columbus, Ohio, Plank played four years at Ohio State University where she was a three-year starter at point guard. She helped lead the Buckeyes to a 23-5 record and the school's first Big Ten Conference women's basketball title, as a senior in 1983.
Plank attended Bishop Hartley High School and led her team to two Ohio state high school championships. In February 2001, the school retired her No. 13 jersey in honor of her accomplishments.
The Minnesota Lynx will celebrate their 10th season in 2008. Season and group tickets are on sale now for this historic season. Be a part of the pageantry by calling 612-673-8400, e-mailing [email protected] or visiting the Lynx website at www.lynxbasketball.com.


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## truebluefan (May 27, 2002)

*Kloppenburg Named as Fever Assistant Coach*

INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana Fever has named veteran NBA and WNBA coach Gary Kloppenburg as an assistant coach under Lin Dunn. Kloppenburg rejoins Dunn, under whom he served for three seasons on the staff of the WNBA's Seattle Storm from 2000-02. Kloppenburg was most recently on the staff of the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats, where he served under Bernie Bickerstaff for three seasons. 
Regarded for his expertise on the defensive end of the floor, Kloppenburg was hired by Bickerstaff when the Bobcats were founded in 2004 - continuing a family bond established when Bickerstaff was in college, and strengthened when Gary's father, Bob, coached in the NBA with Bickerstaff in Seattle and Denver.

"Gary brings an enormous amount of experience to our franchise," said Dunn. "His experience on both ends of the floor, and at the highest levels of basketball, will be a real plus for our players. He's great at individual player development and his work ethic is the best!"

Kloppenburg has coached at virtually every level of college and professional basketball, ranging from his beginnings at a California community college and intertwined with jobs in the NBA, WNBA, Continental Basketball Association and internationally. 

Prior to joining the Bobcats' staff as an assistant coach and advance scout, he was an assistant with the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury for one season, after three years with Dunn in Seattle. He worked for the NBA's Toronto Raptors from 1997-99, after two seasons as an assistant coach and assistant director of player personnel in the CBA - first with the Rockford Lightning and then for the Quad City Thunder. Kloppenburg was the interim head coach for four games in 1999-00 with Rockford where he coached current NBA star Earl Boykins.

In the summer of 1999, he was head coach for Panteras de Miranda of the Venezuelan Professional League, and he has conducted basketball clinics in Greece, Belgium, Iceland and Japan.

After graduating from UC San Diego in 1981, his coaching career began at Lassen Community College (Calif.) where he had successful stints as head coach with both the men's and women's teams. He guided the women's team for five seasons, before taking over the men's program for six.

Also fluent in Spanish, Kloppenburg was born Jan. 6, 1953, and has three children - Sonja, Ian and Carlotta.


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## truebluefan (May 27, 2002)

*Local Ownership Group Secures Option to Purchase WNBA's Seattle Storm*

SEATTLE, January 8, 2008 - WNBA President Donna Orender announced today that a select group of Seattle businesswomen and civic leaders has secured an exclusive option to purchase the Seattle Storm."Today is a great day for Storm fans. Seattle is a terrific WNBA city and I'm thrilled for Storm fans who have been so supportive of their team over the years," Orender said. "What this group of women is doing is yet another example of that famous Seattle civic leadership. I have no doubt that this group of women, with support from the public, business community and elected officials, will be able to make a strong case for this sale to be approved by the Board of Governors."
"We are pleased to be able to step forward to ensure that Seattle will be the Storm's home," said Anne Levinson, who led the negotiations and is part of the new ownership group, Force 10 Hoops, L.L.C. "This is something we wanted to be able to do for Storm fans and the community. I want to thank Clay Bennett for working with us on this." 
"In the time we have been a part of the WNBA we have consistently been impressed by the very loyal fan base and broad community support the Storm enjoys. We believe the Storm can continue to be successful in KeyArena. We are pleased we have been able to negotiate a transaction with an extraordinary group of highly accomplished women. Through our extensive negotiations we have become convinced that their commitment to the community and passion for the game will result in a secure and promising future for the Seattle Storm. We knew the right thing to do for Seattle was to work with Anne's group to see if we could make this happen. We will assist them in any way we can to ensure a smooth transition and wish them the very best," said Clay Bennett, Chairman of the Professional Basketball Club, LLC that owns the Seattle SuperSonics and the Women's Basketball Club of Seattle, LLC, owner of the Seattle Storm. 

