Aaliyah Edwards

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Pages back this year. So what is it like having
somebody like her healthy again? You two have kind of
been a duo for a few years now, and now
you're both out there for what's been a full season
so far, right, So what has that been like having
her back on the court for you?

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Oh, it's been great.

Speaker 3 (00:14):
It's like a breath of fresh air, not only for
myself but for the team. And as we've been talking about,
like with the injuries and everything, especially when someone like
Page goes down, who you know, everyone loves her as
a teammate and everyone loves her on the court, it
just brings like like a black cloud over the team.
But to have her back, it's like rainbows and sunshines
and on the court. You know, I'd be missing the

(00:37):
dimes that she'd be giving me. So our two man game,
I don't know, it's giving Shack and Kobe, you know
what I'm saying, Like it's top notch.

Speaker 2 (00:48):
Yeah, So.

Speaker 1 (00:51):
Welcome back to sometimes. I hope today we've got Canada's
finest on the pod. Quick humble brag about our star here.
Big East Tournament MOP twenty twenty three, Big East Most
im Food Player one thousand points score at Yukon Olympian
for the Canadian basketball team none other than Yukon superstar
Aleiah Edwards. Thanks for hopping on, Thank you for having

(01:12):
me so excited. Just to quick get into things. I
know that you're into music, So what do you feel
like would be maybe like a song to represent your
freshman year compared to a song for your senior year,
like how things are going? I know for me, my
freshman year is real rocky, so maybe be like a
really sad, cry your heart out song. Senior year was

(01:33):
more exciting. So do you ask anything like that?

Speaker 3 (01:37):
See, I don't know, because I think I came out
the gates like firing my freshman year as well. So okay, wow, startup.
Probably Yeah, it's a really tough question. I would probably
go off with more like a chill vibe, maybe like.

Speaker 2 (01:50):
Okay, off the top of my head, I'm trying to think.

Speaker 1 (01:53):
Or maybe like like an artist vibe, like who you.

Speaker 2 (01:56):
An artist vibe?

Speaker 3 (01:57):
Yeah, I'd probably maybe like a J Cole roadway type vibe. Okay, Okay,
now I'm probably like New Drake for sure, New Drake,
or like maybe like a nikki vibe like up, everything is.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
Just flowing for me. It's it's on point.

Speaker 1 (02:16):
I like that senior year big dog on campus nowadays,
sonya vibe all right.

Speaker 2 (02:21):
For all the dogs, you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 1 (02:23):
All right, So jumping into the current basketball landscape, you
guys had a really tough non conference schedule, talking about
NC State, UCLA, Texas, Notre Dame. The list just goes
on and on. So talk to me a little bit
about that non conference season your team. Was there somebody
that you guys were shocked by with their talent or

(02:43):
what was that non conference schedule?

Speaker 3 (02:45):
Like, I mean, our non conference schedule was really tough,
and it's nothing that we're not used to because you know,
playing here at Yukon, we always be playing the top
teams and and coach in the way that he is,
he always wants to challenge us early in the season.
So it was nothing that we weren't used to. But
at the same time, it was a big challenge for
us because internally we were faced with a lot of

(03:05):
things and injuries and a lot of stuff happening, and
not a lot of players available realistically. But I think
that you know, our first three losses, it was top
five teams in the NCAA, So it really credits to
us not being ready, but at the same time pushing
us early on out the gates so that we can

(03:26):
be more successful down the road. So I think it
was good for us.

Speaker 1 (03:30):
Yeah, for sure. And I mean, talking just a little
bit about those injuries, you guys have really shown that
it doesn't matter who you have available, you're gonna make
it happen. So what does that mindset come from as
a team to be able to just kind of next
player up all the time everybody's ready.

Speaker 3 (03:45):
It comes from our competitiveness. I think, you know, with me,
I'm very competitive and stepping into that leadership role for
me as a senior this year, I really had to
kind of emphasize that even though we're outnumbered, it's our skill,
not only our talent, because we can't always win games
with their talent, but just our mindset and having that
kind of gritty type feel and vibe with our team

(04:07):
is really going to help us win games and overcome
us being outnumbered.

Speaker 1 (04:11):
I mean, you can see it right now. Y'all got
two freshmen starting as they have in the past few games,
and they're playing great. They're doing their thing, they're doing
their thing, and I know they're probably stressed out, but
they're they're doing their thing. Now you're into conference play
and you guys are roland. Other conferences. You see the
PAC twelve SEC, there's upsets every other day, But y'all
are rolland nine and no. Right now you're averaging sixteen

(04:33):
points eight rebounds. What's kind of that next big game
you have circled on your calendar.

Speaker 3 (04:38):
Obviously, our next big game would be South Carolina. It's
another out of conference game for us, and as you said,
like we've been in flowing and everything's working for us
and our conference play. But don't get me wrong, like
Big East, I feel like can be underrated at times.
I think even last year we had four biggest teams
going to March Madaens Tournament and just a credit to

(04:59):
how copetitive our league is. But I think it's a
style of play that's just really different than the other conferences.
And even though we may not be the biggest or
more aggressive conference, I think that it's a lot of
fundamental skill that gets displayed in the Big East and
it can be tough to guard and tough to play
against at times. But next big upcoming game would be
South Carolina for us playing their first time. I'll be

(05:22):
playing in South Carolina and eighteen thousand fans you know that. Yeah,
but that's women's basketball though we love to see it,
so you're completely right.

Speaker 1 (05:30):
I love to be a part of I mean, playing
in Colombia. Let me tell you, it gets loud because
and I know you're about to have a good game,
so it's gonna be loud. But I'm excited to watch.
It'll be good.

Speaker 2 (05:39):
Appreciate it. I appreciate it.

Speaker 1 (05:41):
But I mean, I think you're right. The Big East
does have some sleeper teams year in a year out
talking about Villanova. Last year they had Maddie, but they
reloaded this year again, and you have Saint John's. You
have a lot of top teams. So what's kind of
a sleeper team or maybe a sleeper player in the
Big East that you're really impressed with so far this season?

Speaker 2 (06:00):
To be biased to my team or.

Speaker 1 (06:02):
We obviously know, if you can give a quick shout
out to your team and then you can give me another.

Speaker 3 (06:06):
One, Okay, Okay, yeah, shout out to you Confiscate one
of the toughest teams that we play against so far,
probably would have to be Marquette, and I feel like
they're not the biggest team, but they're just very as
I said, fundamentally skilled. And I think that everyone plays
their role and plays their role beautifully and it really
compliments each and every person on that team. So they're

(06:27):
always tough to guard because they're running so many things.
They have a lot of shooters, have a lot of
tough physical people inside. But we're too and o with them.
So I think that we're also a great start for sure.

Speaker 1 (06:37):
For sure shout out market, but you had to say yeah,
and so y'all are doing great, right, So outside of
the big eiaest, would you say, I feel like there's
a lot of teams that have come onto the scene
this year. You got Kansas State at their highest ranking ever.
Just a lot of teams in and out of the
top twenty five. So do you feel like there's a
sleeper team kind of just across the nation right now

(06:58):
that's really shocking people.

Speaker 3 (07:00):
I think it really goes day by day, week by
week at this point, because you see the rankings always
changing every week. And I think that with women's basketball,
especially what we're seeing with this new generation, it's really
about who's going to come and bring it that day.
It's not really about what's happened in the past, your history,
and you know, obviously Yukon is a dynasty. But I

(07:22):
think that up and coming for women's basketball, and that's
what we want to see, different teams stepping up, different
players stepping up into a limelight and helping advocate for
women's basketball and helping engage more people to watch. So
I think it's great for us, and especially as a
student athlete trying to do what we can in Ncuba.
I think that it's just amazing to watch and be

(07:43):
a part of it.

Speaker 1 (07:43):
Yeah, for sure. I mean the growth of women's basketball
is off the charts right now, and I think a
lot of people are seeing it through this year's freshman
class being so outstanding, not only the freshmen on your team,
but you got people like Juju at USC and Hannah
at Notre Name and Michayla just the list goes on
on and on. So when do you think is the
last time that we really saw a freshman class being

(08:04):
able to dominate like this? I know your class was.
You guys are pretty good, right, you guys are good?
Or what do you think?

Speaker 2 (08:10):
Yeah, I don't know.

Speaker 3 (08:12):
I think our freshman class was unique, not only because
we were dominant, but also that you know, we came
in when it was COVID, and yeah, it was a
time in the world where like nothing was really certain.
There's a lot of uncertainty, a lot of challenges that
we had to face and overcome. But I think that
we still came in and got our work done and

(08:32):
still we're able to play together as a team and
to play together as a class and show out. But
you know, as you said, this freshman class is coming out.

Speaker 2 (08:42):
Man, it's giving.

