The petite, unassuming woman at the head of a classroom in the USC David and Nicole
Tepper Department of Sport and Entertainment Management may not look like it, but
she’s kind of a big deal.
Senior instructor Susan O’Malley came to USC with an enviable professional pedigree
anchored in serving 16 years as the nation’s first woman to run an NBA franchise.
It was 1991, the Washington Bullets (now Wizards). She was 29 years old.
Yes. We buried the lede.
Earlier this year, Sports Business Journal named O’Malley one of the top 125 influential sports business figures of the past
quarter-century. Some highlights:
- While in college, O’Malley interned with NBA and NHL teams
- At age 25, she became director of advertising for the Washington Bullets.Four years
later, she was named president of Washington Sports and Entertainment. - Her career includes stints running the Verizon Center (now called Capital One Arena),
the WNBA’s Washington Mystics and Ticketmaster Washington-Baltimore. - O’Malley has been teaching in the USC College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management
for the past nine years.
What they’re saying
- “Being named to the Influence 125 is a well-deserved nod to Susan’s history, but I
would argue that her true legacy is being written in our classrooms, where she uses
that same pioneering spirit to champion the student experience in a way that only
she can.” —Mike Sagas, dean, College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management - “I’m incredibly honored to be included in such an amazing group of people.” —Susan
O’Malley