It's the second season of BOUNCE, and it's all about the Golden State Valkyries' first year in the Bay.
So far, in previous episodes, we’ve heard from the players, and the coach. We’ve heard about the history and the new developments, like Rikki’s women’s sports bar. But today is all about the people behind the mic. The sports announcers that bring listening audiences right into the thick of the game.
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Story Transcript:
HOST ERIN LIM: Valkyries fans are feeling the inevitable woes of the sports roller coaster. The team is having some hard breaks.
Just a few nights ago in Phoenix where they were playing the Mercury, team leader Tip Hayes went down.
ANNOUNCER: Oh boy. Big time collision. Copper. Gonna be slow to get up. Playing with that injured rib and Hayes still down on the floor. She's been injured so many times this season. Ugh. Oh, Tiffany Hayes with so many broken noses this year.
ERIN: Minutes later in the same game rookie Carla Leite was hurt.
ANNOUNCER: Leite, who commits the foul holding her ankle. Remember, she's been dealing with a foot injury and goes down as Charles checks in. Ooh. Uh, Thomas lands right on her foot. Oh man.
ERIN: These latest casualties just add to the list of Valkyries players that are out due to injuries. Mo Billings has been out with an ankle injury since late July. Three point queen Cecilia Zandalasini is out with a calf injury.
And All-Star Kayla Thorton is out for the rest of the season with a knee injury.
We are broken … but not defeated.
With their eyes on the playoffs, and only seven games left in the regular season, the Valk’s have to be extra right now. They have to make their threes. They have to make their layups. They have to limit their turnovers. They’ve got to make their free throws. And they gotta bring that Ballhalla energy to every road game they’ve got left.
That’s why Sunday’s win against the Dallas Wings was HUGE.
The end of this season is gonna be a ride y’all. Make sure you’re buckled in.
— — —
ERIN: Let me take a minute to give some big picture context beyond the world of basketball.
There’s a lot of social, political, and economic upheaval happening these days. The second Trump administration is transforming the U.S. government and the world order in dramatic ways.
Between that and the push of artificial intelligence, it can make it hard for a lot of young folks to find work. People like Sophia Jones.
SOPHIA JONES: I believe that everything happens for a reason.
ERIN: Sophia graduated from San Jose State last year, summa cum laude. She was also a three-year basketball player for the school.
Post-college, she was hustling a variety of jobs covering men’s and women’s hoops at the University of San Francisco.
So when the Bay’s new WNBA team was getting ready for its opening season, Sophia made sure to show up wherever the Valks were at.
SOPHIA JONES: And I think that I met enough people that were maybe just still tied into Valkyrie's organization, that potentially my name still got tossed around more. I wasn't sure, but I showed up to look for a job. I thought if I could go and show up face-to-face that that might help my chances.
ERIN: And that’s when my colleague Demetrius “Meech” Johnson met Sophia.
REPORTER DEMETRIUS JOHNSON: Yeah. We first crossed paths months ago at a community mural event the team was hosting in Oakland. I was there to collect sound for Bounce and networking, too, because we wanted to get to know the Valkyries staff. So, Sophia and I were basically doing the same thing, trying to get our feet in the door with the team.
ERIN: And it was just a few weeks later that Sophia Jones heard back from the Valkyries.
SOPHIA JONES: Yeah, so I actually got the call from my agent. And I was just kind of in a limbo period in between my work with University of San Francisco and just kind of figuring out what my next step was. And my agent just said that they offered me the job, and I was just overjoyed. I was so happy and it was just … I was just so excited to get started to work.
ERIN: As the radio analyst for the Golden State Valkyries on 95.7 The Game.
That’s what she’s been up to this season. And Meech caught up with her at the Chase Center to see how it’s going.
— — —
VALKYRIES PLAY-BY-PLAY RADIO ANNOUNCER KEVIN DANNA: Good evening from Ballhalla folks, it is loud inside Chase Center, the Golden State Valkyries getting ready to take on the four and ten Chicago Sky.
REPORTER: And right there along with him is Sophia Jones.
SOPHIA JONES COMMENTARY: Chicago is sitting towards the bottom of the league. So this is a very winnable game, but the Valkyries will control their own destiny today.
REPORTER: Sophia took control of her own destiny too. She’s now a radio analyst for the Valkyries in their historic inaugural season. But, before we settle into this moment, we need to rewind back a few hours earlier.
