When Courtney M. Cox worked as a professor at the University from 2022 to 2023, she started writing a book at her favorite local bookstore, The Literary. On Tuesday, Cox discussed the same book, “Double Crossover: Gender, Media, and Politics in Global Basketball,” in the very building she began writing it in.
Released in 2025, “Double Crossover” explores how women and nonbinary athletes move through a sport that, according to Cox, wasn’t designed with them in mind.
Cox started the event by briefly sharing her journey to becoming an author. Before becoming an associate professor and director of graduate studies in the Department of Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies at the University of Oregon, Cox worked with the Los Angeles Sparks, ESPN and the University.
After discussing her background, Cox read an excerpt from the introduction of the book, titled “Pregame.” The book is divided into six sections, with the other five named first quarter, second quarter, third quarter, fourth quarter and overtime — similar to the division of a basketball game.
When writing each part of the book, Cox said she followed three guiding questions: How do participants within women’s basketball navigate the sports media complex in an industry not created with them in mind? How do they share that embodied information with each other? How do they practice an ethics of care while navigating the industry?
According to Cox, these questions serve as starting points for larger conversations about women’s sports in the future.
“Sometimes those conversations are so limited, and we’re talking about the same five things every time,” Cox said. “My hope is (that my book) gives a little depth, a little context to what’s happening.”
Near the end of the evening, Cox gave the audience a chance to engage in the conversation. Among the attendees was Malaika Bigirindavyi, a graduate student studying sports management, who learned about the event through her advisor.
“This talk is super timely, relevant and important at this time, especially around what’s happening in the WNBA as well as women’s sports all around,” Bigirindavyi said. “There needs to be more conversations and more publications around these topics. As (Cox) mentioned, there are so many books around male sports and understanding those in really deep, complex and nuanced ways, but it’s not seen for other genders, or non-men.”
Cox’s lively energy and bits of humor kept the audience engaged throughout the hour. Attendees nodded enthusiastically and shared laughs while listening to Cox’s advice, and followed her through deep discussions.
Attendee Lauren Sienko said the event was eye-opening about the setbacks athletes and employees in women’s sports face before they even step onto the court.
“I didn’t necessarily think so much about what’s happening off the field or how the world around the players would influence what happens on the court itself,” Sienko said. “I think this was a really fascinating talk and brought so many things that I want to think about, research and learn more about, to more fully appreciate what it’s like being a woman athlete and what it’s like being a fan of women athletes.”
In hopes of sharing the true story of the industry, Cox said she followed athletes, journalists and other professionals across the world. From Russia to France, she shadowed various athletes and lived her life just like them.
This hands-on research allowed Cox to experience firsthand the obstacles professionals have to side-step to be successful in the sports industry. Cox said she hopes that everyone interested in the sports industry keeps pushing to find their place so that they can make the industry more inclusive.
“There are so many parameters that are exclusionary within sport — whether it’s cost, whether it’s all the different ways that we are gender testing now, whether it’s about access, whether it’s about age,” Cox said. “I want to emphasize that those spaces should be there for everyone, and you have to make them.”
