N.Y. Times Profiles New NBPA Exec Dir Michele Roberts

Recently elected NBPA Exec Dir Michele Roberts, the first woman to lead a major North American sports union, is profiled in today's N.Y. Times. She "was a long shot when she was one of about 300 candidates last fall," but she "emerged from a monthslong vetting process as the person the players saw as best equipped to represent them at a crucial moment." Roberts begins the job next month and "plans to essentially upend the union, which she dismissed as 'a mom-and-pop shop' under her predecessor," Billy Hunter. Her first priority will be to "create a management staff -- potentially doubling the size of the current union staff -- to improve oversight and bring more expertise to the organization" (N.Y. TIMES, 8/17).