Diane Richardson, Yolanda Laney, among others discuss the past and future of women’s basketball
The panel also included a teaser of an upcoming documentary about Philadelphia’s women’s basketball history, which is part of a series called "The Assist: Can’t Retire From This."
As more eyes are being brought to women’s basketball in Philadelphia, learning about the past is a key part in growing its future.
The documentary series, Assist: Can’t Retire From This looks to that. .
The project, directed by Melanie Page, was featured at Temple on Thursday night, where Page shared a teaser of her upcoming documentary about the history of women’s basketball greats who have come through the Philadelphia area.
The event featured a panel discussion with Temple coach Diane Richardson, Temple Hall of Famer Marilyn Stephens, Philly basketball legend Yolanda Laney, and former Army coach Lynn Arti-Chiavaro. It also screened the first documentary Page did about women’s basketball in the Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area.
“I’m a student of basketball, but that was how I was raised in my upbringing from five years old,” Page said. “Seeing the Washington Mystics, it’s never left me. And here I am today, being able to tell more stories and bring the youth up to speed.”
The Philly documentary will feature prominent women’s basketball figures like Laney and Stephens. The DMV documentary starred Richardson from when she was the head coach at Riverdale Baptist School, Maryland, and Towson, along with Temple associate head coach Wanisha Smith, who played for Richardson at Riverdale Baptist.
Page started the project during the pandemic in 2020. Being a DMV native, she began her storytelling there, and it gained some traction in 2021, when she released clips of her interviews from the documentary.
The next step was to bring it to Philly. Arti-Chiavaro played for the city’s first professional women’s basketball team, the Philadelphia Fox, which only lasted from 1978-1981.
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Stephens was a ball girl for the Fox and starred at Temple from 1980-84. She scored 2,194 points and grabbed 1,516 rebounds, ranking second in school history in points and first in rebounds. She was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 1995.
“You can’t erase our history,” Stephens said. “We got to just stand strong and educate the generations that’s come behind us and give them the information about women’s basketball.”
Richardson and Laney also emphasized the importance of not letting the history of women’s basketball be forgotten.
Laney helped lead Cheyney University to the first-ever NCAA women’s national championship in 1982. Her daughter, Betnijah Laney-Hamilton, plays for the New York Liberty. Richardson is not from the area, but has become one of the biggest advocates for women’s basketball in the city since being hired at Temple in 2022.
“We heard a question for what would you name the Philadelphia WNBA team … I would call it the Philadelphia Cradle,” Laney said. “Because we are cradling basketball history in this area and we have a different style of play in Philadelphia basketball.”
With a WNBA franchise coming to Philly in 2030, Richardson and Laney believe the documentary that Page is doing will help keep the city excited.
“Doing things right now like what Melanie is doing and just opening people’s eyes to the explosion of women’s basketball is really important,” Richardson said. “We’ve got to catch that lightning in a bottle and do it now, because five years from now we’re going to be too late.”
Stephens, Arti-Chiavaro, Richardson, and Laney each have a hand in the history and future of women’s basketball. Page wants to keep educating folks about their impact.
“This is the standard,” Page said. “This is how it should be. This should be the norm of what we are doing. People should know Yolanda Laney’s name off the top of their heads. They should know Marilyn Stephens. … It should definitely be the standard. That’s the message.”