- WNBA superstar and 2022 champion Kelsey Plum is a massive fan of now-retired NFL legend Tom Brady.
- The Las Vegas Aces guard barked at the GOAT when he sat courtside at her game last summer.
Kelsey Plum was a well-documented Tom Brady fan during his NFL playing days.
And while she told Insider she'll miss watching the greatest quarterback in NFL history compete, Plum says she'll always be a fan — even now that the seven-time Super Bowl champion has retired "for good" this time.
"He just came out and was very straightforward that he was done," Plum said of Brady's decision to step away from the gridiron. "For me as a player, I'm obviously gonna miss him, but I really just appreciate the legacy he's left."
Brady has set the benchmark in virtually every category relevant to quarterbacks. He has the most career passing yards, completions, touchdown passes, and wins. He's led the most fourth-quarter comebacks and game-winning drives.
And, of course, he's appeared in and won the most Super Bowls.
But the Las Vegas Aces guard is less enamored by Brady's playing ability than his status as "an amazing human being" off the field.
"You can't say enough about how he treats people," Plum said. "To be honest, that to me is even more impressive than the Super Bowls — to continue to have a sense of grounding and just care about people."
The 2023 WNBA All-Star knows that first-hand. She met Brady last summer when he sat courtside at Las Vegas' Michelob Ultra Arena for an Aces-Sun game. Though she intended to keep her composure, she instead "went right up to him. I dapped him up, gave him a big hug, and I was like, 'Man, you're a dog, I love you.'"
Then she barked like a dog.
Her Las Vegas teammates, including two-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson, roasted the sharpshooter for her bizarre attempt at bonding with one of the most famous athletes on the planet. But in the end, Plum got the last laugh.
A month after their first interaction, Brady sent a surprise package to the 2022 WNBA All-Star Game MVP house. She posted a video of herself opening the box, which included Brady's signed jersey and other merchandise from the then-Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback.
Brady later reshared the video to his three million followers on Twitter. Plum, meanwhile, said at the time that she'd send him her WNBA jersey in return along with a note "saying that he's amazing."
It's unclear whether Plum followed through on that promise. But now that Brady has more time on his hands, she may just have an opportunity to offer him a jersey in-person at an upcoming Aces game.
After all, he doesn't start his lucrative, highly anticipated broadcasting gig until the 2024 NFL season.
"Listen, I'm really happy for him," Plum said. "And best of luck in his $3300 million bazillion announcing career."