Speaker 3 (08:42):
Au and I don't know if the world is ready
for it, but I'm glad that we're changing the dynamic
of women's basketball, and I think that, especially going into
the future and for pro as well, it's gonna change
the whole style and speed a basketball.

Speaker 1 (08:59):
I think you're completely right. It's crazy to see kids
so young coming out with so much talent and like
they're so prepped and ready. I feel like when I
came in it was like a deer in headlights. I
was like, there's so much going on, how do I
focus on everything? And they come in and yeah, it's
like I'm stressed out all the time, but it's really
just showing the growth of women's basketball. I think I

(09:19):
think it's beyond the freshman class as well. But talking
about how you know, the Big East is on the
map now too. You have all these other conferences or
maybe like mid majors that have these amazing stars nowadays,
and just the parody across women's basketball in terms of talent, Like,
I feel like it's so much more spread out nowadays
than it used to be.

Speaker 3 (09:36):
Exactly, there's no top dominant team or player or school,
Like everyone changes that dynamic and I love it and
I love to be a part. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (09:45):
No, you're right, And I feel like, you know, Yukon
has always been a staple and women's basketball, and there's
been some famous rivalries talking about Notre Dame and Tennessee
and all these people. Who do you feel like nowadays
is you guys's modern day rivalry like a game you
always have circled somebody that you're always looking forward to.

Speaker 3 (10:02):
I mean, I think I have to go back with
the history and the footsteps that I'm following into, so
it has to be definitely Tennessee. I think that going
in to my sophomore year when we played at Tennessee
and that was kind of when it was just after
COVID and they were able to bring in some more fans,
so it wasn't filling up the whole arena, but it's
still enough that I could hear, you know, the trash

(10:25):
talk and you're the quote unquote hate that came from
that whole Tennessee versus Yukon dynamic. But I think that
that's what people live for, and especially our alum and
especially our supporters, that's what they come to watch and
come to see and they've lived through, and I think
that just kind of holding it and making sure that

(10:46):
we played to a standard is really gonna push the
wave and make sure that we're stay dominant.

Speaker 1 (10:53):
Yeah, I mean, you're completely right. I think like rivalries
like that the Yukon Tennessee, the Yukon No Day, different
thing like that across the country nowadays, it's really what
draws fans back every single season because like you said,
the quote unquote, heye, there's legit hatred there. Like everybody back,
whether it be coaches or past players. Fans like it's

(11:14):
wild to step into. But we touched a little bit
about the Big East SEC pack who do you feel like?
And your byas to the Big East obviously, but across
the board, who do you feel like? Is kind of
the toughest conference this year because I feel like a
lot of conferences have really up their games in terms
of depth from top to bottom. There's not a lot
of easy games now.

Speaker 2 (11:35):
Actually, I don't know.

Speaker 3 (11:37):
I think that we're hearing a lot of buzz, especially
from like SEC and PAC twelve as well. And I
think that, I mean, you, you came from Pac twelve
and and what you've done for Stanford and that whole
program has really held its own. But I think that
those two conferences in particular, they've really made sure that

(11:58):
they stay on top and made sure that they're staying competitive,
which I love. And that's why when whenever we play
out of conference games, I love to play against and
match up against those teams because it's just a different
style of play that we're used to on during our
regular season. But also it helps you be a better
basketball player in different aspects.

Speaker 1 (12:17):
Yeah, for sure, I feel like there's so much competition.
Like I remember my freshman year, you play certain teams
in the pack and it's like, oh that's light and
then nowadays, we get like I just saw the scores
from this weekend. I'm like, oh, upset, upset, upset, Like
everybody across all their prompts, I'm like, who's winning these days?
It's crazy to keep track of exactly. It's really wild,

(12:37):
but not a lot of people talk about. I feel
like certain players on certain teams, like people know, but
they don't really know. And so we're gonna talk about
a few different names that you played against this season.
I want you to give me. You know, you don't
have to like give the Yukon secrets of your scouting report,
but you can.

Speaker 3 (12:56):
You can't.

Speaker 1 (12:57):
Yeah, nothing too crazy, but you can give us a
quick scout about just kind of giving these certain players
their flowers. I feel like, don't get enough. So we'll
start for NC State Senai Rivers. Give me something about her.

Speaker 3 (13:11):
I will say that when we played her, for sure,
she was just certified bucket, like definitely coming off the
ball screen, can get to the hoop, can pull up
three level score for sure, and she really showed it
to us. And I think that even though she may
not get the limelight or the headlines every time, it's
really about the little things that she does that really

(13:32):
puts her team to the top. And I think that
with each and every team, the best player on the
team is really who's doing the little things that helped
lead to the wind at the end of the day.
So I'll give her her props and.

Speaker 1 (13:44):
Slow, Yeah, she's a bucket and I feel like transferring
from South Carolina, she didn't have that role that she
has now, So to see somebody like that really stick
with it is really just props to them. Okay, our
next person, Rakia Jackson, talking about that Tennessee rivalry. You know,
it's hard to go will be on that rivalry, but
we can give some flowers to her.

Speaker 3 (14:03):
Absolutely, And it's funny. I actually did play Rokia when
I was in high school, so I got to kind
of see and battle against her before stepping into college.
But yeah, she's just a dog, and I think that
her passion and her motion for the game really comes
into how she plays and and she uses to her advantage.
I think that, you know, I'm not going to say

(14:23):
buckets on me, but she definitely she definitely operates very
well in the high post game and she can get
to the rim, and I think that she's just a
very sound offensive for sure.

Speaker 1 (14:34):
Yeah, she's a bucket like our guard. And then last one,
talking about freshman. You played against Madison Booker at Texas
this year and she she was not on my radar
heading in the season, and I've watched some of her games.

Speaker 3 (14:47):
Right right, I'm saying, pull up every second, and yeah,
her shot is so quick. I think she loves going
left to it. When we played against her, it was
just left, pull up every single time, every possession. I'm like, okay, okay.

Speaker 1 (15:02):
I feel like even when you have on a scating
report and it's like, oh left, left or right like
this percentage of the time, it's like, Okay.

Speaker 2 (15:09):
They're so gonna get there, but they're so good.

Speaker 1 (15:11):
At doing it.

Speaker 2 (15:12):
It's so right.

Speaker 1 (15:13):
It's not right. It's like if I could, you think
I would let them go that way. I'm really going.

Speaker 3 (15:17):
At what I have You think you think I'm not
trying or exactly what's the problem.

Speaker 1 (15:21):
Yeah, so horrible. But diving back into you talking a
little bit about kind of your upbringing early hoops. Grew
up in Kingston, Ontario. How did you get into basketball?
Who put the ball in your hands?

Speaker 3 (15:33):
I would definitely say my brothers, I have two older brothers,
and especially my oldest one. He was an assistant coach
with my mom for my first like club basketball team.
And you know, obviously having your mom and your brother
as your coach can be tough, and I bet it's
not the easiest thing to go through. Exactly, it's not

(15:53):
the easiest thing to go through, but it really helped
me from a young age to kind of lay the
foundation of how im as a player and also how
I am as a person, because not only did they
help me be the player I am today, but also
just be a great teammate. And I think that's one
of the things that my mom made sure that we
did for our team. It's just be a great teammate
first and then everything else will fall into effect. So

(16:15):
I think that definitely. My brothers they played college. My
eldest brother, he was a Kobe fan. I'm a Kobe fan.
We really bonded through basketball with watching Kobe and the Lakers,
and that's why I have my hair the colors that
I do. And yeah, so unfortunately my brother did pass
away when I was fifteen, but I think that just

(16:39):
living through him and living through what we've created in
our bond and our love for just Kobe and how
competitive he was and just how gritty, and it was
really his mindset more than anything. I know that people
are gonna say that may not have been the best teammate,
but he at the end of the day, he got
it done and it was really his competitiveness that pushed
him on over all the competition.

Speaker 2 (17:01):
So, yeah, you're.

Speaker 1 (17:02):
Stealing my questions here because I was gonna talk about Yeah,
I mean, you're just you're jumping the gun, but that's okay. Yeah,
just talking about being a Kobe fan, the Mama mentality
and everything. That's what beyond his skill and everything, but
to get to where he was, it's a mentality that
got in there. So how do you see yourself incorporating

(17:22):
some of those teachings and things that he talked about
into what you do? And how is incorporating those different
things helped to get you where you are now, which
is one of the top collegiate players. Talk about that
a little bit.

