Nineteen Fifty-Six Vol. 2 No. 4, Hidden Figures

thought I was going to be a post player. I thought I was
going to be 6’5. But I am not, but growing up I was a huge
Lisa Leslie fan. I still am.
How did you know or when did you know
when you wanted to start to coach?
Probably when I was in high school and college --- more so
college. I went to this thing called Point Guard College. It
was a really cool opportunity for me. It gave me a chance
to see the game in another way, another light. It was more
about talking about the game versus playing the game. It
was in a classroom-like setting, so I really enjoyed that. It
was seeing the doors basketball could open and thinking
about how I can be involved once I got done playing.
That’s when it kind of opened my eyes that I could really
do this. Now back then, I didn’t really know if I thought I
wanted to be a college coach. But I knew, at some point, I
wanted to be coaching in my future.
You’ve talked pretty frequently about being
a tough coach when you started out in your
coaching career. Was there a particular
player, experience or even a season
where you realized that maybe this style of
coaching wasn’t the way to mentor these
players?
After my third year in coaching. I was at IUPUI at the time,
and we got to the end of the year. I always feel like coaches
get to do evaluations on players, tell them their strengths
and weaknesses. I feel like as coaches, we don’t always take
the time to then do that, ourselves. So what I did was I
asked my players, ‘Tell me one thing that you think I’m
good at and one thing I can do better.’ All of them told
me you bring good energy, but they consistently all said,
‘You’re too negative.’ I was like ‘Wow,’ and it kind of hurt.
I was really kind of hurt. I had to take a step back and say,
‘What do you mean? I’m coaching.’ They [the players] said
‘Yeah, but it’s always with a negative connotation. You
don’t pump us up enough.’ That was the turning point.
I have to say, I’m not perfect at it. I’m sure I’ve still been
deemed as negative at times. But, I am conscious of it. I
try to make sure that I am filling their cups. I try to make
sure I’m not nitpicking. I do try to make sure that I look
at their effort, their intent. If they’re trying and they’re
not getting it, then maybe I need to coach it better. Again,
I’m not perfect. I’m sure I fail at times. I just try to have an
awareness of just being positive.
You’ve been very open about your faith.
Have you always practiced Christianity? If
not, when did you decide to delve into the
faith a little bit more?
I was fortunate enough that my parents introduced me
to Christ at a young age and He’s always been a part of
my life. I grew up going to church and Sunday School. I
was a Sunday School teacher for a while. It’s always been a
part of my life and I’m not perfect. There have been times
where I’m like, ‘Whoa, I’m kind of triggered right now.
I’ve got to get back to where my foundation is.’ I don’t try
to force [my faith] on anyone. I don’t try to make you talk
about it. I’m not trying to make my players talk about it.
But if they want you, I’m hoping they aren’t afraid. I’m
here for them if they want to have a conversation. I’ve had
players that want to be saved, but don’t know how to do
that. So, I think I’ve tried in that manner to just be there
for them.
We’ve seen different players, coaches and
athletes become more open about their
faith. Has that been inspiring to you at all,
seeing that become more mainstream in
sports culture?
I think it’s all good. I think it’s about whatever you want
to do personally. I love the boldness and the courage. But
I think there are so many other people who may not be
as outwardly and openly about it. It still doesn’t mean
you’re not as strong and as passionate about it. For me,
I’m one of those nights. I don’t wake up every morning
and shout out or I make sure I tweet something spiritual.
But if there is something on my heart, if I’m led to say
something, I’ll do it. I’ll post it and I’ll talk about it. But I
don’t feel like I have to always be over the top. But when
I’m led to [share something spiritual], then I’ll definitely
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