{"id":811235,"date":"2026-08-12T14:56:19","date_gmt":"2026-08-12T14:56:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/811235\/"},"modified":"2026-08-12T14:56:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-12T14:56:19","slug":"mychal-the-librarian-threets-embraces-his-passions-for-books-and-womens-basketball-to-promote-both","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/811235\/","title":{"rendered":"Mychal ‘the Librarian’ Threets embraces his passions for books and women’s basketball to promote both"},"content":{"rendered":"

While warming up for a home game with the Las Vegas Aces<\/a> in 2024, forward Alysha Clark<\/a> couldn\u2019t believe who was sitting courtside.<\/p>\n

\u201cI stopped and I was like, \u2018Oh my God, it\u2019s Mychal,\u2019\u201d said Clark, now a member of the Dallas Wings<\/a>. \u201cThat\u2019s freaking Mychal the Librarian! I completely fangirled and ran over after the game to say hello and just tell him what an inspiration he\u2019s been to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mychal Threets<\/a>, more commonly known as \u201cMychal the Librarian,\u201d gained a massive following on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic by sharing videos on mental health, literacy, and his life as a librarian in California.<\/p>\n

\"Then\u201cBeing able to see him [Threets] supporting us, I\u2019m still just mind blown,\u201d said Alysha Clark (left), shown with Threets in 2025.<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Mychal Threets<\/p>\n

Threets, 36, is also a fervent follower of women\u2019s basketball, a fandom that began in childhood. He incorporates his passion into his daily work, whether by celebrating books by women athletes or recommending women\u2019s sports titles from his library days.<\/p>\n

Though librarians and female athletes operate in different arenas, both share a goal to inspire and empower the next generation \u2014 one of many ways Threets connects his passions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always loved women\u2019s sports as much as I love libraries, as much as I love literacy and mental health,\u201d said Threets, who is now host<\/a> of the children\u2019s show Reading Rainbow<\/a>. \u201cWomen\u2019s sports are very important to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"MychalMychal Threets (left) said he and his siblings inherited their love for women\u2019s basketball from their mother, Tessa Banuelos-Threets (right). <\/p>\n

Courtesy of Mychal Threets<\/p>\n

Threets\u2019 earliest basketball memories stem from moments with his mother, Tessa Banuelos-Threets, a physical education teacher, coach, and athletic director at Buckingham Collegiate Charter Academy in Vacaville, California.<\/p>\n

Banuelos-Threets, who will soon enter her 17th season coaching the Buckingham women\u2019s varsity basketball team, passed her love of women\u2019s basketball<\/a> to Threets and his siblings. Threets recalled watching game replays with his mother \u2014 a big UConn fan \u2014 and being exposed to the Huskies\u2019 storied championship dynasties.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe would stick a VHS tape in the machine, hit record, and go to church or do whatever we were going to do, and then it was like, \u2018All right, UConn is on. Everybody, gather round,\u2019 \u201d Banuelos-Threets said. \u201cMychal was probably like 8 or 9, so it goes way back.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"Las<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\tLas Vegas Aces forward A’ja Wilson puts mother’s lessons into book ‘Dear Black Girls: How to Be True to You’ \u2013 Andscape\t\t\t\tRead now
\n\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Threets also credits his mother with introducing him to libraries as a child. At the time, books about women\u2019s basketball, particularly ones authored by women\u2019s basketball figures, were hard to find.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere definitely weren\u2019t as many as there are now,\u201d Threets said. \u201cI love that [today] A\u2019ja Wilson is writing books. I love that Elena Delle Donne has a series for kids<\/a>. \u2026 I think I found some biographies on players like Lisa Leslie and Sheryl Swoopes when I was a kid, but not too many.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think there was as much of an intersection [between women\u2019s sports and books about them]. I think part of the intersection as a kid was just wishing there were more books about women\u2019s basketball and women\u2019s sports in general.\u201d<\/p>\n