Speaker 3 (17:35):
Yeah, I would say that over the course of the years,
especially coming into college, like as a student athlete, it's
not just about Okay, I'm just gonna come here play
basketball and do what I do. You know, you got school,
you got different stuff in your personal life that's happening.
You're getting older, you're becoming more of an adult, so
there's a lot of stuff surrounding. I need to incorporate that,

(17:55):
plus being a dominant basketball player, and I think that
come here, especially Yukon and being the top school that
it is, like, it's taught me a lot, but I
think even before Yukon, it was really canad basketball and
being in the senior woman's team and kind of being
that dynamic that helped me mentally lock in. And I

(18:16):
think that as a competitor, I just try not to
focus on the future, but staying in the moment, living
in the moment, staying humble, but also letting them know.
So doing the little things. Let's get a rebound to
help me get a bucket, or my team get a bucket,
or diving on the floor taking a charge. It's not
all about everything that shows up in the box score.

(18:37):
So that's how I go into mentally into each and
every game.

Speaker 1 (18:40):
I mean, you can see it. I think what you
said earlier about great players aren't always the ones to
scoring the points, Like obviously you're a great score, but
I feel like, there's so many little things that you
do on the court with yes watching you play, it's
the rebounds, you dive on the floor, you're blocking shots,
you're hayping up your team, and I think that all
just adds to what makes you so great, because, like team,

(19:01):
you know, you're not gonna be your best shooting at
every night, but that doesn't mean they're gonna take you
out of the game and what you bring to the team.
So I think you can definitely see that as you play.
And I mean talking about being on this senior national
pool all the team camp since you were like a baby.
Talk to me a little bit about the basketball culture
in Canada growing up, like those players that you looked

(19:22):
up to, the Kia nurses. Talk to me a little
bit about being pulled into that senior level camp at
such a young age.

Speaker 3 (19:29):
Right, I mean, Canada is great. I'm always gonna rep
and shout out Canada. But at the same time, when
I was growing up, you know, I wasn't really watching
a lot at NCUBLEA just because simply they wouldn't stream
it up in Canada, so it was kind of hard
to kind of watch even the WNBA too, So I
really had to fall on the footsteps of watching Kia

(19:51):
or watching like Nahlia Chama or Bridget Carlton, you know,
those those Canadians who really set the tone in the
national team atmosphere. But yeah, being the youngest on any
basketball team, it's hard to do and you don't want
to make any mistakes, kind of like a rookie in college.
But at the same time, you're surrounded by so many
elite athletes who like my oldest teammate when I first

(20:15):
was a part of the team, she was like forty three,
I believe, and I'm like, girl, if me and you
are going up against the ball, I'll let you have
it and I'm gonna just stay back and clap you
for the getty rebound. But no, I think it was
great for me because I was just such a sponge
soaking up everything that I could do. Asking questions was
a big thing for me, and just learning from people

(20:38):
who are experience and people who were in the position
that I want to be. And so I loved playing
with pros at the young age. You know, there's times
where I learned my lesson, like yeah, I can't go
for that shot because I'm going against a six seven woman.

Speaker 2 (20:51):
Yes, and I'm a little girl.

Speaker 3 (20:53):
So there's times where I got taught my lesson, but
other times it really helped me be more a versatile player,
not just a one level player, oh for sure.

Speaker 1 (21:02):
And I feel like playing against older women as I've
gotten into the league, you can really tell, like you're younger,
you could probably get around quicker or do someing that,
but they are so much more efficient, Like they know
how to get to their spots so easily. And I
bet for you, like coming from algebra and geometry and
these women just drop off their kids like it's just
a different They just understand different things, right, And so

(21:22):
I think it translates to the cour just in terms
of like their basketball knowledge is at such a different
level that being a sponge allows you to learn so
much and then incorporate it into your own game. It's
really great. But diving into a little bit about growing
up in Canada, I bet your recruiting process was different
than a lot of us had. So what was recruiting like,

(21:43):
not only being in another country but going through it
during COVID dealing with all that, How was your recruiting process?

Speaker 3 (21:50):
It actually wasn't too bad. I think that my mom
was a big core and just taking all the load
for that because I went to two different high schools.
My second high school for my last two years, I
went to a prep school and we were able to
play in the US a lot of times, so I
got to play against some Americans and kind of shown

(22:13):
my name and stuff like that, but it was really
from like Canada basketball. And I also went to a
Basketball without Borders camp and that really helped push my
name out there. And I think that it was hard
to seek opportunities, but I really had to earn opportunities
through playing with like my provincial team, playing with the
national team, and really just be patient. And I think

(22:36):
that eventually the calls and the mail, you know how
it goes like, comes at you fast. But yeah, my
parents definitely family. They really helped ease the stress and
helped me have a smooth recruiting process.

Speaker 1 (22:51):
But getting towards the end of the recruiting process, what
set you kind of part from the other schools that
were recruiting you, That made you I don't want to
go to Connecticut.

Speaker 3 (23:02):
It was tough because like me as a person, I'm
very like it's hard to say no to you or
if you know, when you get that call from that
coach and they're like not feeling you, not really a
good fit for me, it was hard to be like no,
like I'm not going to come here, right, So that
out of the whole process, that was the hardest thing

(23:24):
for you to do, just saying no, or to letting
them know that I'm not going to go but no.
I think that for Yukon when I came on a visit,
I only went on one visit, which was here.

Speaker 2 (23:35):
Uh.

Speaker 3 (23:35):
It was really the team that drew me in and
obviously coach, but it was a team. And as I
said that, I'm a team player and if I can't
vibe with you, if we don't have a connection, if
we're not like minded athletes, then I feel like anything,
any execution is just not going to it through.

Speaker 2 (23:54):
Right.

Speaker 3 (23:55):
So I got a great vibe from the team, all competitive.
I saw practice, thought I could survive it until I
came in for the fall and was like maybe not,
but no. And then also coach he's a he's a
tough guy, but at the same time, it's all love
at the end of the day. He's very honest too.
I want someone to tell me, like what I'm doing

(24:16):
wrong and what I need to do better, tell it
to me straight type. But yeah, and then also on
my visit, coach texted Kobe and hit him up talking
about me, and he told me that he responded, and
I was just.

Speaker 2 (24:29):
Like, yeah, this might be it, this might be it.

Speaker 3 (24:34):
But unfortunately, like that's the same year he passed away,
So it's unfortunately we didn't get to connect or I
didn't get to to speak with him one on one.
But at the same time, I feel like just what
he's done throughout the NBA and also for women's basketball
has has been a bigger impact than anything I could
have asked for.

Speaker 1 (24:55):
So yeah, well, Gino knew who to text, he knew
he knew.

Speaker 2 (24:59):
Right, do you know what he's doing.

Speaker 1 (25:02):
He's a smart man. He's a smart man, he is.
But so, you know, you get to Yukon your freshman year,
you talk about those first practices, those first three hour days.
They'll get you, they sure will. But so you get
to yukon, one of the historically best basketball programs in
the country, did you feel any type of pressure going

(25:23):
in your freshman year, being like, you know, credit an
a for yourself, but beyond that talking about the team,
there's a certain standard that they have and a legacy
that you're now joining, So is there I mean even
just beyond that, like the forward position you got my
more Stewie Tina Charles. Well, you know, what were your
expectations or what was your mindset heading into that freshman

(25:43):
summer freshman fall?

Speaker 3 (25:45):
I would say, like the first for some summer workouts,
before you even got into preseason. It was summer workouts
that's really me getting you. So come in some workouts,
I was just like, you know, I'm just gonna give
it my best, go one hundred and fifty percent, try
not to make any mistakes. But everything I said I
did not do. So I think that it was hard

(26:06):
for me at first to adjust, and especially with COVID happening,
it was just very isolated workouts are very isolated training,
which was fine, but at the same time a lot
more pressure and expectation. As you talk about the standard,
there's a Yukon standard that coach and our team holds
ourselves to. And even when you walk into the building,

(26:27):
you're seeing all the greats on the wall and all
the banners in the gym. It's a lot, but at
the same time, each and every practice it was tough,
was intense, but it made you be a better basketball
player at the end of the day. And I feel
like every day I was challenged and every day I
got better, I got stronger, And I think my IQ

(26:49):
wise grew in that aspect because all the pressure that
we get in practice, it helps us in the games
and it does really carry over. So I think freshman
year in the beginning, I was nervous like anybody else,
but I came out thinking that I was the best
player on the course. So that's how I played. And
as I said, I do the little things and helped

(27:09):
me grow and helped me develop my game.

Speaker 1 (27:12):
And I mean, you had an amazing freshman year. And
for me, what helped me was having those upperclassmen kind
of lead the way. And so coming into Yukon, there's
great players every year in every class. They were all
you know McDonald's this, TMO, say that whatever, and so
who were kind of the upper classmen that led the
way for you your freshman year to be able to learn from?

