Sheryl Swoopes: I'm a Title IX baby—I made guys respect me as a baller

It's crazy to think that we are celebrating 50 years of Title IX and I am happy to say that I am a product of Title IX. I was born in 1971, a year before Title IX was signed into law but I still consider myself a Title IX baby. There are moments when I look back on my life and career and couldn't imagine life as a female athlete without this law.

Hurt? Crying? There's no crying in basketball! I could never get enough of being on the court. Not only did basketball teach me about competition and how to deal with different personalities, it taught me self confidence and how to trust in myself and believe in myself at a very early age. Outside of school and homework, my life revolved around basketball. During the school year, on top of practice, I spent three or four hours a day during the week and five hours a day on the weekend perfecting the craft. During the summer months I really dedicated myself to the sport. That meant spending 25 to 30 hours on basketball each week. I knew from a very young age that God had blessed me with a special talent and that it was up to me to perfect it.

Looking back, we weren't thinking about the impact Title IX was having on all women's sports during this time, because it was never a discussion.I also didn't get the opportunity to watch very many women play, because women's basketball simply wasn't promoted or marketed very much. I had heard stories about how amazing Cheryl Miller was so I tried to learn more about her game.

I have been so blessed to have had such an amazing and successful life and career. From representing my country and winning three Olympic gold medals to winning the first four WNBA Championships with the Houston Comets, I couldn't have written it any better.The best part of all of this is that I was able to give birth to my son and have him around so many strong, smart, talented, tough women. Because of that, he understands just how incredible women are and respects us for who we are.

Mf'n Swoopes was the truth!

Women's basketball will really be elevated once more and more trans women (also known as men) start playing.

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