It was about 4:30 p.m. when I arrived at Chase Center about 2 and half hours before tipoff. Just FYI, the media doesn’t come through the front doors with the fans. We come through the side closest to the water. A side door into another world I would say. I flash my credential, step through the metal detector, and then head down a set of stairs. That’s when it really hits you. You’re not just walking into an arena, you’re entering this underground basketball world. Ballhalla they call it. The walls glow with Valkyries colors. Security guards guide you through with a smile and I head towards a wide tunnel, lined with lights that leads to the court. I watch some of the players, like Angel Reese, on the visiting side, warming up. However, Sophia is not there.
So I head back into the underground hallways of the Chase Center. I stop at the media center named after Jim Barnett, the longtime voice of the Warriors. It’s filled with reporters chatting, catching up, and getting ready for the game. That’s where I meet up with Sophia and the rest of her team. I get introduced around, shake hands with her broadcast partner, Kevin Danna. Quick intros with their producer. I clip a mic on Sophia and she goes about her business, greeting the people she knows.
SOPHIA JONES: Hi, I love this silver.
REPORTER: I just follow along, like a fly on the wall.
Just before 5 p.m., Sophia heads towards the Chicago Sky’s pre-game press conference in another room. The setup is simple and clean. Black curtains pulled into a square, a backdrop stamped with the Chicago Sky logo, and a spotlight on a table up front. Head coach Tyler Marsh leans into the mic and Kevin asks a question.
KEVIN DANNA: Coach, welcome to San Francisco and congrats on getting a head coaching gig. When you think back on your journey starting as a color commentator for G League games and on G League staff. What comes to mind for you as you kind of reflect on your journey, on becoming a head coach in the W?
REPORTER: Then it’s Sophia’s turn.
SOPHIA: Hi, coach. You and coach Nakase were both on the staff with the Las Vegas Aces in previous years. Can you talk about your relationship and how that's kind of developed, especially looking at the positions that you both are in now?
REPORTER: They talk for about 10 minutes until Coach Marsh’s pregame presser comes to an end. Then we slip back into the underground halls. We walk into a clean, closed-off interview room dedicated to the Valkyries. It's named after Bay Area broadcasting legend Bill King. The voice who once called games for the A’s, the Warriors, the Raiders, and the Niners.
Up front, there’s a podium and a mic, with the Valkyries backdrop stretched behind it. Rows of chairs face forward, waiting for coach Natalie Nakase. I stay planted along the back wall. The room quiets when coach Nakase steps to the podium. Sophia doesn’t ask a question this time. She just sits back soaking it all in as coach Nakase talks. When the press conference concludes, we head back to the Media Center for some dinner. This time the spread is laid out, trays of food and soda machines filled. Media folks quietly move through, filling their plates. The TVs on the walls silently show games from around the league. I hang back as Sophia finds a spot with some of her colleagues. That’s when I hear one of them lean over and ask the question. “So, how did you get this job?”
SOPHIA: Well, my dad.
REPORTER: Oh, did I forget to mention? Sophia’s father is Mark Jones. If you’ve watched ESPN in the last 30 years, you’ve probably heard his voice calling NBA games.
MARK JONES: Shepherd fell. Got dropped like a diss track from Kendrick Lamar.
REPORTER: Mark is known for dropping clever one-liners, mixing in hip-hop references, and calling the game with sharp, cultured commentary. Yeah, Mark is that guy.
SOPHIA: I just remember being a little girl in elementary school and watching my dad operate in his field of work, and I knew that I wanted to do something similar to him.
REPORTER: But while his freestyling flow sounds smooth, Sophia knows what goes on backstage.
SOPHIA: The work that he puts in behind the scenes is something that I try to emulate. Not just being a media figurehead with no actual relation to any of the players and not understanding the struggles that they go through on a day-to-day basis.
REPORTER: Growing up the daughter of someone with such a prominent role in sports broadcasting, I had to ask: did that make the industry feel more within reach, or did it come with added pressure?
SOPHIA: I would say both, it made it more accessible because I was introduced to people like my dad, who at a certain point he was the only Black play-by-play announcer at ESPN, for like any sport.
REPORTER: While her dad helped her see what was possible, he also made sure she understood the reality behind the scenes.
SOPHIA: Because I am a woman of color, it did make it intimidating because my dad was always very real about the struggles that he had to overcome in the industry and what he still faces, and just not holding back any punches on what being a member of the media could look like.
REPORTER: With her dad already established in the industry, there’s no doubt Sophia had a level of access most people don’t.
SOPHIA: Nepotism, essentially, also sometimes doesn’t factor into one’s personal talent, and that’s where I just really try to establish myself to make sure that there isn’t any type of doubt that I belong to be there. I try to let my talent speak for itself.
REPORTER: By the time Sophia finishes her meal, tipoff is less than an hour away. It’s time to lock in. We make our way down to the court. Pregame warmups are in full swing and fans are starting to trickle in. Sophia stands courtside, chats up her colleagues, and goes over player stats. This is what most folks don’t see. The grind that happens before the broadcast.
