Welcome to The GIST’s Sunday Scroll, where we dive deep into one timely sports topic.

So today we’re discussing the fun (and sometimes wild) transitions athletes make when they retire, specifically focused on outgoing WNBA star Sylvia Fowles’ next moves. Athlete post-retirement plans typically involve coaching, working in sport operations or broadcasting… but Fowles is following a more, erm, unconventional path...

• P.S. On the topic of change, there are some big ones coming here at The GIST. Keep an eye on your inbox... *winks*

Mom, I don't want to play tag. I want to play funeral.

Before diving further into Fowles’ off-court plans, let’s recap her illustrious on-court career. One of the most underrated sports talents around, 6-foot-6 Fowles joined the league in 2008, spending the first half of her career with the Chicago Sky before moving to the Minnesota Lynx, and leading them to two championships.

• Fowles’ basketball resume is truly unparalleled. She’s the only W player who boasts 4K rebounds, is an eight-time All-Star (including this year) and nabbed two Finals MVPs en route to those aforementioned ’ships. Iconic.

And Fowles stayed humble through it all. Affectionately known as “Sweet Syl” or "Mama Syl,” her on-court leadership made her teammates feel valued and confident. The definition of a team player, Fowles was afraid to dunk when she played college hoops at LSU because she didn’t want to steal the spotlight.

• Fowles even spent last season knitting beanies for her teammates. Can a heart (or head) be more warm?

• When asked about her legacy, Fowles replied, “It’s about how can I make people feel like they’re noticed and they’re seen and that they are loved?” Spoken like a true Libra.

As mentioned, Fowles’ interest in understanding how people behave around death began at a very young age, when she — much to her mother’s and teammates’ bewilderment — would host funerals for her stuffed animals.

• After getting a rash from kissing her late, beloved grandmother Dorothy goodbye at her open-casket funeral when Fowles was five, her fascination and empathy for those grieving only grew, cementing the post-secondary pathway of mortuary science in her mind.

• To Fowles, working as an embalmer — the person who prepares the post-mortem body to be presented and buried — is a way of supporting and providing closure for grieving families. Nothing cold about her.

And Fowles isn’t the only athlete to break the mold when it comes to post-playing plans.

Take USWNT star Michelle Akers, for example. Akers scored the USWNT’s first-ever goal in 1985 and was part of the game-changing 1999 World Cup–winning squad. Now the soccer trailblazer owns an animal sanctuary. We’re not horsin’ around.

American gymnast Kerri Strug — who’s injury-plagued vault performance helped launch Team USA’s Magnificent Seven to Olympic gold over Russia in 1996 — also took the path less traveled, working with the Department of Justice’s Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention programs.

• Similarly, four-time WNBA champion Maya Moore left basketball in her prime to successfully fight to free her (then) soon-to-be-husband Jonathan Irons from wrongful incarceration. A slam dunk of a decision.

The name George Foreman might ring a bell if you, like Michael Scott, enjoy waking up to the smell of bacon. But before firing up his grill empire, Foreman was a two-time world heavyweight boxing champion and an Olympic gold medalist.

As Fowles’ decision shows, there’s no one way for athletes to make an impact after retiring from their games. That said, there is a common trend of retired women, trans and non-binary athletes striving for equity in sport.

• Most recently, many former athletes invested in NWSL expansion club Angel City FC, highlighted by the legendary Billie Jean King, who’s still continuing the fight for equality 39 years after retirement.

• King founded the Women’s Sports Foundation in 1974. Since then, the org has invested over $100M into sport for women and girls and also houses research, advocacy and coaching programs to increase gender equity in North American sport. The GOAT never stops.

Following in King’s footsteps are athletes like Allyson Felix and Serena Williams, who are transitioning to sports retirement life this year (still in denial). Both have started their own companies focused on uplifting women — Saysh and Serena Ventures, respectively. Who run the world?

• So whether they’re continuing to inspire change in the sports world or helping families find peace in a time of grief, female athletes are forging paths that are uniquely their own after they hang up their sneaks. What a legacy to leave.

This Burn It All Down podcast episode discussing how to cope with your favorite sports legends leaving the game. Celebrate the legacy, cherish the memories, and support athletes’ future moves.

Inspired by Fowles’ bold transition, this article to see if pursuing a mortician degree is right for you.

Broke, an ESPN Films 30 for 30 feature outlining how, despite the large paychecks some (mostly male) athletes receive, retirement isn’t always the cushy lifestyle you’d expect.