“We’ve Come a Long Way”

From Los Angeles to Chicago. Maine to Memphis. San Francisco to Seattle.

In September, mental wellness clinicians from across the league came together for something bigger than the game — the first in-person Mind Health Summit since the pandemic.

Held at the NBA offices in New Jersey, the summit was more than a meeting. It was a space to exchange ideas, share best practices, and build connections that strengthen player wellness across leagues.

“I feel energized,” Mind Health Director Dr. Kensa Gunter said after the final day. “We've come a long way, but there's certainly work that we can still do. And I think the people in this room and having the opportunity to work with them, makes the task of doing that work feel easier, manageable.

“And it also feels just really exciting when you're working with a group of people who, at their core, care before anything else. They care about people and they care about preserving folks’ dignity and their humanity. And when you can have that as a starting place, I feel like the sky's pretty much the limit.”