Stephanie White wins Anne Donovan Award

Photo courtesy Chris Poss/The Next

Jan. 31, 2025 – Stephanie White of the Indiana Fever has been named the 2024 winner of the PBWA’s Anne Donovan Award, which honors a WNBA coach or executive for their outstanding commitment to working with the media who cover the league.

White went above and beyond in making herself available to reporters, win or lose, and thoughtfully answered questions about both her team and the larger movement of the league as she led the Connecticut Sun to the WNBA semifinals. Upon moving to the Indiana Fever this past offseason, White continued to keep the media informed about the career changes in her life and never let anything get in the way of building and fostering that communication.

“I’m honored and thankful to receive this award,” White said. “It’s especially meaningful to me that it’s the name of the late Anne Donovan, whom I had an opportunity to play for and build a relationship with. I also want to thank each and every member of the media. I know the job can be a difficult one, and I’m appreciative of the coverage that you give our players and our league. You are an integral part of the growth and representation of our game.”

Other nominees for the Anne Donovan Award included Cheryl Reeve of the Minnesota Lynx, Christie Sides of the Indiana Fever, Sandy Brondello of the New York Liberty and Lin Dunn of the Indiana Fever. The nominations and final vote were conducted by the PBWA’s WNBA chapter, created in 2021 and chaired by Howard Megdal.

“I’ve been privileged to cover Stephanie White as a head coach with the Indiana Fever, with the Sun and now, once again, with the Fever in 2025,” Megdal said. “I always, always learn from my conversations with her, and it is the larger public who benefits from this, gaining a fuller understanding of the league, its players and the stakes for all of the WNBA’s developments. We are all better for Steph’s efforts to illuminate the world of women’s basketball.”

The PBWA announced the creation of three awards in 2024 to honor WNBA figures who go above and beyond to work with the media. We are proud to present these awards, each named after trailblazers who helped light the way:

• The Val Ackerman Award goes to the best team (or in special circumstances, league) public-relations professional, and is named after the first president of the WNBA and current head of the Big East Conference, Val Ackerman, who possesses a keen understanding of the importance of media and has worked hard to empower us to do our best work. The 2024 honoree is Bryan Flannery of the New York Liberty.
• The Tamika Catchings Award goes to the player who best fosters a spirit of cooperation with the media, and is named after the former Indiana Fever star, who never said no to a chance to promote the league. The 2024 honoree is Napheesa Collier of the Minnesota Lynx.
• The Anne Donovan Award goes to the coach (or in special circumstances, executive) who is most available and helpful to the media, and is named after the late Anne Donovan, an icon of the sport as a player, head coach and executive.

The awards are modeled after similar honors that the PBWA bestows annually on the NBA side, to the player (Magic Johnson Award), coach (Rudy Tomjanovich Award) and PR staff (Brian McIntyre Award) who consistently go above and beyond to work with the media and the public.

“We are grateful to all who help us shine a light on the incredible stories happening every day in women’s basketball,” Megdal said. “Documenting this period of time is not only vital to the growth of the game today, but will provide a historical record about the current trailblazing figures that will form the foundation for telling that history for generations to come.”

Founded in 1973, the Professional Basketball Writers Association is a nonprofit membership organization for journalists who regularly cover the NBA and the WNBA for newspapers, magazines, wire services and online outlets. At present, the PBWA has approximately 230 members, representing more than 80 outlets.