Opportunities for women in sport continue to improve, but breaking down barriers of discrimination on or off the court was never going to be easy, according to London Lions women’s team general manager Vanja Cernivec.
Last summer, Slovenian-born Cernivec was appointed the first female general manager at a Women’s British Basketball League side.
Having previously been an international scout for the Chicago Bulls, the first woman in the NBA’s history to fulfil the position, Cernivec is no stranger to overcoming boundaries.
Emily Clarke was announced as the new general manager of the Women’s British Basketball League at the end of June.
Nevertheless, recent research commissioned by the Lions showed 25 per cent of women felt progressing in a sport, either at player or management level, was not viable as there were no role models to relate to.
Part of the study, which was conducted across a nationally representative cohort of 2,090 respondents, also revealed 20 per cent of females said they had experienced some kind of discrimination or exclusion which deterred them from participating in a sport.
Cernivec, though, feels appointments such as her own and that of Clarke – who previously held management roles at Basketball England – demonstrate there is a genuine drive to embrace change alongside having difficult conversations on delivering equality throughout the sport.
“Generally the reception (to my role) has been very positive,” Cernivec told the PA news agency.
“(London Lions owners) 777 have done an incredible step assigning that position. It didn’t matter who stepped in – in this case, it was me.
“By opening this position, they have kind of set a milestone and said how important this role is, setting the same standard for the women’s game as for the men’s.
“The hire of Emily as the GM (general manager) for the Women’s British Basketball League is a great step forward, but changes are never easy for people to accept.”
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Cernivec added: “Things are changing for the better, the fact we are talking about this right now says that.
“If you look at women’s sport globally, it is on the rise. It is not the next upcoming thing, it is the thing right now, so anyone who tries to ignore it is on the wrong path.
“But the fact that women still feel discriminated against in the grassroots and participation level is something which needs to be changed immediately – not only from a professional (sports) aspect, but also for the mental and physical health of our youth.”
Cernivec’s role also saw her become global director of London Lions Academy.
During June, the Lions took part in the inaugural junior NBA European finals in Valencia, sending both an under-15s boys and girls team to the elite youth tournament.
Cernivec hopes such projects can help further develop the talent pool of home-grown players and potential future professionals.
“If you look at the pathway for young British male or female players, it kind of ends in the last year of high school and if they want to continue playing (at an elite level), then they have to go abroad,” she said.
“That is something the Lions are trying to change and help create a professional pathway – with coaches around, nutritionists, mental health support, strength and conditioning, all that comes along with building the athletes to what they aspire to be.
“With the junior NBA platform, it was a great event which has exposed us to where the British talent is right now and where our coaching pool stands, so it was a great experience for everyone.
“We have a great pool of talent in Britain. It is just a matter of how fast we can build up the coaching staff and the facilities, everything which is needed to give them the right development they deserve.”
NBA: Cavaliers, Thunder stay perfect
Darius Garland capped a 39-point night by hitting a go-ahead 3-pointer with 45 seconds left that enabled the scorching Cleveland Cavaliers to stay unbeaten with Monday's 116-114 win over the reeling Milwaukee Bucks.
After converting a layup that brought the Cavaliers within 111-110 with 1:07 remaining, Garland knocked down a 25-footer on Cleveland's next possession after the Bucks' Damian Lillard was called for a backcourt violation.
Lillard then misfired on a 3-point try on Milwaukee's next trip down the court before Jarrett Allen sealed the Cavs' eighth straight win to begin the season with a layup off a Garland feed with 12.2 seconds to go.
Cleveland matched the best start in a season in franchise history, having previously gone 8-0 to open the 1976-77 campaign.
Garland finished 7 of 11 from 3-point range and 15 of 22 overall from the field while adding eight assists. The Cavaliers also received 14 points, 15 rebounds and six assists from Allen and 17 points from Evan Mobley.
Milwaukee, meanwhile, has lost six in a row since a season-opening win at Philadelphia for its longest skid in a season since also dropping six straight in March 2015. The Bucks also played without superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo due to a strained adductor muscle he sustained in a 114-113 loss to Cleveland on Saturday.
Lillard paced the Bucks with 36 points on 11-of-22 shooting to go along with seven assists. Bobby Portis and AJ Green each had 21 points for Milwaukee, with Portis adding 18 rebounds.
Thunder cruise past Magic to move to 7-0
The Oklahoma City Thunder also stayed perfect for the young season by coasting to a 102-86 victory over the Orlando Magic behind Jalen Williams' 23 points and 21 from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
The Western Conference's lone remaining unbeaten team led from start to finish and built a margin as large as 26 points in the second half to extend its best start since the franchise moved to Oklahoma City in 2008. The Seattle Supersonics began a season 7-0 or better three times, most recently a 10-game run to open the 1993-94 campaign.