Speaker 3 (27:34):
Yeah, definitely. My seniors were living in Nelson Ododa, Chris
and Williams and Amina Westbrook, and I feel like those
three they really tried to especially in a time when
it was kind of like there's no fans, so take
off that pressure. But yeah, it's very I don't know,
it was still very like heavy, like even though there's

(27:55):
no fans, it was kind of like a practice more
like a scrimmage every time you played a game, and
you know, coach can hear everything on the court at
that point, so you got to make sure that you're
on point. So I think that they really did a
great job just taking us under our wing and really
showing us the rope and showing us that we need
to be gritty, need to be aggressive, and need to
be fearless at the end of the day, because especially

(28:17):
my freshman class, they needed us. We came and like
me and Page, we came into the starting lineup pretty quickly,
so they need us to just be fearless and come
in and do what we do. And I think that
they really did a great job just being those leaders
that we can rely on for.

Speaker 1 (28:34):
Talk about impact player. You came in. You were big
ee six one of the years of freshman, which is
a huge accolade to pick up that young already get
award like that, what does that propel you into that
next offseason? Really, because I feel like anytime you get something,
and I'm sure your mindset is the exact same, It's like, Okay,
what's the next thing now? I want to do more?

Speaker 2 (28:54):
Right now?

Speaker 1 (28:55):
Am I going to continue to build out this for
the next season? So picking up that recognition so young,
how did that propel you into your sophomore year?

Speaker 3 (29:04):
I feel like, as you said, like anytime that you
choose something, you always want to shy for more. And
that's the type of person that I am and type
of player that I am, and I'm never satisfied. So
coming off my freshman season going into my sophomore year,
I was like, I need to do more. I can
be better, I can improve in different areas and not

(29:26):
just be recognized as just the rookie a good rookie.
And I think that at the same time, coming into
your sophomore year after a great freshman year, there's more
expectations and a little bit more pressure, like you got
to outdo what you just did. Yeah, So I think that,
especially that summer, I was in the gym working out,
putting up shots, getting into a routine, making sure that

(29:49):
I can kind of outdo myself what I did freshman year.
And at the same time, like even the work that
you put in, you might not get the results that
you want. And I think my freshman year wasn't what
I hoped for. But at the same time, I think
that it was a good place and a good time
for me and my college career to have that kind
of slump or to not be as productive so I

(30:11):
could learn from it, and I could it can grow
and be a better player out And I mean, you.

Speaker 1 (30:15):
Came back to your sophomore year and had an amazing year.
But I think that mindset of being ready to build
and like I can bring more. And I think also
what you talked about, like having a little bit of
a slump, it really motivates you more than anything else. Yes,
Like when it's a slump, it's so frustrating because you know,
maybe I know for me, whenever I was in a slump,
it's like, now this is what people think I am,

(30:37):
and I'm like, I can bring so much more, Like now,
you know, in the expectation, I hope there's so much
going on internally, but you know, off your freshman year,
you guys go to the final four, losing to Arizona
that year? What do you think that did for the
locker room? Because it pushed you in another final four,
which we'll talk about later where we ended up meeting whatever.
But going off that final four loss, how does that

(31:01):
you know, kind of as a team because you guys
returned most of the players, you bring in Dorka, you
bring in Asy, a lot of big players. How does
that kind of propel you into that next summer of
working on that charisma, working on that chemistry, really locking
into different things. What was that Some are like after
a tough final four loss?

Speaker 3 (31:20):
It was tough just because I think that obviously Yukon,
we've always been going to final fours and that type
of expectation. But to actually get to the final four
but not capitalize off of that, it really hit not
only myself but the whole team. And I feel like,
especially our freshman year, we were really pushing and there
was a great flow to our team, a great chemistry

(31:42):
that we had between not only the first five but
the second five, and I think we were really deep
in my freshman year. But yeah, summer workouts tough. The
mindset was like, we know we can make it back
there and do better, and we did anything that we
can and to work towards it.

Speaker 1 (32:01):
Yeah, I mean going into that next season, that was
kind of the last time you guys have been in
full strength, like everybody was healthy. When did you realize
with that team talking about that tough summer that you had,
when did you realize that you know, you were a
title contender, Like not only could you guys have a
great season get back to the final four, but you

(32:22):
had the firepower to actually get there and do something.

Speaker 3 (32:26):
I think it wasn't until after you won the Big
East Conference, And I feel like whenever you win the conference,
you're just on a different level and a different vibe,
and I think the whole team is like, okay, like
we can really really do this. And as you said that,
we were pretty much healthy at that point and everybody

(32:47):
was doing the role. Everyone was playing to the strings
and giving one hundred and fifty percent at that point.
So I think once we hit the tournament, we were
just rolling, rolling, rolling, and it was all gas, no breaks,
and it was good until the last game, but yeah.

Speaker 1 (33:04):
We'll get there, But it was all guests, y'all. Y'all
were rolling that year for sure, and so we ended
up meeting in the final four that year you guys won.
But talk a little bit about going back to the
final four. The final four, I always shot it like
people ask me how it is, it's really hard to explain.
There's such an energy, there's such a vibe, like it's

(33:25):
a surreal experience. So it taught to me a little
bit about how our game that led led into the
South Carolina Final.

Speaker 3 (33:33):
I mean, coming into the final four when it's us
in Stanford, I believe it was the first time we
played you guys as well. So it was tough because
you guys had a lot of bucket getters, and when
you step into a final four atmosphere, you're thinking, Okay,
we can make it to the national championship game, but

(33:53):
we have to win this game first, so you can't
be thinking ahead too much. But no, it was tough
and Minnesota too, so it was you know, you guys
had your fans, We had our fans, so it was
just a great atmosphere. And about the same time, it
is a lot of outside noise that can get carried

(34:14):
away of what your team goal is, which is to
win and to do it effectively and to run the
things that you guys want to do and execute your place.

Speaker 1 (34:22):
And I feel like there's so much that goes on
at Final four weekend. It's the media and then everybody's
at your practice, You're doing photo shoots, and then they're
talking about like the rivalries it's been on for years,
and I'm like, I just got here, Like I'm.

Speaker 2 (34:34):
Just trying to focus on right now.

Speaker 1 (34:36):
There's a lot going on. But that game, that was
a good game. I remember it was close. It was good.
But then leading into your first National Championship appearance, which
was for Yukon, I want to say, first time in
six years playing South Carolina, I know the energy for
that game was off the charts and you played a
lot of players who are now in the league doing

(34:57):
amazing things. How tough was that game?

Speaker 2 (35:02):
Man? It was so tough, so tough.

Speaker 3 (35:05):
I think, you know, even before the game, obviously love
Alia Boston, it was like Aliah versus Leia, and yeah,
we were saying like Battle of the Braids, and it
was like this whole thing off the court and I'm like, girl,
we're just here to play basketball.

Speaker 2 (35:19):
I'm trying to focus on.

Speaker 3 (35:20):
The game, not other stuff, but no, being the dominant
player that she is, and and they're a big team
and we didn't have as much size at that time,
and we knew that was gonna be our disadvantage going
into that game. But at the same time, it wasn't
like something that it wasn't like we were thinking that

(35:40):
we were five points behind going into the game. We
were thinking, like, let's attack them first, but we know
that they're gonna attack back. But we got to be
able to what's like our response gonna be to when
Day attack us. And I think it was a game
of runs, a game of possessions. It was a tough
game for sure, especially on the rebounding. They kicked our butts.
But yeah, it was a good game for me to

(36:02):
play and against personally, because like a lot is at stake,
anything that you do can be for you or be
against you. So if you make your wrong decision dribble
into double team, yeah that's five points already, that's what's gone.
And you think you can't be thinking about the last play,
especially in the National championship game because one and done. Yeah,

(36:22):
so it was a good learning experience for me for sure,
But it's a tough game to play.

Speaker 1 (36:27):
It's tough. The Natty is tough, and losing in the
final four, losing the Natty is really hard just because
like not only it's the end of your season, but
losing in a Natty it's like the confetti's flying and
it's all you see on social media for the next
like year. It's horrible. Yeah, And so talking about you
know it was a great game for you, how did

(36:47):
that kind of influence your summer that you had, because
coming in your junior year, your game like you were
already here and it just it broke through to a
whole another level your junior It was really a breakout
year in my opinion for you. But you know, what
did you really focus on that off season for your
sophomore In junior year, we get from averaging eight points

(37:08):
a game to sixteen and a half. So what were
your focuses that led to you being able to have
that breakout season?

Speaker 3 (37:14):
For me, it was more about I felt like I
was very limited, especially in that National championship game. I
felt like they took away the one thing I could do,
which is basically get to the basket. So that off
season I was like, I need to be more of
a versatile player. I need to be more of like
a hybrid like slasher, more like extend my game out

(37:37):
to the perimeter because I know that if they take
away one thing, I can back it up with another gear.
So that was kind of my mindset going in my
off season, being able to have a shot, being also
able to get to the rim and add different different
things in my bag as well, not just being able
to do a layup, but being able to add footwork

(37:59):
beyond balance and all this type of stuff. So I
knew that I could be better than what I showed
a National championship game, and that was really my motivator.