SOPHIA: I start studying for games, if I can, like two days before. Watching the film, listening to as much stuff as possible. Reading as many articles by the beat writers as possible. So, just absorbing a lot of information before a game.
REPORTER: The studying is something serious, something she picked up as a student athlete at San Jose State.
SOPHIA: Yeah, a lot of film and a lot of note taking. It’s like you’re studying for a test, but it's also like an open book test.
REPORTER: When the pregame clock hits the 30 minute mark, all media must clear the floor. So, Sophia and Kevin begin heading toward the box seats. Sophia’s path to the broadcast booth wasn’t just built on shadowing her father. It was also shaped by pain, the kind that comes from a basketball injury which took place during her college days.
SOPHIA: So I tore both my ACLs and meniscus. The first one I tore my freshman year of college. Then the second one I tore my junior year of college.
REPORTER: The first injury, Sophia bounced back in about eight months, a faster recovery than most. However, it was the second tear that really took a toll. That’s when the mental side of injury hits even harder than the physical. It was during that tough stretch when a new opportunity came about.
SOPHIA: My former coach, she was like, hey, this position as the TV color analyst for calling our games is open, if that’s something you’d be interested in.
REPORTER: With the game temporarily taken away, she found something new to pour herself into, something that still gave her a sense of growth and purpose.
SOPHIA: I redirected my energy then into those broadcasts I did with the Mountain West Network and San Jose State. That was just a really good way for me to feel like I was still advancing certain portions of my life.
REPORTER: During that time period she got to experience something most broadcasters can only dream of, sharing the mic with her dad.
MARK JONES (ARCHIVAL TAPE): Fresno State is in a zone Sophia, what does San Jose State traditionally like to do against the zone? What's the goal?
SOPHIA JONES (ARCHIVAL TAPE): Especially when you have Moreland on the court. You want to try and get the ball inside to her. They have Moreland down on the block and Davis on the free throw line.
REPORTER: Calling that game together wasn’t just a milestone for Sophia, it was a memory her father will never forget.
MARK JONES (ARCHIVAL TAPE): Sophia, it’s been a blast. It was a pleasure to call my first ever game with you. This’ll always go down as one of my career highlights. Thank you.
SOPHIA JONES (ARCHIVAL TAPE): It was such an honor.
REPORTER: That brings us back to Sophia Jones, radio analyst, now calling games for the Golden State Valkyries. We’ll pick it up in the third quarter. It’s 56 to 54 with the Valkyries leading the Sky, getting big contributions from Kayla Thorton, Tiffany Hayes, and rookie Kaitlyn Chen.
KEVIN DANNA COMMENTARY: What do they gotta do to close this thing out, Sophia?
SOPHIA JONES COMMENTARY: Well, you lock down the paint, but the Chicago Sky are 11 of 25 from three pointers. They are kind of making the Valkyries pay right now.
REPORTER: The Valkyries are holding off the Sky. During the final moments of the game, all the fans are screaming and on their feet. Ballhalla is in effect!
KEVIN DANNA COMMENTARY: If Kaitlyn Chen hits two free throws here this game is essentially over.
SOPHIA JONES COMMENTARY: Can we just talk about how Kaitlyn Chen has stepped up so much in this game and she's in this closing lineup right now. She was picked up in the middle of the season, a rookie, just playing some big minutes.
REPORTER: The Valkyries take the win with a final score of 83 to 78. Though the confetti falls from the top of Ballhalla, Sophia's work is not finished just yet. While still in the broadcast booth, she and Kevin have to conduct a post game interview with the rookie guard who had one of her best games that night.
SOPHIA JONES COMMENTARY: You talked about offensively, but how about defensively? You guys had some huge stops and some great team rebounding. Can you talk about the total team effort that went into the defensive game plan today?
KAITLYN CHEN: Yeah, that was definitely a focus for us.
REPORTER: After the interview with Kaitlyn, Kevin and Sophia trade a few last thoughts on the game. They sign off and her job is done for the night. However, beyond this game, and the beginning of her broadcast career, Sophia hopes for her voice to be tied with the growth of Women's basketball.
SOPHIA: I just hope that my legacy can be defined as me playing a role in the greater development, appreciation, and respect of Women’s basketball in general. Creating a space honestly where people feel like they can achieve whatever they put their minds to.
REPORTER: Sophia Jones path to the Valkyries radio booth was shaped by shadowing her father, playing the game and dealing with injuries that come with it. But above all, always remaining prepared when an opportunity arises.