In addition to Levinson, other members of the new ownership group are philanthropists and businesswomen who also have deep roots in Seattle and a history of civic involvement. Ginny Gilder owns an investment business and is president of one of her family's philanthropic entities, which invests in projects throughout the world that seek to level the economic playing field and promote social justice. She was the founding Executive Director of Washington Works, a local non-profit dedicated to supporting welfare recipients in obtaining and retaining livable-wage employment. A rower, she won a silver medal at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 1984.

Lisa Brummel is the senior vice president for Human Resources at Microsoft, and a member of Microsoft's senior management team. For 10 years prior to that, she served as corporate vice president of Microsoft's Home & Retail Division. As head of this billion-dollar division, she was responsible for overseeing worldwide development and business strategy for Microsoft's line of consumer hardware, software and Macintosh products. As an athlete at Yale University, she was named to the Ivy League Women's Hall of Fame for Softball, MVP on the All-Ivy teams for both basketball and softball, and held a number of university records. She was drafted by the Dallas Diamonds in the 4th round of the 1981 professional women's basketball league draft.


Dawn Trudeau spent over 20 years in the software industry, the last 14 in leadership positions at Microsoft, heading up divisions in Database and Development tools as well as Consumer Products. For the past nine years she has helped emerging non-profits to develop the capacity to deliver their programs with maximum effectiveness. She chairs the Board of Economic Opportunity Institute, serves on the Advisory Board for the Business Partnership for Early Learning, and the boards of Social Venture Partners International and the University of Washington Women's Center. 

The group was brought together by Levinson, who served as a public official for nearly two decades, as a judge, Chair of Washington State's Utilities Commission, Deputy Mayor and Legal Counsel to the Mayor of Seattle. She directed several high profile negotiations and reforms for the City, led efforts against energy deregulation while chairing the Utility Commission and founded one of the nation's first mental health courts as a judge. She has founded or served on the board of directors for dozens of Seattle charitable organizations. Levinson has a long history of involvement with Title IX, and was instrumental in Seattle acquiring its first professional women's basketball team, the Seattle Reign. 
Governor Chris Gregoire expressed her support for the purchase, "As Governor and as a Storm fan, I think this is a terrific result. This group of accomplished women has made this possible because of their strong commitment to the community. They also know first-hand that being able to compete in the top echelon of sports provides women with opportunities generations who came before us never had." 
Washington State's senior U.S. Senator Patty Murray agreed, "The Storm is one of the things that make our state special, providing a great family experience for fans throughout the northwest. This is good news for the community, the League and the players who have made this region their home."
"The Legislature has many Storm fans on both sides of the aisle," added Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown. "Storm players are wonderful role models for the next generation of girls and boys. I look forward to working with the Governor and my colleagues in helping the Storm have continued success. Go Storm!"
The Storm will be the seventh WNBA team to be owned and run by an entity outside of the NBA. They will continue to play home games at the KeyArena, located at the Seattle Center. Season tickets for the Storm's 2008 season are on sale now, with the season opener on May 17 against the Chicago Sky. For fans who want to show support for the Storm and new local owners, season tickets and special ticket packages can be purchased by calling 206 -217-WNBA or on-line at www.storm.wnba.com. 
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Terms of the Sale:
Exclusive Option for Force 10 Hoops, L.L.C. to purchase the team for $10MM 
Force 10 Hoops, L.L.C. has until the end of February to close 
In January and February, the new owners will complete the due diligence, gather public, business community and government support to show the Storm can be successful as a 'stand-alone' franchise (no longer sharing operational costs with an NBA team) and then seek approval from the WNBA Board of Governors


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