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July 18, 2025 14 mins

Joey Graziano, Executive Vice President at Pacers Sports & Entertainment, joins Khristina to preview the highly anticipated 2025 WNBA All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis. Joey discusses the extensive planning behind the event and highlights the unique fan experiences in store, including Fever Fest—a celebration of comedy and music created in partnership with Kevin Hart and Heartbeat, featuring stars like Sydnee Colson. The conversation also explores Indiana’s deep-rooted basketball culture, innovative fan engagement strategies, and the broader vision of establishing Indianapolis as a premier destination for women's sports.

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Speaker 1 (00:01):
In Case You Missed It with Christina Williams is an
iHeart Women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports
and Entertainment. Welcome to a special edition of In Case
You missed It with Christina Williams. Here on the Iheartwomen's
Sports Network. It's our WNBA All Star Weekend preview episode.

(00:25):
And if you've ever wondered how a city gets prepared
for something like this from a fans standpoint, from the
concerts to the actual game, We're going to get a
behind the scenes look at all things All Star Weekend
in the twenty twenty five right here on today's show.
Because I wanted to hear directly from someone who is

(00:47):
helping to build and shape the experience on the ground.
So joining me today is Joey Graciano. He is the
executive vice president at Pacers Sports Interdament you to breakdown
how Indy is prepping for WNBA All Star Weekend. Welcome
to the show, Joey.

Speaker 2 (01:07):
Thank you for having me. We could not be more
excited about the opportunity to bring Fever fans and WNBA
fans from around the country and the world to what
we believe is the best major hosting city in the
entire country.

Speaker 1 (01:21):
Yeah, and as you said, basketball is buzzing right now
in Indianapolis, from the Pacers reaching the finals to all
of the excitement around Caitlin Clark and Indiana Fever looking
to contend for WNBA Championship. What energy, What has the
energy been like in Indye so far as we head
into All Star weekends.

Speaker 2 (01:42):
Well, I mean, I think the line that came out
during the Pacers run was in forty nine other states
is just basketball, But this is Indiana. It certainly felt
like that every single day, and in particular, I think
what's so exciting about this All Star is this is
built for our Fever fans and for our w fans,
and there's actually not as much crossover at times as

(02:03):
you would think. What's so exciting about the Fever is
We've got thirty percent of our arena for every single
home game coming from outside the state of Indiana. People
traveled from all fifty states, more than forty seven country
separate countries. We say, on the Fever side, every game
is a home game, no matter where this team goes.
Our Pacers affectionately refer to them as the Beatles. They're

(02:25):
true rock stars, and we want to be able to
bring that type of energy, and this All Star is
built for these fans and this is their moment and
certainly our pacer stands last year had a similar moment
when we hosted NBA All Star and I was actually
working at the WNBA and NBA League offices at that point.

Speaker 1 (02:44):
So you mentioned how Indiana is the heart of basketball.
How have you been able to lean into that identity
as you prepare to host some of the biggest superstars
of the WNBA this weekend.

Speaker 2 (02:55):
I think what's so exciting about this moment is we
want to meet our fans exactly where they are and
to be able to do that, you're gonna find the
best basketball players in the world playing the game between
Friday and Saturday.

Speaker 3 (03:07):
But then we wanted to add more and whether.

Speaker 2 (03:09):
It's things like WNBA Live and the Fannerfen or we
just announced our inaugural fever Fest, which is in partnership
with Kevin Hart and Heartbeat. They serve as the culture
curators for the Indiana Fever and the Indiana Pacers, and
this is our inaugural opportunity to be able to put
a stamp on that partnership and deliver something that we
think is going to become the leading comedy and music

(03:30):
festival in the country. We're excited about its growth and trajectory,
and this is the first step to do that, and
that's the kind of innovation that we're hoping to push.
You're gonna recognize you are in a full Indiana Fever
and WNBA takeover from the minute that you get off
a plane. I was just the airport this morning. You
will be overwhelmed until certainly every time you walk downtown.

(03:53):
This is gonna be one of the best events to be.

Speaker 3 (03:56):
Part of Fever Fest.

Speaker 1 (03:57):
This is the first ever event like that for All
Star Weekend in the WNBA. Lots of exciting talent on
the lineup, including your own Sidney Colson, who is going
to be open in Fever Pest with the comedy special.
Let me tell you, Joey, I'm so excited for sid
because I think two years ago I twiget we need
to have her headline her own comedy special at All

(04:17):
Star Weekend. And the fact that you all made this happen,
I know fans could appreciate that everywhere. When it came
to booking the talent and curating this unique lineup of
music and comedy.