Speaker 1 (38:05):
Yeah. Well, I mean, girl, we saw you're back into
up you taking people off the bounce, You're doing xyz.
I think you know your scout definitely became a lot
tougher for every evdent that had to play you. And
so that season you have a few key injuries. How
did that impact your leadership? Because watching you not only
playing against you, but now watching you from a distance

(38:27):
to this and that you can see the impact that
you have as a leader on the floor. People look
to you. You're a source of energy but also keeping
people calm. This, and the third. So how were you
able to kind of now you're an older person on
the team, which is always a weird dynamic shift.

Speaker 2 (38:42):
Oh my god, yeah, it's weird.

Speaker 1 (38:44):
So like people loosen up to you now, So how
did you kind of take on that role not only
on the court, but in the locker room checking on
teammates as more than players.

Speaker 2 (38:52):
This, that, and third.

Speaker 3 (38:54):
It's a lot and I think that especially being a
leader like you, you understand more about the person that's
coming up to you because you've lived through it. You've
experienced it, so you kind of have some stuff that's like, oh,
this is what happened when I was in your boat
or I was in your position, so you can kind
of lean on that and help them out. But at
the same time, like it's easy off the court, but

(39:14):
on the court, I'm not really At the time, I
wasn't the most vocal leader, and I think that coach
and the coaching staff really emphasize on having me be
that presence for them because it was a tough time.
We went through a whole bunch of injuries, and I
think each and every year now we're going into preseason like, yeah,
we got this, we got all the players, we're full team,

(39:38):
we're fully healthy, and then something just strikes us down.
But whatever strikes you down, you'll be able to build
it back up. And I think that it really relied
on faith and relying on one another to help me
with my leadership role. And I think that, you know,
as we do get older, not too old though, but
as you get older, the body feels old. Yeah, we

(40:01):
learned different things, and we learned that we're not only
playing for ourselves, so we were playing for other people.

Speaker 1 (40:05):
And as you do get older, like senior year, the
body's feeling old, to get into practice is hard. This
is that hey, now let me tell you. Let me
tell you. Once you get to the league, all of
a sudden, you're young buck again. So I have to
be like, oh, rookie, you're young, You're feeling fresh. I'm like, what,
I'm tired. It's it's definitely an adjustment change. You talked

(40:30):
a little bit about, you know, come to the season healthy,
you got page back, you got a lot of players
healthy again, fresh freshmen, all these different things. But now
you have five players out again, Caroline Azy. The list
just goes on from the you know, outside people just like,
oh you CON's heart again, this and that. But coming
from the inside, how does the locker room have to

(40:51):
deal with that? You know, I know the people are injured,
amazing people, Aisy and Caroline going to be there cheering
you guys on, doing everything like that, But it definitely
changes the kind of vib especially when those injuries first
come out, seeing you know, they're not to your teammates,
that your friends get injured. So how are you as
a leader trying to you know, work through keeping people motivated,

(41:12):
keeping people locked in, not letting all the outside noise
step into what you guys are trying to and can't
still accomplish this.

Speaker 3 (41:19):
Season, right, It's hard because you know, I think nowadays
media plays a big role in how we are and
how we perform on the court, So especially having bad
news and to see our teammates down, especially those Asy
and Caroline, you know, and the list goes on. But

(41:40):
one of the things is the leader I'm telling them
to do is like next man up, And even though
we're down one, it's really our mental toughness that's gonna
push us to add another teammate to help us out
on the court. And you know, it's not easy at all.
It can't be easy, But it's really about are what

(42:01):
we're really to do and as long as we play
with heart, that's gonna take us to the talk.

Speaker 1 (42:05):
And I mean, like you said, the outside noise is
a lot, and people are gonna always give their opinions.
I think, especially being at a place like Yukon, the
standard is already that much higher. And I get that
being at Stanford it's the same thing. You don't get
the same leeway that other schools are gonna get because
of the history and the legacy that you're now a
part of. And so how do you deal with staying

(42:29):
locked in on the present. It's hard to not you
know this hard. You can go down a slippery slope
down the Twitter rabbit hole like we talked about earlier,
or there's a lot going on. So how are you
able to shift that focus to always be where your
feet are, not looking towards the future, not getting too
caught up in a poor performance or a loss, whatever
it may be, but really staying grounded.

Speaker 3 (42:51):
I think that one of the biggest things is I
do rely on my faith and I think that I
give myself grace. I think that's where you have to
start because everything happens for a reason and it may
not be positive, but there could also be reward that
comes with it. And I think that one of the
things that I try to focus on is living for

(43:13):
the day and taking it day by day and doing
something to challenge me every day so that when the
time comes or I'm in the storm or I hit
a wall, I'll be able to persevere over that. But
as you said, it's hard, but as student athletes we
learn to live with it and not let it affect
us some days. But I think that it really relies

(43:35):
on the team and the chemistry and how connected we
are and how we play together, because if you play
as a whole, nothing can break you, guys. And that's
really what we've been relying on these past couple of
months now and really relying on just keeping the energy
up and staying positive.

Speaker 1 (43:54):
Giving yourself grace is really something. It doesn't come easy.

Speaker 2 (43:57):
It takes time, not easy, it does.

Speaker 1 (44:01):
That's something a lot of athletes can not get so
hard on yourself because I think what makes you so
great is also being able to be critical and look
like this is what needs to be better. Watching film
even when it sucks, but it's like, okay, but you
you also did this. Well, there's this positive I think
giving grace is something that every athlete continues to work

(44:21):
on throughout their career, talking about positivity and this and
that Page is back this year. So what is it
like having somebody like her healthy again. You two have
kind of been a duo for a few years now,
and now you're both out there for what's been a
full season so far. So what has that been like
having her back on the court for you?

Speaker 2 (44:38):
Oh, it's been great.

Speaker 3 (44:39):
It's like a breath of fresh air, not only for
myself but for the team. And as we've been talking about,
like with the injuries and everything, especially when someone like
Page goes down, who you know, everyone loves her as
a teammate and everyone loves her on the court and
off the court. It's just it just brings like like
a black cloud over the team. But to have her back,
it's like rainbows and sunshines and on the court, you know,

(45:03):
I'd be missing the dimes that she'd be giving me,
So I'm glad to have her back. And I think
it's just her passion for the game is really what
drives her to be the great player that she is,
but also helps us to be a great team. And
she's really the backbone that helps us. And yeah, that's
what I'm saying. Our two man game, I don't know,

(45:23):
it's giving.

Speaker 2 (45:24):
Shock and Kobe. You know what I'm saying, Like, hey man,
it's good.

Speaker 1 (45:29):
It's so much the show. Yeah, talking about all the
different weapons that you guys have. Obviously somebody like Page,
who's amazing you have yourself. You have a lot of
great people. And earlier we talked about freshmen across the
country and how amazing they're doing. I think your two
freshmen who are starting right now with KK and Ashland
are kind of going under the radar in terms of
top freshmen. They may not be having like these gaudy

(45:51):
numbers or this and that, but they've been steady and
they've been giving the team what you guys need. So
talk a little bit about what they've been able to
bring to that team. Both of them really stepping into
roles that you know, who know if they would have
had these roles injuries. They're stepping up with that next
man mentality.

Speaker 3 (46:07):
Absolutely, and I think that you could probably relate to
this as well. Being a freshman and asked to even
be in the starting lineup.

Speaker 2 (46:13):
Even if it's for one minute.

Speaker 3 (46:15):
It is a lot, especially when you come out for intros.
You're like, oh wait, I'm not just saying that to
go play a game, right, So it's a lot. But
I'm super proud of them because you know, as you said,
maybe if things didn't go the way they did this season,
they may have not been in the same position to
be in the starting lineup or to be asked to

(46:38):
do as much as they're doing right now. But I
think that one of the things that I've been trying
to tell them and they've been doing well with is
just to play fearless. And I tell them that you're freshmen,
it's your first year of college. You're gonna make mistakes.
It's okay to make mistakes, but you want to make
less mistakes and more buckets.

Speaker 2 (46:56):
And more great plays. Yeah, more good, yes than the bad.

Speaker 3 (46:59):
But no, they're holding their own out there, and I
think that it starts in practice. They're putting in the
work in practice, and that's where the trust and we
can build off of that in the games. And I'm
super proud of them. They're they're putting out. Maybe not
as much big of the numbers as we're hearing with
the other freshman class, but they're still putting on numbers
and it's effective and they're efficient doing it.

Speaker 1 (47:21):
Yeah, I think that they're playing their roles that they've
been asked to play at the highest capability. Like you said,
like obs freshmen, especially KK playing the point like turnovers
are bound to occur.

