Los Angeles Sparks star Cameron Brink is great on the microphone. That’s indisputable to anyone who listens to her highly entertaining podcast, Straight to Cam. Even great speakers sometimes flop, though, especially when there are thousands of people in the audience hanging on every word.

Brink records her podcast with Sydel Curry-Lee, an occasional guest, and, I imagine, a producer or two in attendance. No live studio audience, though, which is maybe why she had a tougher time when she recently spoke at the GirlsBuild ’25 National Summit as part of the “Girls (Re)Build Resilience, Health & Wellness” panel.

Brink admitted to being nervous about getting up in front of 6,000 expectant girls, especially after she said she was basically given a microphone and shoved onstage.

Because she was nervous, she didn’t prepare much in advance. That anxious energy was then exacerbated by confusion over where to sit when fellow WNBA star Kelsey Plum arrived a few minutes late. Maybe that’s why Brink feels like she botched the entire thing, especially when she tried to give an inspirational RuPaul quote at the end.

“They asked, ‘If you could leave the girls with one piece of advice, what would you say?’ And so, of course, I talk about the importance of loving yourself, which is cliche, but out of nowhere, Mr. RuPaul pops into my head, and I try to quote Ru, and I said, ‘If you don’t love yourself… how do you, what is it?’”

Brink couldn’t remember the exact quote (“If you don’t love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love someone else?”), and she didn’t get any help from anyone else on stage either. “I was like, oh my gosh, I want to crawl behind the stage. Like, ughhh, I was kicking myself, and it was kind of a s***show.”

Despite the awkward dismount, Cameron Brink’s heart is in the right place

Brink’s verbal stumble is pretty hilarious in hindsight, kind of in a George W. Bush “Fool me once… shame on… shame on you. Fool me, you can’t get fooled again” kind of way. Although she probably wished she had been a bit smoother with her words, the story still shows that it’s the thought that counts, as she was happy and willing to give her time to be a role model to the next generation.

“I always feel so full and happy after doing events like that and giving back,” she said, as well she should. The event, which was hosted by Russell Westbrook’s wife Nina, was put on by the L.A. Promise Fund, which is a nonprofit organization “dedicated to providing students with academic and enrichment opportunities that spark passion, empower leadership, and prepare them for their chosen college and career paths.”

The girls in attendance were surely inspired by Brink, Plum and everyone else who spoke at the event, and they got the added benefit of seeing that even famous basketball stars are just like the rest of us when it comes to speaking in front of a crowded room.