Portland Thorns Bella Bixby on Avatar: The Last Airbender, her teams hot start

In a now-expired Instagram story, Portland Thorns goalkeeper Bella Bixby sat in her car and showed off her haircut while mouthing the iconic “Avatar: The Last Airbender” line “water tribe.” It was a reference to a popular meme from the show, in which Water Tribe member Sokka takes his leave in typical Sokka fashion, somehow utterly dorky and unintentionally cool at the same time. It wasn’t hard to see why she had drawn the comparison.

I spoke to Bella Bixby about that moment you realize you may have accidentally gotten Sokka's haircut and undercut management (or lack thereof). More on that later this week #NWSL pic.twitter.com/g6FkYg1M8R

— Steph Yang | Horrible Soccer Goose (@thrace) April 1, 2023

Late last week, The Athletic gave Bixby a call and asked about her love for “The Last Airbender” and, of course, Portland Thorns’ red hot start to the 2023 NWSL season.

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This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

When did you realize, ‘oh, this haircut makes me look like Sokka?’

I got an undercut last summer and the hair on top has been longer….I finally got a bigger chop and you know, I’m done with the hairdresser, I love my hair and then the time comes where – this is the day before a game mind you – I have to put it up to play. And I’m like, “it doesn’t quite fit in a bun but I’m gonna make it work.” So I wore it in this teeny tiny bun for the game. I thought it looked ridiculous. So I got home and put it in a ponytail. And I’m looking at myself like what is this – I look like Sokka from “Avatar: The Last Airbender.” He calls it a warrior’s wolf tail.

When did you first watch that show?

I watched it as a child when it was coming out live on Nickelodeon. Loved it then as a young kid and then revisited it once they re-added it to Netflix in my college years and I rewatched it within the last year, and it’s aged very well. I think it’s such a great show. I think it’s really interesting that I’ve watched it both as an 11-year-old and then as an almost-30-year-old… I have different favorite characters than I had when I was younger…My husband and I’ve talked about getting White Lotus tile tattoos because we love the show so much.

Who did you identify with when you were a kid?

I didn’t like Katara that much because I was a young girl and I was like, ‘she’s bossy’ or something. And as an adult I’m like, no, Katara is badass, Katara’s it. She knows what’s going on. She’s got her ish handled. And you know, she’s one of the best of her craft. And so many obstacles in the way. They even address misogyny, like her waterbending teacher just wouldn’t teach her because she was a girl. Seeing that as a child, I was like, “yeah, I’ve faced that kind of backlash.”

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And then as a kid, Zuko is the antagonist and you like, don’t like him or whatever. But I think I’ve really also identified with his struggle to find who he really is and not be doing things for other people’s wants or desires and needs and being consumed by that fear, I guess.

Is there anybody you identify with on (spin-off show) “Legend of Korra?”

I mean, Korra, I think. She’s so hard headed and is learning how to kind of rein it in, and everyone has this expectation that she’s going to be like Aang, who is polar opposite of her. She knows that she’s capable, but when she’s trying to learn how to airbend, I look at that and that’s me trying to learn anything. I’m just like, “I can’t do it.” I’m really stubborn about it if I can’t get it on the first try. That’s how I was as a child. So I can resonate with that a lot on being a very physically driven kid and learning to rein in emotions. Learning to be more in touch with my inner world and not just physical.

I just want to ask about the haircut itself. Do you have any tips for undercut management as it grows out?

The way my hair grows I should be getting a haircut every two weeks. It’s hard with my schedule. I go a one (clipper guard) on the sides and I don’t have any kind of fade or anything. So I go pretty short, and I need to cut it again within two weeks. So I’ve learned to cut it myself underneath with like a mirror and a prayer and I just do my best. It doesn’t look the best because I can’t do the edging around my neckline, but it keeps it so it’s not shaggy. I don’t have a tip. I’m just trying to keep it from looking awful. But I have definitely taken chunks out of my head accidentally trying to mess with the guards and stuff. It is a higher maintenance hairstyle.

Is there a teammate you would trust to help you manage your undercut when you’re on the road?

Kelli Hubly has clipped my hair. She was so nervous though. I think I was confident in her. She was not confident in herself. I’m like, “it grows back.” Like I said, I took a divot out of my skull, it was gone in a week. And I can’t see it. So if I can’t see it, it doesn’t exist. Object permanence with hair…. (goalkeeper coach) Nadine (Angerer) always offers to do it and I’m like, absolutely not. Absolutely not. There’s not a shot in hell you’re touching my hair with clippers.

Can you say more? Have you had a bad experience? Or have you seen her with somebody else’s hair?

I just don’t trust her. She seems overconfident. I want someone who’s underconfident. She’s like “it’ll be easy, I want to try it.” I’m like, no, red flag.