Orlando shot just 35.4 per cent from the field to lose its fourth straight game following a 3-1 start. The last three defeats have come with leading scorer Paolo Banchero sidelined with a torn oblique.
Franz Wagner led the Magic with 22 points, while Jalen Suggs recorded 19 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Williams put up 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting as the Thunder shot a torrid 71.4 per cent in the first quarter to take a 39-26 lead into the second. The forward ended the first half with 19 points to lead Oklahoma City into the break owning a comfortable 58-43 advantage.
The Thunder continued to add to their lead in the third quarter, as three consecutive 3-pointers from reserve Isaiah Joe highlighted a 13-1 run that extended the margin to 84-58 late in the period.
Durant's late basket lifts Suns, foils 76ers in George's debut
Kevin Durant's driving layup with 24 seconds remaining broke a tie game and put a damper on Paul George's delayed debut with the Philadelphia 76ers as the Phoenix Suns came through with a 118-116 win.
Durant's key basket capped a 10-1 run over the final 3 1/2 minutes that lifted Phoenix to its fifth straight victory following a 1-1 start. The star forward finished with 35 points and six assists to help offset an off night from team-mate Devin Booker, who went 3 of 18 from the field while scoring 13 points.
George had 15 points in 32 minutes in his first appearance since signing with the 76ers as a free agent in the offseason. The nine-time All-Star missed the team's first five games due to a bone bruise in his left knee and was rusty during his return, missing 10 of his 14 shot attempts.
Philadelphia, which remains without franchise centre Joel Embiid due to a knee issue, dropped to 1-5 despite Tyrese Maxey's 32 points on 12-of-22 shooting.
The 76ers appeared on the way to a win after owning a 115-108 advantage following Guerschon Yabusele's dunk with 3:39 to go, which turned out to be their final basket of the night.
Phoenix answered with eight straight points, capped by Durant's jumper with one minute to play, to take a 116-115 edge.
After Maxey made one of two free throws to tie the game with 49.6 seconds left, Durant drove past a defender and scored before George misfired on a 23-footer just before the final buzzer.
Spurs head coach Popovich out indefinitely
The San Antonio Spurs will be without head coach Gregg Popovich indefinitely after he reportedly suffered a health issue prior to the team’s last game.
The 75-year-old Popovich didn’t coach the Spurs (3-3) during Saturday’s 113-103 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves due to what the team said was an undisclosed illness.
Mike Johnson took over as head coach against Minnesota and will remain in the role while Popovich is sidelined.
“He's not feeling well,” Johnson said prior to Saturday’s game. “This has happened before.
“I think everybody's just always got to be ready for the next man up. We've had it with injuries and sometimes people get sick or don't feel well or things come up in life.
“He's just not feeling well.”
Popovich is the NBA's all-time leader with 1,391 victories and has won five NBA titles while coaching San Antonio since the 1996-97 season.
Bickerstaff: Pistons are 'getting better at everything' after big Nets win
J.B. Bickerstaff believes the Detroit Pistons are "getting better at everything" after bouncing back to beat the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.
The Pistons suffered a heavy defeat to the New York Knicks on Friday but made it two wins from three with their 106-92 victory over the Nets after they lost their opening four games of the NBA season.
Detroit finished with six players on double figures, with Cade Cunningham leading the charge with 19 points. It was the second time this season they have had that many players score 13 points or more in a single game, after doing it just once last term.
And while their attack was impressive, they also held the Nets to just 15 points in the fourth quarter, showing a vast improvement to their defense.
Bickerstaff was impressed with how his team have grown already since the start of the season.
"The guys did a great job of bouncing back," Bickerstaff said. "The conversation around the group has been to be better than we were the other night.
"Every single night we step on the floor, we aim to improve. The guys, just from a grit standpoint, how hard they played and how they shared the ball, it was unbelievable.
"We're getting better at everything. I feel our guys have embraced the system. They're really competing on that end of the floor. Individually, everybody's taking the challenge.
"There are still small things systematically, we're going to continue to improve on things. I'm learning what guys are capable of, but guys' willingness to take the challenge has given us an opportunity to put ourselves in a position that now we have a foundation of that, and we can grow from there."
Malik Beasley, who was another to finish on double figures as he scored 18 points, including two critical 3-point shots, believes their more proactive approach to defending pushed them towards the win.
"We started the game physical," Beasley said. "Last game, New York came out and just got whatever they wanted to get to.
"We made a point today to be physical and if we get fouls called early, it is what it is. We need to be known for a grit team, the Bad Boys, that whole thing. We did that [on Sunday]."
The Pistons are in action again on Monday when they face the Los Angeles Lakers.
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