Speaker 3 (04:28):
What did you think about when you were able.

Speaker 1 (04:31):
To get all of this talent booked.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
I think our fans they're interested in when our players
are interested in, and our players they're fashion designers, they're entrepreneurs,
they're social justice advocates, they're artists. And we actually have
a comedian and that's an incredible feat. I mean to
think this is the first time an athlete will ever
perform a comedy set during an All Star weekend. Dame

(04:53):
Lillard a number of years ago in two thousand perform
with Lil Wayne and that was an incredible feat. But
now to be to have our very own Sydney be
able to perform a set, I mean, this is just
remarkable talent. It's so exciting to be able to showcase
the dynasism of these women and these athletes. And this
is just the latest and greatest example. And so when
you think about these moments, though, I happen to think

(05:15):
what fans are looking for. They're looking for moments that
aren't going to happen again. They want to be part
of that one of one, that high intensity moment. And
so when we thought about putting together a lineup the
red thread for all of these comedians and artists names
like Kid Learoy and g Z and Bea, and then
comedians like Leslie Jones from SNL and Cedric the Entertainer

(05:38):
and Dion Cole. What connects all of them is their
WNBA fandom. And so what's so exciting about this lineup
is that it will never happen again. We will never
bring this type of talent together to perform in one stage.
When there will be future fever Fest, it will be
different talent that meets that day and moment. But this
moment is through the prism and fandom of the wn

(06:00):
and the Indiana Fever. And that's what's exciting about this
fever Fest. And I think what makes me excited about
going to get to see it is I recognize them
before I walk in. I recognize I'm going to see
something that I may never see again.

Speaker 1 (06:12):
I absolutely love that creating once in a lifetime moment.
Another thing that I noticed about what you all are
creating for All Star Weekend is that the first two
hundred and fifty tickets are going to be twenty five dollars. Clearly,
accessibility was a priority for paces Sports and entertainment. Why
was that so important?

Speaker 2 (06:31):
I think it's because where the w is and where
the Indiana fe we sell everything out and we knew
we were going to sell out our game on Friday,
the skills competition on Friday, excuse me, and then the
game on Saturday. And so one of the things that
we focused on was making sure this was a fan
first event. And so in order to be able to
do that, you need to come together and create a
multitude of opportunities for fans to be able to still

(06:53):
experience in that. And so when they come downtown, it
will be a full downtown takeover with free events, community events,
with a dribble for kids to be able to dribble
throughout downtown. We've created all of these omen through. Feverfest
is one of those where you're going to feel the
energy of gamebridge Field House, and one of the ways
we do that is the official watch party of the

(07:14):
game will be at Feverfest. So not only will fans
be able to see that incredible comedy and music lineup
we started to talk about, but they're also going to
be able to experience that official watch party and be
able to stay through the game. Hosted by DJ d
Ice and so the idea that we are giving fans
an opportunity you may not be able to get into
the game on Saturday, that's similar energy to be able

(07:36):
to showcase their fandom.

Speaker 3 (07:38):
I think that's really important.

Speaker 1 (07:39):
Yeah, and I love how you're bringing community together through
All Star weekend and through basketball. When you think about
the long term goals of what PACER Sports and Entertainment
is looking to create, especially with this basketball community, is
it to put Indianapolis in a position to be the
sports cultural destination in the entire country.

Speaker 3 (08:00):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (08:01):
I think our vision is we've certainly not been shy
to say we believe we can become the epicenter of
women's sports.

Speaker 3 (08:08):
We're excited about that.

Speaker 2 (08:09):
We're excited that other cities are energized by similar missions
because it means it's going to bring the best out
of all of us, require that we innovate. And when
we think about what the incredible dynamics going on in Indianapolis,
We've got a convention business that's exploding with new visitors.
We've got two universities in Indiana, University Indianapolis and Purdue,
both of which are going to be bringing tens of

(08:30):
thousands of new college students downtown, We've got some of
the fastest growing suburbs in the entire Midwest.

Speaker 3 (08:37):
This is a city that has a lot to be.

Speaker 2 (08:39):
Really excited about, and certainly our basketball teams are a
part of that. There's a real source of pride. Nothing
brings people together like sports. But we have a vision.
We want to be holistic entertainment providers, and to do that,
we have to meet their fans across their interest and
so we'll always be a basketball company first and foremost
at our core, but we want to be an end

(09:00):
and that means we're going to continue to think about
all of the things and passion of our fans and
try to like them up across a number of different dynamics.