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Obviously you had kind of a statement 4-0 win against the Orlando Pride to open the season. I’m just wondering if you’re like, “this is great we’re gonna build on it,” or if there’s an element of “we need to manage our expectations, it’s game one.”

I think coming from a goalkeeper’s perspective, the goal is always to manage expectations, because every game in this league is different and has the potential to be absolutely wild. There is no riding the wave of prior games. That is a no-no. We have Kansas City tomorrow and it’s about the opponent. Our head coach (Mike Norris) says it’s the opponent not the occasion. Occasion-wise, it’s their first home game. They probably are selling out the stadium, which I think is awesome…. It feels really exciting.

(Note: Portland defeated Kansas City in that game 4-1.)

I’m looking at the last game you played against KC, which happened to be the 2022 championship. KC this season is different, different personnel and stuff, but I look at your distribution out of the back last game, it’s a lot of big balls to midfield or beyond. Obviously, when you have a Sophia Smith on your team, that’s not the worst idea in the world. I’m just wondering if you feel that connection is something that has only gotten better in this season?

It’s one of those things, because of her speed and her ability and her craft on the ball, is really tempting, but we don’t want to become a team that just lumps it to Sophia Smith when we’re a really balanced team, I’d like to think. If there’s an opportunity on, I’m not gonna turn it down. What I’m looking for when I pick my (distribution): Does she have support? Is this something she can do on her own or is she going to need more players around her to help with the situation I’m seeing? Our connection’s gotten better. We’re learning each other like, when she wants it, when it’s on, what’s gonna be best for her, what kind of ball she wants. I’m not gonna lump it to her every time I see her, that’d be a lot of running for her. But she’s such a threat and so if a team is sleeping, I’m definitely gonna try and take advantage of that.

I thought I’d close us out with a couple of rapid fire questions if that’s okay. First, and back to Avatar: Momo or Appa?

Appa. Big boy.

In a fight, Aang versus Korra, who are you laying some money on?

I think it depends on the fight. I’m team Gaang all the way but Korra is…I think that’s a toughy. I’m biased because I watched it as a kid and in my mind, Aang is the best avatar, he did all that at a much younger age. But Korra to me is much more in touch with, like, the physical bending. So that’s a tough one.

Coffee, tea or neither?

Coffee.

How do you take your coffee?

I did just get an espresso machine for the first time, which took me way too long, but I’ve been crushing espresso at home. So my drink right now is just a couple shots over ice with just a little splash of cream.

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What’s the most underrated snack?

Dude. I love snacking. So this is very hard for me. I’m gonna say, this is one of my go-tos, I really like snacking on pickles and I don’t think enough people put respect on pickles as a snack. Because it’s cold. It’s got a good temperature. It’s got a little vinegar kick. You can eat it with other stuff.

Most overrated snack?

Any kind of like, pre-popped popcorn. People really reach for it. And I’m like, I’m good. I’m not too good for it. If I’m really hungry, I’ll have some Skinny Pop. But especially when they’re flavored, like the sweet ones, like kettle corn and just, I’m good. I do contrarily love (fresh) popcorn.

Are you a good driver?

My husband would probably say no, but I’ve only gotten one ticket and it wasn’t my fault. The caveat is that if I’m alone in my car, I’m a great driver. If someone’s in the car, my ADHD cannot focus. I’m either ignoring the person next to me and being a great driver or, you know, halfway in the conversation and missing my exit. I’m a really good navigator. If I have a redeeming quality, I’m a really good navigator. I know how to get around without maps.

Who’s the best and worst driver on the Thorns?

Okay, the worst driver on the team is Nadine.

I can see why you don’t trust her with the clippers then.

You need to see her in a minivan. Truly. We don’t do it anymore, it was back when Mark Parsons was our head coach, we used to get to and from trainings with five or six minivans. That’s changed, but we talk about it all the time. Nadine would roll up first and we’d all be outside the hotel and no one’s jumping in. No one. People in the back are getting carsick. We’re almost getting – she’s just, she’s not the best.

Best driver? I don’t drive with my teammates much. It’s definitely not Olivia (Moultrie), just because she just got her driver’s license in the last few years. But she is on the roads. Actually she might be the best because she just got her license maybe. She’s not comfortable yet. You know, I’m gonna take a stab, I think Becky (Sauerbrunn) and Sinc (Christine Sinclair) are probably both good drivers. They seem to take care of their cars. Mmm. Sinc maybe I feel like drives too fast. I’m gonna say Becky.

I appreciate this. I love to talk about “Avatar…”

I’ve tried to get my teammates to watch it. But there’s other things that I’m into where the team’s like, ‘Oh, you like that?’ I really love Pokemon, so if you ever want to talk about Pokemon you let me know.

(Photo: Craig Mitchelldyer / USA TODAY Sports)

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