5 things about Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve's past, support system and goals
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Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Saturday.
Reeve was named the Lynx coach in 2009. Since then, she's won four championships and four WNBA coach of the year awards, coached the U.S. women's basketball team to three Olympic gold medals and had six of her players inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.
MPR News digital producer Anika Besst spoke with Reeve in Knoxville before the induction about what has led her to this honor.
The following was edited for length and clarity. Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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1) Players love her
CHERYL REEVE: I'm not sitting here, you know, I’m not going to be standing there on the stage tomorrow night without so, so many great players that poured into wanting to be great, right?
As you’re hearing from them, they didn’t necessarily have a choice, you know, like we were going to drive them because we saw greatness in them. And you know, for me, you know, I just feel incredibly blessed, you know, the type of people, and their belief in me to allow me to be myself, that's always been like super important, and yeah.
2) Two coaches drove her early: Coach Bunting and Coach William “Speedy” Morris
ANIKA BESST: Speedy had a quote, he said he “will never not be proud of you.” Can you talk about what that means to you?
CHERYL REEVE: You’re going to make me cry. Oh my goodness, like that’s a man that I think about my career path, he coached me my first two years of college. He was so hard on me, but he was like my dad, and I liked, I was motivated by him.
He was funny, you know, he played pranks on me, and he was just, he was an incredible coach. And so much of, I think, who I am as a coach, you know, that came from that base that he taught us, and you know, incredible, incredible college career that was started off by, you know, two great years with him. It makes me, I mean, I feel proud that he's so proud, and that's all we want to do.
ANIKA BESST: I asked both of them if they take any credit for your coaching. Both told me they take no credit.
CHERYL REEVE: Well, Dawn, and I'll talk about them tomorrow. So, so, yeah, I needed people like Dawn. You don't know that until you're later, until you're older. I needed people like Dawn, who was a badass woman who, competitive as all get out, and she drove us to be great. She showed me what it looked like to be a coach that drove people, you know, to be great, and that was special.
3) She almost chose softball over hoops
ANIKA BESST: The only thing Coach Bunting does take credit for is telling you to not pursue softball.
CHERYL REEVE: It's a great story. I remember we were sitting on the back steps outside the high school gym, and you know, we were doing the scholarship letter thing, and I was really into softball, and what she told me was, you’re better at softball, but basketball has more opportunity, scholarship opportunities, etc. That's what just was the reality at that time, and she was right, and I listened to her.
So I get credit for listening, she gets credit for telling? No, I’ve been blessed. I mean, anytime anybody goes through their career and has a career that I was fortunate to have, there are so many influences along the way that led to this, and Dawn and Speedy were absolutely massive parts of my career, my journey.
4) Her family is her center
ANIKA BESST: How about a massive part of your personal life and your career? Your wife, Carley. I think something that’s really unique is that both of you have created a space that allows for social change and for your players to be themselves. Can you talk about what that’s meant to you?
CHERYL REEVE: I mean, that’s one of the most special things about the relationships about the we have with our players and our organization, and obviously Carley leads in the business space and is more forward facing, you know, with the fans and behind the scenes, and you know all of that. Obviously, I show up to the game, I know there’s fans there, but the synergy that our players and our fans, and obviously the great work that Carley has done for all these years, everyone feeling like they can show up as themselves is probably the most powerful, powerful thing that we've done. I feel empowered by it.
Carley helped me get to that space. You know, early in our relationship, I thought she was incredibly annoying. I'm a little older, so my generation was we didn't talk about things as much, and Carley kind of brought me into a, you know, a newer space of, like, ‘no, own this,’ you know, like ‘we're together, I'm not going to be a closeted girlfriend,’ and kind of like pulled us together into this space.
Yeah, I mean, I think, you know, we’ve been a good team going through this together, and that work, I'm here probably because of wins, but the greatest wins, I think, are that space that we’ve been able to empower our players to be their authentic selves.
5) She sees a bright future for the WNBA and might want to be a team owner some day.
CHERYL REEVE: I’m so excited for the next 30 years. I don’t know how many of them I’ll be a part of, you know. I hope, I hope I get 30.
That there is, when I was, 2001 my first season, I believed in this so much, even at a time when we were being told that we weren’t worth a darn. And I believe even more so, obviously, now that we're saying we told you that if we do this and we treat this the right way, this is what we can be. And so that same thing, that same trajectory that the NBA, as a league, is on, is the same trajectory that we have.
I’m excited for what’s next. You know, I’d love to stay in it, in whatever capacity beyond coaching, and you know, would love to own a team and be a part of an ownership group that continues to elevate, and so that my son can see what it’s like to pour into something you’re so passionate about, right? And to be a part of its success.
He’s a huge WNBA fan, he’s like my assistant GM, I mean, he's just so, he's so good and so passionate about it, but it's showing him the fortitude that it takes if you really, really want something.