Speaker 2 (47:30):
But girl, my gosh, give us a positive show. That's right, Ashley, get.

Speaker 1 (47:35):
Your buckets, like there's things you can figure out. But
talking a little bit about Yukon and people flying under
the radar. CD is such an icon of the mind.
I know when I was being recruited by Yukon, I
was like, I love Like that was one of the
hardest calls.

Speaker 2 (47:50):
Was I trid, you know, to say no.

Speaker 1 (47:52):
But I also called CD. I was like, you, girl,
you're amazing. It's not for me, But like CD is
such just like a pillar a women's basketball and I
feel like her impact is it talked about enough, Like
if you're not around Yukon or just kind of like
there every day, you don't see how much that she does.
So talk a little bit. Give CD some flowers here

(48:15):
in terms.

Speaker 3 (48:15):
Of I can go days to give CD flowers and
I think that you know, coach gets all the praise
and everything that he deserves for sure, but I think
ye CD's been right there with him for what forty
years now, and that's a duo.

Speaker 2 (48:32):
That's what I'm saying. That's what I'm saying.

Speaker 3 (48:33):
And there's been multiple times where CD had to step
up and be the head coach as well, and she
has like a twenty year old record and I'm like,
you go girl every time, and she's like, no.

Speaker 2 (48:43):
No, no, don't don't, don't do too much.

Speaker 1 (48:45):
Y'll gas.

Speaker 2 (48:47):
That's what I'm saying. And I think she is the
best fits like CD.

Speaker 3 (48:51):
She makes sure we're on point with whatever we're wearing,
making sure that we're on time, and she just teaches
a lot of life.

Speaker 2 (48:58):
Skills that goes unnoticed.

Speaker 3 (49:00):
And something that all the alums say about her like
she's gonna be hard on you, but at the end
of the day, she's gonna teach you a lot of
things that in the moment may not seem like you're
gonna need now, but down the road it's gonna be
effective for you. And and no, we all love CD.
We all be joking with her, and she's really just,

(49:21):
you know, as I said, the backbone of our team.

Speaker 1 (49:24):
Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, she does a lot. She does
a lot she does, and I feel like she just
commands so much respect from everybody. Like even like when
I played against y'all, I'm just like, hey, CD, big,
nice to see you again. Like there's no like, you
know some people that you may be recruited by and
you said no, there might be some weird vibes, but

(49:46):
like with CD and Gino, I'm always like, ah, good
to see you, big love, big respect, just just great people.
Talking a little bit more about your senior year, you
guys had the opportunity to go and play in Canada
this year, so old out crowd. What was the energy like?
And I bet just for you, like so many people
from your community coming out to see you. What was

(50:07):
What was that like getting from the hometown?

Speaker 3 (50:10):
Amazing, amazing. It was like when they first told me
that they set it up, very grateful for it too.
Like when they first told me they set it up,
I'm like, Okay, this sounds good. And then when you
actually went down, I'm like, exceeded all my expectations. Yeah,
it was a great crowd, a lot of support, a
lot of love, seeing people I played against in high school,

(50:32):
the opponents even coming to see me and saying that
they just want to come watch this play and proud
of me. And I just think that the love around
women's basketball in Canada has grown so much and to
be a part of that in December and to witness
it firsthand, it was just amazing. Yeah, couldn't ask for
anything better for sure. And my teammates, obviously they make

(50:54):
the little Canadian jokes and CD's the one to be like, oh,
are you actually international, you know, if you're just across
the border, Like, yes, CD, i am not not American,
but no. It was just great to have both of
my families, my American family and also my Canadian family
come out and and my world's colliding and to see

(51:15):
that it was just it was amazing. And also with
the w NBA game playing in Canada early that year,
I think it was just another adjustament to what Canadians
are gonna show love to the sport and to basketball,
even though we're a hockey we're a hockey country, but
thatstball's making their way out there, so they're.

Speaker 1 (51:36):
Making the way they're making Yeah, okay, well, I mean
it looked amazing and I can't even imagine that feeling
for you, especially you know, like your family's going to
be there, but also just like people that maybe you
haven't seen in years, like you the people you played against,
like for them to come and watch you play. I know,
for me, just even having people you haven't seen for
a while come to game.

Speaker 2 (51:55):
It means so much.

Speaker 1 (51:56):
It's like, oh, it's really great. So I love that
you had to experience that than a little bit more
just about Canada basketball, even playing with the senior team
since twenty seventeen, which is wild and you're already Olympium
wild again. But what was the biggest takeaway from being

(52:20):
at the Olympics. It was already kind of like the Olympics,
but then you're at the COVID Olympics, so I feel
like there were a lot of different stuff going on
and you go with Key and Nurse, So you know,
what what was that Olympic experience?

Speaker 3 (52:33):
Like, First of all, I just want to say it
was amazing. I had the best time. I think, you know,
outside of like the actual games, we do a lot
of stuff, like we were in Japan, for about a
month before the actual game, and we went to like
a little village we were practicing, we did stuff within
the community, so there's a lot of layers of it.

Speaker 2 (52:54):
So overall it was amazing.

Speaker 3 (52:56):
I will say, though, a lot of my older teammates,
when I say, oh my gosh, this is the best
time I had, They're gonna be like, this is nothing
compared to what we're used to, like the.

Speaker 2 (53:05):
Two time Olympians. They're like, you don't know.

Speaker 3 (53:08):
What's actually goes on because this is not the same.
It's way different, it's way bigger. But I'm like, hey,
i'm young, I'm having a good time. I'm like I
could say I'm an Olympian just so I'll say, but
it was cool. Like I think one of the best
parts of it about it, other than the community stuff,
was being in the Olympic village and you like, look

(53:29):
out your window, you see people like training boxing, you
see people running.

Speaker 2 (53:35):
Around the village. In the village, there's all the flags.

Speaker 3 (53:39):
There's just this whole pathway of just all the flags
of the countries that are there competing, and you see
all the different teams, and it was just it was
a lot to take in but it was beautiful and
I just enjoyed every minute of it. And I think
that I was able to help impact a lot of
the younger generation in terms of showing that even though

(54:02):
I'm the youngest on the team, you can still dream
big and you can still achieve a lot of things
if you put your mind to and commit to it
and put in the work. And you know, I wasn't
expecting to go out there and start or anything, but
I was able to help my team and be one
of twelve, and that's all I could really ask for.

Speaker 2 (54:20):
And it was just I loved it. And I love
Japan too, shout out to shout out Japan.

Speaker 1 (54:26):
Yeah, I mean, I bet it was amazing. And I
mean finger Scruss twenty twenty four on my bigs coming
back up. So now you'll get to see what those
vets were talking about. And now you compare yourself. How
excited are you for Paris twenty twenty four.

Speaker 3 (54:42):
I'm excited obviously. As I said, I'm gonna stay in
the moment folks this season and everything like that. But no,
it's gonna be It's gonna be great, and I think
this is a great time to have the Olympics, especially
coming off of it being COVID and being so isolated.
But no, I'm super excited and the qualifiers are coming up,

(55:04):
so hoping that Canada can bring home that qualifying ticket
and secure a spot. But you know it should be excited.

Speaker 1 (55:12):
Yeah, I mean being an Olympia is wild. Dude, Like already,
like that's crazy what I did? That whole thing was.
I mean, just talking to Laticia about it here, she's like,
where's her? She wears her Olympic necklace.

Speaker 3 (55:25):
Literally as soon as we got back she got that,
and I'm like, girl, she's like, I'm gonna get tatted
or do it.

Speaker 2 (55:34):
I'm not surprised. She's amazing.

Speaker 1 (55:38):
She's a clown, is what she is. Non stop. Now
she wears that day necklace every day.

Speaker 2 (55:44):
We get it.

Speaker 1 (55:45):
And then how did shemate Alicia Gray just got tagged
with her olymp Olympic thing. Let me tell you it's
the smallest tat but she's like a lot added a
big girl. I'm like, all right, we get a two Olympians.
You're good, we get it. Whatever. So moving back into
the college realm, nil has come about since you've been

(56:05):
in school, So what is that like being you know,
tell us a little bit about the experience. Is it
different being international? What are the rules? Like? I know,
you've got to do a lot of cool things with
putting on your camp and everything, but how does NIL work?

Speaker 3 (56:18):
So it's a bit different being an international student because
we are here on a student visa at the school,
we can't officially work in the United States, so a
lot international students can't really capitalize off NIL. But there
are ways around it, you know. I think our university

(56:38):
here has been doing a lot of good things whereas
like group licensing it and stuff like that, so everyone
can kind of everyone eats and I'm like, okay, let
me get some of this person, you know what I'm saying,
anything I can. But yeah, so it is a bit
a bit challenging, and we can only really capitalize off
NIL if we're off American soil, so that's really the

(57:03):
only time we can participate in it. At the same time,
you know, from when I was younger, just dribbling in basketball,
it's just all been about ball for me, not really
about what comes with it, but just about the relationships
I build and what I come in here to do
every day in the gym, and so I'm happy I'm cruising,
but you know, if I could get a little money

(57:24):
on the side, and I would appreciate that as well.

