A’ja Wilson joins SEC Network as basketball analyst

COLUMBIA, SC - SEPTEMBER 3: A'ja Wilson of the 2018 USA Basketball Women's National Team talks to the media after training camp at the University of South Carolina on September 3, 2018 in Columbia, South Carolina. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Travis Bell/NBAE via Getty Images)
COLUMBIA, SC - SEPTEMBER 3: A'ja Wilson of the 2018 USA Basketball Women's National Team talks to the media after training camp at the University of South Carolina on September 3, 2018 in Columbia, South Carolina. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Travis Bell/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

You’ve seen her on your television plenty.

Perhaps suited up in the maroon and black, tearing it up on the hardwood as a rookie in the WNBA, winning a gold medal at the FIBA World Cup or even in the ESPN studio from time-to-time. But A’ja Wilson will also be on the call for SEC Network full-time this winter as a basketball analyst, contributing to SEC Now and calling a handful of SEC games on ESPN2 and ESPNU.

“I’m so excited to be back in the best league, the SEC,” Wilson told High Post Hoops via email. “I wasn’t expecting to actually be in studio, but this is something that I wanted to do once my playing career is over. So being [on TV] now really means a lot.”

On Thursday, Jan. 17, SEC Now will kick off its weekly, wall-to-wall coverage of Thursday night women’s basketball doubleheaders. You can find Wilson alongside ESPN analyst Steffi Sorenson and SEC Network anchor Alyssa Lang for the first two weeks of Thursday night pregame coverage. In March, she will join the SEC Network team in the studio for coverage of the 2019 SEC conference tournament.

More from SEC

If her prowess on the basketball court is any indication of her talent on the mic, we’re all in for a treat. And, might I add, her Twitter game can hang with the best of them. Even more hot takes, like the one below, coming our way this winter.

There’s something extremely cool about athletes like Wilson who not only aren’t afraid to use their voice and platform to make the world a little bit better, but also be given additional platforms so their voice can be heard a little louder, and stretch a little bit further.

Not that she has to prove herself to anyone by any stretch of the imagination. It’s just that opportunities like this one shouldn’t be shrugged off like it’s not a big deal—because it’s a really big deal. When she crushes it as an analyst and continues to crush it in the WNBA, people will notice. And people will start talking even more.

Do your thing, A’ja. We’re rooting for you.