On Saturday, ESPN play-by-play voice Ryan Ruocco will join Holly Rowe and Rebecca Lobo on the call of the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game. And ahead of the game, Ruocco spoke glowingly about both Rowe and Lobo, who he believes are each respectively two of the best broadcasters in the business.
Speaking about the upcoming assignment on the 06010 ESPN Communications Podcast, hosted by Alex Feuz, Ruocco explained how his relationship with both Rowe and Lobo, who he has worked with for a 13th straight year to make up the lead WNBA broadcast team at ESPN, goes far further than just their assignments together, as they have become quite close outside of their responsibilities to ESPN.
“What’s been amazing, Alex, is we really were that close instantly,” said Ruocco. “Like now we have… Well, for Rebecca and Holly even longer, but the three of us, 13 years of friendship, of traveling together, of doing big events together. But we got along and we vibed right away. You know, we’ve all been through a ton together in our lives. You know, when Rebecca and Holly first knew me, I was in my mid-20s and a bachelor in New York. Now I’m in my late 30s and a dad of two in the burbs.
“I can remember the first time they met my wife, Andrea. I brought her to All-Star actually in 2018 in Minnesota. And Holly took this picture of like Andrea had her head on my neck, around my shoulder in the car when we were driving back from dinner. Holly took this picture of us and sent it to me later from behind, because she was sitting in the road behind us just to be like, I think you got to keep her there. And so I was excited to introduce Andrea to Holly and Rebecca and to see what they thought of her. I knew they were going to love her.”
Ruocco further discussed how the trio actually work together as broadcast partners, explaining how their foundation is built on respect for the craft and to jointly amplify the story of the women in the WNBA.
“I think at the core of our relationship is respect for our work. We all know how hard each of us works, the way we prepare, and how much we care. We care about getting it right. We care about amplifying the stories of these women. We care about amplifying the moments on the court and giving them the soundtrack that they deserve. I love them to death. I think Rebecca is as good as any analyst in any sport in the country. I think Holly Rowe is the greatest storyteller in the history of sports television.
“I don’t know that people will ever fully appreciate the lengths that Holly has gone to properly promote women’s sports and tell the stories of these young women. I mean, it’s crazy the amount of aunts, uncles, parents, siblings of athletes that she has the numbers of, so she can get access to photos from their kids or whatever. And, you know, I think I benefit greatly by getting to be partners with two amazing people and amazing broadcasters.”
To Ruocco’s point, this trio has been telling the stories of WNBA players far before the boom in popularity that Caitlin Clark brought to the league, which obviously laid the groundwork for someone like Clark to go in and become a true superstar. Without their work, it’s fairly possible that Clark would have never had the kind of platform that she does currently in the WNBA to show off her talents.
Unfortunately for WNBA fans, the 2025 WNBA All-Star Weekend will not feature Clark, who will miss the festivities due to a right groin injury suffered on Tuesday.
But for WNBA fans still interested in the event, it sure sounds like Ruocco, Rowe, and Lobo will all be on their A-game over the weekend as they attempt to highlight all of the great talent the league has outside of Clark.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.