Lisa Borders helped bring the WNBA to Atlanta and build a legacy beyond the court

The Atlanta Dream is celebrating 18 years, and one of the women credited with bringing the dream to the city has also helped women find their place in the spotlight.

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Channel 2’s Karyn Greer sat down exclusively with former Atlanta City Council President and WNBA President Lisa Borders to talk about the team and her family’s civil rights legacy.

Borders served as the 4th WNBA president a decade ago and she told Greer she is so proud to still be part of the Dream’s support system. In fact, she calls all the women in the league her daughters.

For Borders, the Atlanta Dream is more than a team to cheer for, its a team she helped bring to life.

“I didn’t do it alone, I envisioned it, and I reached out to several friends,” she said. “We called ourselves literally the Circle of Friends.”

As Atlanta City Council President, Borders helped bring the WNBA to the city for the Dream’s first season in 2008.

She later became president of the entire league.

Her commitment to expanding opportunity has a deep Atlanta root: her grandfather the Reverend William Holmes Borders was a civil rights leader and longtime pastor at Wheat Street Baptist.

Holmes Borders, was a civil rights leader and longtime pastor at Wheat Street Baptist Church.

Borders said supporting women’s basketball is also about creating opportunities for women to compete professionally and have their talents recognized. She pointed to the WNBA’s requirement that players complete four years of academics after high school before being drafted.

She also weighed in on the Atlanta Dream’s scheduling controversy, saying the focus should not be on assigning blame.

“People are worried about blame. That’s not important at this point,” Borders said. “This franchise in 18 years has some of the strongest talent and some of the strongest coaching it has ever had.”

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