Speaker 1 (57:26):
For sure, for sure give me you know everybody eats,
for sure. And just talking about those relationships that you built,
you did have the opportunity to do your own camp
in Canada. What was that experience like getting to give
back and just kind of see the impact that you've
had for young Canadian hoopers wanting to grow up and
be just like you.

Speaker 3 (57:45):
Oh my gosh. So let me tell you, running a
camp is not easy.

Speaker 1 (57:50):
It's not for the week. It's the week.

Speaker 3 (57:53):
I was like, Mom, you need to help me, like
come on, come on, come on. But it was a
great show. I was expecting maybe like thirty. It's sixty
kids pulled up and I'm like, okay, got to change
the whole schedule.

Speaker 2 (58:04):
But it was just great.

Speaker 3 (58:06):
And I think that just having the whole community come
out and to show love. Wasn't expecting it, but I
got more than what I asked for, and it was
really something that I wanted to do for a long time.
And since I've been away at school, it's hard to
you know, tap back into your community and go back
to your roots and really thank the people who sacrificed

(58:27):
so much for you. So it was a great opportunity.
I had a small window before I had to come
back here for summer training, but it was amazing. And
it wasn't really for money either. They had to bring
in like a canned good perish non perishful food item
and I donated all the food items to a local
soup kitchen in my hometown. So it wasn't really about

(58:50):
the money for me. It was more about the experience
that the kids were getting out of it. I had
some little goodies for them, They had halftime earth, they
shot half court shots and had little prizes and it
was just a fun day for them. So that's really
what I wanted to come out of it.

Speaker 1 (59:06):
I bet it was sick, Like doing your own camp
is so fun. It is a lot of work, but
like also just being around like little kids at camps,
it really makes you. For me at least, I was like,
basketball is so fun because sometimes it's like it's a job.
You're in the grinds and you see these little kids
like having so much fun, it really reminds you. It's like, oh,

(59:27):
my god, it is fun, like it's not just the
grind all the time, and I'm very upset.

Speaker 3 (59:31):
I worked out it was fun and let me tell you,
I even had a TikTok station and they were eating
that up.

Speaker 1 (59:37):
And oh the kiddos love TikTok. I love TikTok because
why am I saying middle schoolers on my for you
page doing a dance better than I am.

Speaker 2 (59:46):
That's what I'm saying.

Speaker 1 (59:48):
I was on music stop it musically please, like there's
a different app triller or something like that. There's a
lot going on, but I'm just like, why am I
on TikTok learning how to do makeup from these elementary
school girls? And I'm like, they're giving me chips, They're
giving me tips like oh brons are here, highlight, thank you.
But before we move into our last section, which is

(01:00:11):
like rapid fire, which you're gonna be great out, I
already know we're gonna do quick things, one being I'm
gonna give you three three items and then you're gonna
tell me which one's gotta go. So it started with easy,
like a game day routine. You got pregame meal, y'all,
shoot around and y'all warm up music? Which one's gotta go?

Speaker 2 (01:00:31):
Shoot around? I'm sorry, Yeah, I need to eat and
I need my music shoot around. I always gotta go.

Speaker 1 (01:00:38):
This is a big one for me. And you already know. Bonnet,
headband or hair tie? Which one's going.

Speaker 2 (01:00:46):
Because you're whenever I'm home or off the court, the
bonnet bonnet is on. I wear car bonnet is my hat,
my winter hat. I have my bonnet under. So if
you guys see this, you know I'm not frizz.

Speaker 1 (01:01:00):
From my beani. It's crazy. Uh wow, I do.

Speaker 3 (01:01:05):
Love my head band too. Yeah, I'm gonna have to
sacrifice the hairsie.

Speaker 1 (01:01:10):
We can go here, we can, yeah, like the braids
can tie it up somehow. Yeah, there's ways to go
about it. And then earlier we touched on CD. But
I got to hear your favorite geno story. There's gotta
be something wild, there's gotta be something good man.

Speaker 2 (01:01:27):
Favorite favorite coach story?

Speaker 1 (01:01:30):
Mm hmm.

Speaker 3 (01:01:32):
There's just so many things I could say about what
to say? You gotta be what's your favorite? What's the
top one? Man? Because coaches he's funny off the court,
like he's like a grand for real, He's not even
not a grandpa. He is.

Speaker 1 (01:01:47):
He is like everyone says that he looks like the
guy from up.

Speaker 2 (01:01:52):
Oh my god. Oh.

Speaker 3 (01:01:57):
I think one of the funniest things, like on the
court he did was it was when we were in
the bubble, Like there's that picture of Page like hitting
him on the back as she like she like scored
a bucket, like hit him on the back, and he
like looked back like what. I think that that was
just a fun memory that my team had my freshman year.
And I think that that's just who he is, like

(01:02:18):
even though you make him off as a bit scary,
he's just like, as I said, a little grandpa and
it's all love at the.

Speaker 2 (01:02:24):
End of the day.

Speaker 3 (01:02:25):
So I think that whole like picture just sums up
everything of what he is.

Speaker 1 (01:02:29):
Yeah, that's a good one. That picture went viral too,
but that yeah, yeah, that one's good. And then my
other one for you is we talked about being a
freshman it's a hard time and how sometimes watching that
film is tough. And I know me personally, I've had
a few horror stories for my own time in the
film room with miss Tara I hoof, there were some times, man,

(01:02:50):
I can imagine do you have a horror story of
yourself that you had to like watch film or get
called out in front of the team because it'd be hard.

Speaker 3 (01:02:58):
I don't know specific game, but I think that in
film for us, the way the film room is laid out,
it's like freshman said the back, then it goes sophomore, junior, senior.

Speaker 2 (01:03:11):
So when you get.

Speaker 3 (01:03:13):
Closer to the coach, which is he's like down here,
when you get closer to him, it's more like oh,
because when when he's gonna call you about, he's gonna
turn around and look at you and call you back.
So uh yeah, there was one time I think it
was like a ball screen coverage and he's like like
are you even here? Lee?

Speaker 2 (01:03:29):
Like what are you doing? Like can you tell me what?

Speaker 3 (01:03:34):
Yeah, so it was it's probably more defensive stuff than
than offense. But yeah, defense he definitely comes for me.
But it makes me a better player at the end
of the day.

Speaker 1 (01:03:42):
So for whatever coach is asking that, like what were
you doing, it's.

Speaker 3 (01:03:48):
For you. And he's the type of guy that he
asked so many rhetorical questions.

Speaker 2 (01:03:52):
I'm like, do I answer?

Speaker 1 (01:03:54):
How do I get out of this?

Speaker 2 (01:03:56):
Yeah? Sometimes silence is just the best.

Speaker 1 (01:03:59):
See. I had to learn that silence was the best
because my freshman year, I remember I threw like back
to back passes and it was the same pass to
my same teammate and she could have caught it and
hit her hand and soars asking me. Tara's asking me like, oh,
are you gonna throw it again? Yes, and then all
of a sudden trying to look at me, and they're like, Hayley.

Speaker 2 (01:04:17):
And I'm like, I'm not gonna lie.

Speaker 1 (01:04:19):
Opportunity if we are to arise, I'm gonna throw the
pass again and she better catch it. So, like you know,
I had to learn silence was the way the majority
of the time, you know what to each their own.
Moving into our last section here called the vibe check,
It's gonna be rapid fire questions. So I need you
to do your best. Oh going fast. Some people are great,
some people are horrible. Yeah, so I believe let's.

Speaker 2 (01:04:43):
Strive for like mid.

Speaker 1 (01:04:46):
The expectations too high. So starting off, what's the drill
you never want to see on the practice plan?

Speaker 3 (01:04:54):
Oh my gosh, Kansas. Let me tell you about Kansas, Kansas,
Oh my gosh. So so basically it's three people going
at a time. We got like a usually a forward
or a big and then two guards. So you throw
the ball off the backboard and then it's a weave.
You do a layup, but you're not done. You have

(01:05:14):
four more trips to go after that. Yes, four, So
after that layup you come back down. It's a three
point shot. Then you inbound it. Then you go back down.
You usually do like a secondary play or something like that,
like a pistol or something like that. Do that, then
it's like a driving kick. Then you're done. But mind you,
these three people are doing like four their and backs

(01:05:36):
and one rep and if you're a forward like me,
you have to inbound the ball and CD doesn't want
the ball to touch, so you guys go through the
hoop or it's a rebound.

