You know how influential a person is if they make NBA headlines without even tussling on the court. For the Nuggets, that person is Altitude TV’s Katy Winge. Her rise to ascendancy has to be studied. In 2019, she became the network’s first female analyst and has earned praise for her in-depth basketball coverage and analysis. And now, she’s one of the most respected figures in Denver basketball.

Katy, an advocate for women in sports media, is a role model for women aspiring to succeed in a male-dominated industry. To celebrate her inclusion in the mainstream media, we look at her personal life, including her transition from college basketball to being a respected sports analyst.

Who is Katy Winge?

A 5’11 former guard/forward, Katy Winge was born on 14th November, 1992 in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. A self-described “tomboy from Minnesota,” Winge prioritizes family bonds, often sharing adventures with siblings Chris and Abby on social media. She’s been credited with increasing female viewership by 18% since 2020, which is extraordinary for her values on life.

Unfortunately, she keeps her personal details to herself. If anything, she prides herself on that. What matters is that she is revolutionizing the journalism industry by storm. But at least we got her educational background to go through, right?

What is Katy Winge’s College and Athletic Background?

Winge’s basketball journey began in Minnetonka, Minnesota, where she attended Minnetonka Senior High School and became a McDonald’s All-American nominee and Minnesota Miss Basketball finalist. She was brimming with talent from the get-go. And she took that into the collegiate scene—earning a scholarship at Illinois State and playing for the Redbirds from 2011-2015.

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She balanced athletics with academics, double-majoring in Broadcast Journalism and Marketing while participating in the Zeta Tau Alpha sorority. But that didn’t stop her athletic prowess from taking center stage. She played 120 games for the Redbirds, in which she was a four-year letter winner and three-time team captain. Guess we’ll never know what she could’ve been if she pursued basketball full-time. WNBA maybe?

She has stuck by a value that has taken her to stardom: “I care about being the connection between the team and fans… It’s not just stats-it’s the grit behind the glory.” Doesn’t that sum up her broadcasting career perfectly?

Katy Winge’s Broadcasting Career

After graduating in 2015, Winge pursued a Master’s in Journalism from Northwestern University, interning at FOX Sports North and working as a sports anchor/reporter at KTTC/KXLT in Rochester, Minnesota. But it was in 2017 when her broadcasting career really took a turn for the better. She joined Kroenke Sports & Entertainment as the Nuggets’ in-arena reporter, hosting pregame/halftime shows like Courtside Countdown.

By 2019, she’d already done what most women hadn’t. Katy Winge became Altitude TV’s first female radio analyst, and made history as the network’s first female color analyst during a Nuggets-Warriors game at Oracle Arena.

Katy Winge has broken barriers. She continues to inspire women to dominate when the odds are in their favour. And she’s no ordinary reporter. As Chris Marlowe noted, “She sees plays develop like a point guard.”