The landscape for books authored by female athletes is changing. Recent additions include Dear Black Girls: How to Be True to You, a memoir Wilson published in 2024, and Paw Paw\u2019s Playlist<\/a>, a new children\u2019s book Clark co-authored that helps children navigate grief.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"A'ja<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\tA’ja Wilson encourages and inspires students at Disney Dreamers Academy \u2013 Andscape\t\t\t\tRead now
\n\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Threets uses his platform to promote stories told by WNBA players. In 2025, he shared on social media<\/a> his appreciation for Wilson\u2019s memoir and urged his followers to read it. Last month, Threets made a post celebrating<\/a> Clark\u2019s new book as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor him to support the book the way that he has, has been so kind and just beautiful,\u201d Clark said. \u201cI\u2019m just honored that I got to share in my author journey with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Threets said that books authored by athletes reach young readers in a way other authors can\u2019t.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you have these superstars creating more and more stories for these kids to see and to know that anything is possible \u2014 to know that, yes, these are heroes, but they\u2019re also human beings as well \u2014 it shows kids that they can be anything, that they can attain what their heroes have,\u201d Threets said.<\/p>\n

\"MychalThreets has visited multiple WNBA arenas, but he has become a stalwart at Golden State Valkyries games in his local Bay Area. Above: Threets (left) with then-Indiana Fever guard Aerial Powers in 2025. Below: Threets (left) and Valkyries center Nadia Fingall. <\/p>\n

Courtesy of Mychal Threets<\/p>\n

\"Mychal<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Mychal Threets<\/p>\n

Threets would like to see more women\u2019s sports biographies, as well as books for early readers \u2014 and he wants to help write them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would love to be a part of writing some sort of anthology just about the different players and the different things geared towards adults and kids and teens. But I would definitely love to have them write it in their own words and to be the storytellers of their lives or their stories,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s something that a lot of publishers are open to. I get to talk to different publishers and they\u2019re big fans of women\u2019s basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Threets has popped up at WNBA arenas around the country, attending games in Atlanta, Las Vegas and Phoenix. Because the Golden State Valkyries<\/a> play in his local Bay Area, he has become a fixture at their home games.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"For<\/p>\n

\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\tFor Golden State Valkyries’ Veronica Burton, finding her peace is the key to making progress on the court \u2013 Andscape\t\t\t\tRead now
\n\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cSecretly, I\u2019m trying to go to all these different arenas,\u201d said Threets, who also attended the 2025 women\u2019s Final Four in Tampa, Florida, where he watched UConn win a national title.<\/p>\n

Clark likened Threets to a \u201ccourtside king.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI love seeing good people celebrated, and he\u2019s such a good human being,\u201d Clark said. \u201cBeing able to see him supporting us, I\u2019m still just mind-blown. It\u2019s been really cool.\u201d<\/p>\n

Threets praised WNBA players for historically taking extra steps to interact with their communities, including promoting literacy.<\/p>\n

\"MychalThreets (left) said he loves that there are so many readers in the WNBA, including Nneka Ogwumike (right).<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Mychal Threets<\/p>\n

\u201cI love that there\u2019s so many readers in the WNBA. I meet different players who talk about libraries, who talk about literacy,\u201d Threets said. \u201cI got to talk to [Los Angeles Sparks forward] Nneka Ogwumike about libraries and different things. It\u2019s just really cool to see how much women\u2019s basketball players care so much about reading, how much they care about the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey show up in schools. They go to libraries and they do story time. I remember seeing Jonquel Jones doing a story time<\/a> at the library.\u201d<\/p>\n

Threets emphasized how female athletes empower classroom learning, showing an unrecognized link between women\u2019s sports and educators like him. <\/p>\n

\"MychalThreets (left) with Atlanta Dream co-owner Renee Montgomery.<\/p>\n

Courtesy of Mychal Threets<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope they realize that libraries and schools are stepping up for them just as much. [Libraries and schools] love that there are those examples out there that they can tell their [students], \u2018Hey, did you see the women\u2019s basketball game?\u2019\u201d Threets said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s what it is, just the opportunities for community, the opportunity for care, the opportunity to talk about things that matter on a giant level and on a small level. I think what they do is they care about children all over the world, and I think that\u2019s what librarians like me and educators do as well. We\u2019re all just in it just to be able to support one another, be it on a basketball court or in the library.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sean Hurd is a senior writer for Andscape who primarily covers women\u2019s basketball. His athletic peak came at the age of 10 when he was named camper of the week at a Josh Childress basketball camp.<\/p>\n

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