Speaker 2 (01:05:47):
You gotta press or you start over.

Speaker 3 (01:05:50):
That one definitely, especially my freshman year, that was an
eye opener and I was like, you gotta be conditioned
to do that. And a lot of our drills are
conditioning drills, so.

Speaker 1 (01:06:01):
Yeah, that's what they like.

Speaker 2 (01:06:04):
Yeah, exactly to set up from the start.

Speaker 3 (01:06:06):
When you hear it, when you hear it, when you
hear Kansas, you're like, all.

Speaker 1 (01:06:09):
Right, oh yeah, I know, I stay for We had
this one drills. It was our five man weave. And
let me tell you, every day i'd be trying to
look at tars practicing. I'm like, is it yeah, I
go look, it's like always in their back pocket. I'm like,
I'm like, okay, you gotta tell the team. I'm like, guys, like, honestly,
it's at the end. So you may want to find
a few places of coast. You may want to figure

(01:06:31):
it out because it's coming and it's always it's a
set up. Okay, game winning shot or game winning block.

Speaker 3 (01:06:38):
I'm gonna go bucket okay, okay, group TikTok or solo
TikTok oh.

Speaker 2 (01:06:45):
I'll be killing the solo ones. You're cool, you do.

Speaker 3 (01:06:48):
But the thing with the group ones, like if not
everyone's on the same page, it may not be successful.
You know, I do a lot of dancing TikTok too,
So I'm gonna say I'm gonna say group ones because
they're always fun.

Speaker 2 (01:07:00):
You guys get the drafts of the group.

Speaker 1 (01:07:02):
Tusis place to play on the road.

Speaker 2 (01:07:06):
We've been to a lot of good places.

Speaker 3 (01:07:10):
I would say Tennessee just because of you know, the
history and.

Speaker 1 (01:07:13):
There it is not orange is bright?

Speaker 2 (01:07:18):
It really it's a sea of orange. And I don't
know if I like it.

Speaker 1 (01:07:23):
Who's the biggest trash talker you could be played against
on your team? Biggest trash talker.

Speaker 2 (01:07:29):
Biggest trash talker. Oh, it's not going, it's not rapid
fire at all.

Speaker 1 (01:07:34):
It's okay, we set our expectations low, right, it's a
cool man.

Speaker 3 (01:07:40):
I don't know that i've played against. Maybe maybe, like
let's think about the National Championship game. When I was
playing that game, I feel like just the whole South
Carolina team, they were really just.

Speaker 1 (01:07:55):
Okay.

Speaker 3 (01:07:56):
They was just honest. I wouldn't say I can say
trash talk. It was like healthy petition. But like if
you're winning too, I would be like stuff too, So
I'd say that's the that's the biggest like game where
I felt like, dang, like maybe I shouldn't say nothing back.

Speaker 1 (01:08:13):
I got you. You just gotta take some sometimes, yeah,
biggest flopper.

Speaker 2 (01:08:18):
Oh you want me to call somebody out, now, it's
up to you.

Speaker 1 (01:08:22):
It's to you.

Speaker 3 (01:08:24):
I'm a I'm no, I'm not gonna say anything because
you want me to. You're gonna set me up. So
I'm gonna say, I'm gonna.

Speaker 1 (01:08:31):
You can give us one on your team to not
to not if.

Speaker 2 (01:08:34):
You have on your mind biggest flopper.

Speaker 3 (01:08:38):
See, that's setting me up even more because I have
to go back and live with these people exactly exactly.

Speaker 1 (01:08:43):
But this is something I'm sure you would say to them. Anyways.
I'll be telling you that's true.

Speaker 2 (01:08:49):
I would say maybe nic.

Speaker 1 (01:08:54):
Not her.

Speaker 3 (01:08:55):
Oh my, I feel like I feel like, especially like
me and her, we know how to draw thes really well.
So I wanted to call it flopping. I would say
that we're really how we're trying to. Yeah, a little
bit little acting, take a little take a little hit
at the same time.

Speaker 1 (01:09:11):
So all right, okay, what's your biggest basketball egg.

Speaker 3 (01:09:16):
There's a lot in practice, Like we have a water
bottle cart, so yeah, if if he calls for a
water break, I need space to like go and grab
my water bottle. I don't want you guys just chill
and drinking water right by the cart, Like I need
space to grab it and get out of there. So
if you're taking too long by the cart is running

(01:09:37):
into my water break time and CD be like it's
not a full media timeout. So I don't need all
that happened to me at the same time.

Speaker 1 (01:09:43):
Exactly.

Speaker 2 (01:09:44):
That's one of my eggs. Don't stand by because.

Speaker 1 (01:09:46):
You want to sit down. Time it's go sip. So
why are you standing with my bottle?

Speaker 3 (01:09:51):
Right?

Speaker 2 (01:09:52):
What are you doing? Exactly?

Speaker 1 (01:09:55):
Who's your celebrity lookalike look alike?

Speaker 2 (01:09:58):
Okay?

Speaker 3 (01:09:59):
Yeah?

Speaker 2 (01:09:59):
Do we have hold on? I don't know if we do.
We can say.

Speaker 3 (01:10:04):
We could probably say Aliyah because you know, the same name,
same spelling and everything. I think she she she's cute too,
so that's not a bad one.

Speaker 1 (01:10:12):
Shout out, shout out of me? Is she cute too?

Speaker 2 (01:10:14):
Okay?

Speaker 1 (01:10:15):
If you had to pick someone to be our two
on two partner and you can't pick a teammate, who
would you pick?

Speaker 3 (01:10:22):
I need I need a guard for sure, I can't.
I need I need space to operate. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,
I would probably say let's go with Kiya because I
feel like, you know, we already played together.

Speaker 1 (01:10:37):
You are dropping the ball in terms of rapid fire,
and then you just want to say, your fellow Canadians, yeah, because.

Speaker 2 (01:10:45):
You said I couldn't say you can teammates, I'm gonna
go with you know my me?

Speaker 1 (01:10:50):
Okay? I hope this one was better, but I feel
like it won't be. What's your favorite pregame hype song.

Speaker 3 (01:10:56):
I'm gonna tell you my favorite artist, So it's definitely Drake.
You know, I.

Speaker 2 (01:11:01):
Gotta rep the six all right.

Speaker 3 (01:11:03):
But no, he he gets me hype, but usually off
the court, I like to do more like a chill Drake.

Speaker 1 (01:11:08):
But pre it's more like so what so? Yeah, so
what's like our up tempo Drake? Maybe like here we
go again, Here we go again.

Speaker 3 (01:11:22):
You're killing me.

Speaker 2 (01:11:26):
Trying to think of the song off that.

Speaker 1 (01:11:30):
You're durn. We're just gonna stick.

Speaker 2 (01:11:32):
We're just gonna Okay, Drake, I need a good one
for this last one?

Speaker 1 (01:11:35):
Your best impersonation of of coach gino of coach.

Speaker 2 (01:11:40):
Okay, Yeah, so he'd be like Mike a little bit.

Speaker 1 (01:11:43):
He'd be like, Okay, well you need to talk us
through it. This is a podcast.

Speaker 2 (01:11:47):
You can't just give. But that's all he gives. Sometimes
he just gives.

Speaker 1 (01:11:54):
He just gives, like like RBS, is that what we're
getting a little bit?

Speaker 3 (01:11:59):
So, okay, say I miss a layup? He like turned
to the to the bench and turn to like our
position coaches, and he'll be like.

Speaker 1 (01:12:07):
Jay, what is that?

Speaker 2 (01:12:08):
Is that what you've been teaching? Leah? I know why
a game he'll damn yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:12:15):
If I was a position coach, I'd be like Aleiah,
I got to hear it because of you get it together.

Speaker 2 (01:12:21):
I don't need it. I do get it.

Speaker 3 (01:12:24):
But I think that the face expression was way better.

Speaker 1 (01:12:27):
But okay, well, you know, forget about the people who
watched the pod. They'll get to see the face, see.

Speaker 2 (01:12:35):
The impression.

Speaker 3 (01:12:36):
You know.

Speaker 2 (01:12:36):
I'm saying you out at the same time.

Speaker 1 (01:12:37):
Oh yeah, yeah, you're done. But thank you so much
for coming on. This has been nothing but a pleasure.
You're amazing. I'm a big fan, so thank.

Speaker 2 (01:12:47):
You for coming on. Thank you. I'm a big fan
of you. To keep killing in the league, you know, jeez.

Speaker 1 (01:12:53):
But thank you to everybody for listening. We'll be back
next week with another episode of Sometimes.

Speaker 2 (01:12:59):
I Who.

Speaker 1 (01:13:19):
The Players Tribute dot Com

Speaker 3 (01:13:23):
MHM

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