PHOENIX — "We still have our language to share with our people out there," Broadcaster, LA Williams said. "They can see the game on the radio, that's the best part."
Painting a vivid picture with her words has been nothing new to broadcast veteran LA Williams. But it's in the way she uses those words, to present a broadcast that is unlike anything else.
"I grew up knowing the Navajo language," Williams said. "So I brushed up on more terms and am out with the old and in with the new to keep up with the pace of the game."
The Suns partnered with Williams to call the games in her native language and her unique style. Arizona has one of the strongest Native American communities in North America with 22 tribes represented.
The Suns are now working with Native Broadcast Enterprise to broadcast and stream their NBA Playoff games in the Navajo language, throughout the entirety of the postseason.
An honor that Williams does not overlook, especially on the biggest stage there is within the sport.
"I want to set that stage for the future for our Navajo nation youth athletes to learn the language," Williams said. "The clarity I give out so they can understand what I'm talking about so in the future maybe they'll be broadcasting games."
Williams started her radio career back in 1992, before getting the opportunity to call her first Suns game in the playoffs a year later in 1993. As you'd expect, Williams tapped into her Navajo roots to help connect with the local Native American communities.
"I'm glad at a young age I learned it through my grandparents," Williams said. "They gave me who I am today because in reality being Navajo, Dine, I'm living 50 years ago, what my grandparents prayed for today of being that person of who I am."
Each time Native Broadcast Enterprise radio stations go on the air, LA Williams is a reminder of the Navajo culture that still lives and breathes throughout the Valley of the Sun.
"Who you are and how you identify through your ancestors, your grandparents and what you learn in the Navajo language will take you further in life," Williams said. "That'll make you who you are."
VERSIÓN EN ESPAÑOL: La cultura navajo cobra vida a través de las ondas radiales de los Phoenix Suns
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