Former Atlanta City Council President and Vice Mayor Lisa Borders has been appointed president of the WNBA, it was announced today by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.
Borders, who served most recently as Chair of The Coca-Cola Foundation and Vice President, Global Community Affairs at The Coca-Cola Company, will lead the women’s basketball league, which tips off its 20th season on May 14. She will join the WNBA on March 21.
Borders was instrumental in bringing the WNBA to Atlanta in 2008 and the Atlanta Dream has since become a mainstay of the Atlanta sports scene.
“As a proven executive with a passion for the WNBA and the game of basketball, Lisa is the right leader at a pivotal time in the league’s history,” Silver said in a statement. “She will be responsible for spearheading our efforts to strengthen the WNBA and accelerate its growth.”
“The WNBA has reached a significant milestone, and I feel privileged to be joining the league at such an exciting time,” Borders said in a statement. “I have always been a staunch supporter of this league and its tremendous athletes. I am impressed by their talent and inspired by their passion. The athleticism of the game and the sportsmanship exhibited between teams offers clear evidence of our ability to grow women’s basketball.”
Borders is also known locally as former president of the Grady Health Foundation, the fundraising arm of Grady Health System, and she also served as senior vice president of marketing and external affairs with Cousins Properties.
