Penny Toler, former CSULB basketball star, plays with heart

At a time when the attitude of most professional athletes is best characterized by the phrase "show me the money," Penny Toler is a rare breed.

In a time when athletes fresh out of high school defiantly hold out to play for the specific team they desire in the city they choose, Penny Toler just got back from playing in Israel.

Toler is a professional basketball player who has made incredible sacrifices to earn a living doing what she loves. Over the past eight years Toler has played five seasons in Italy, two seasons in Greece, and a season in Israel. But it seems things are finally going to start getting easier.

This June, the WNBA begins its inaugural season, showcasing the talents of the top female players in the world. After spending eight years playing overseas, Toler is ecstatic for the opportunity to come home and show Americans what the women's game is all about.

This is an opportunity for us to finally say, "hey, we can play too," Toler said. "People are going to realize that the women's game is good for America and definitely good for women in general."

Penny Toler's confidence is evidenced by her words. It's also evidenced by her game. During her five years in Italy, Toller won one scoring title, two assist titles, and was MVP of the Italian league's all-star game.

This coming off of three years at Cal State Long Beach, where she was twice a Kodak All-American and twice named Big West Co-Player of the Year.

Toler is CSULB's career leader in assists (513) and free throw percentage (.795). These achievements are even more impressive, considering the fact that Toler stands only 5-8 in a sport dominated by six-foot women. She credits her success to intelligence.

"The first thing you need to compete, no matter how big you are is intelligence," Toler said. "That's what makes the difference for me. Some people may be taller, others smaller, but the bottom line is who can out think who."

Toler learned how to play smart growing up in Washington DC. As a child, her first exposure to basketball was through her three brothers. With both parents away at work, Toler would spend the afternoons as the fourth player in many a game of two-on-two.

"When I was growing up, I really didn't watch much basketball on television," Toler said. "I watched my brothers play and I learned about the game through them. They were my idols."

What Toler learned from her brothers about playing with her head, she learned about playing with her heart during her three years at CSULB.

"Not one experience I've had since being there has measured up to the experience I had at Long Beach, because it was like a family," Toler said.

In 1996, Toler was inducted into the CSULB Athletic Hall of Fame. In her acceptance speech, she recalled the importance of the relationships she established while at school.

"Nobody at the university was ever too busy if I needed help of any kind," Toler said. "One summer when I didn't go back home, our equipment manger let me stay with her and she even helped me get my driver's license."

According to Toler, the idea of playing professionally was never her motivation. She was too busy enjoying herself just playing the game. Not to mention, it wasn't until her senior year in college that the European women's basketball scene started booming. Soon after, her phone was ringing off the hook with calls from different European teams.

"I never really looked at it in terms of if the market would be open for me," said Toler. "I never looked toward the future because I was just enjoying doing what I was doing. When it happened I was just as shocked as anyone else."

The truth is, it would be hard to find anybody close to Toler who would be shocked at her turning pro. She has become the type of player whose skills are matched only by her knowledge of the game itself.

"I'm from the city, and in the city, you're either a good ball handler or you have a good shot. I happen to be blessed with both," Toler said. "Still, I'm successful because I have the ability to think and be a student of the game."

It's this knowledge of the game that Toler feels is what will make the women's game so appealing here in the states.

Toler compares the women's' game to college, in that both require a true knowledge of basketball fundamentals in order to be successful.

"In college there's more thinking. In the pros you have think too but you can get by with just being very athletic because of the showmanship involved," Toler said.

"In college you have to understand strategy and play more as a team. This is exactly what the women's game is going to give to its fans."

One can only assume the increased popularity of the women's game will also result in higher paying contracts for players like Toler.

As attractive as this notion may be, Toler refuses to get worked up about it. "When I first got paid overseas, I thought it was a joke. I was getting paid good money to do what I loved," Toler said. "Money or not, I'd be playing this game anyway."