Speaker 1 (09:19):
Caitlin Clark will headline this year's w NBA All Star
Game as a team captain, and she returns for her
second year as an All Star. But the Fever, you
guys have three All Stars in this year's game. What
does that say about the team and about the culture
you guys are creating with the Indiana Fever.

Speaker 2 (09:39):
I think it starts with the incredible job that our
front office did with Kelly Crosscoff and Amber Cox and
putting together a team that we all feel a tremendous
amount of excitement and pride. We certainly think our best
days are ahead with this young core of incredible talent.
I think it's a testament to these athletes who dedicate
so much time and effort, you know, Kels playing across

(10:02):
the world. You you know, with Aliyah and the off
season that she put in, and then obviously seeing the
way that Caitlyn attacked her off season wanted to get
better each and every day. I think these athletes are
just they're They're so inspiring in the way in which
they approach their craft, and I think for a team,
you have to feel a tremendous amount of pride and

(10:23):
optimism about how the future of your of your fandom
is going to be rewarded, hopefully someday with more wins
and hopefully potentially championships in our future.

Speaker 1 (10:34):
And one of the things that I admire personally about
how you all run the organization is that in order
to appreciate how far you've come, you definitely pay homage
to those that came for you. In the hiring of
someone like Stephanie White and how you guys keep legends
like Tamika Katson's OVERHELMD. Why is it important to, you know,
just honor those who have helped build the franchise.

Speaker 2 (10:57):
I think is they're the foundations. You can't be author
if if your foundations and your pillars are not building
the next generation. And so we don't have this generation
without names like you referenced Stephanie whid or Tamika one
of the things I'm most excited, and Tamika is one
of the most humble now entrepreneurs, business leaders, community leaders

(11:18):
I've ever met. Certainly forget I mean, her basketball attributes
need no recognition, and she's a goat. But what I'm
excited is to see We're gonna have a mural unveiled
that lives about a block away from from from my house,
so I know I'm going to get to see it
every day on my walk to work. And you want
to talk about being inspired, this is somebody who's never

(11:41):
given up on this city, who continues to give way
more than she's ever taken. And I think that's the
kind of people you want to surround yourself with. She
is a role model on every single level. And to
see that something like All Star Weekend is also going
to reward her remind the world a star we have

(12:02):
on every level. I mean, that's so, you know, I'm
so incredibly grateful for this platform and the opportunity to
be able to do that.

Speaker 1 (12:09):
All Right, Joey, last question before we let you get
out of here. What are you excited personally about hosting
All Star in Indianapolis.

Speaker 2 (12:19):
Every game that we play in Indianapolis is like this
major event. We've got thirty percent of our fans coming
from outside the state of Indiana. What I will never
get over is these fans show up four five hours
sometimes in advance of tip to be in the building,
to be around the energy.

Speaker 3 (12:38):
They really like each other, and.

Speaker 2 (12:40):
They're coming from around the country and the world. And
so what I'm so excited is for the rest of
the league to actually see what we get to see
every single every single day, which is these Fever fans
are just incredible people, and they've got such diverse backgrounds.
They really sacrifice for this team. They're invested in the journey,

(13:01):
and I can't wait to be there hours in advance
of tip on Friday and Saturday, watch the hotel rooms
and people pouring out and see some of those faces
and recognize this is their moment and now part of
the world is even going to continue to get to
see who they are. So that's the little moments. And
we've got fans, you know, from three and five years

(13:22):
old coming to you know, eighty and ninety year old
men and women. It's truly a remarkable place to be
around every single game, and.

Speaker 1 (13:31):
I'm certainly looking forward to being in Indie this week
to check out everything from Feverfest to the murals and
all the different activations throughout the community. I want to
thank you again, Joey for joining us on In Case
you missed It with Christina Williams here on Iheartwoman's Sports Network.
Such a pleasure of chatting with you about all things
all Star.

Speaker 3 (13:50):
You're the very best, Christina.

Speaker 2 (13:51):
We're all grateful, I mean, it's an incredible job you do,
and excited to be a part of your platform.

Speaker 1 (13:58):
In Case you missed It with Christina Williams is an
iHeart Women's sports production in partnership with Deep Blue Sports
and Entertainment. You can find us on the iHeartRadio app,
Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Advertise With Us

Host

Khristina Williams

Khristina Williams

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