I call her Tara...
Updated: Oct 22
A couple of weeks ago, during our stop in Denver, I was randomly scrolling social media when an ad popped up for an opportunity I never dreamed I’d get – the chance to participate in a basketball masterclass with Tara VanDerveer.
Tara, I like to consider us on a first name basis after meeting her for 20 seconds at the 2010 Final Four in San Antonio, has been a person I’ve admired, nay idolized, since Stanford won their first national championship in 1990. I have been a devoted fan of that program for over 30 years now.
A Long Distance Love Affair with Stanford Women’s Basketball
Living in Juneau, Alaska in the 90's and early 2000's did not make it easy to follow Stanford, or any other women’s college basketball team. Throughout most of the 90’s, there were very few televised regular season games and only the Final Four on TV when we got to tournament time. It’s only been since about 2012 that the PAC-12 and other conference networks were available on cable. Before that I mostly read about Stanford’s games and their players and hoped to watch them on TV in the NCAA Tournament. According to Google, only the three games of the Final Four were the only ones televised as recently as 1996. ESPN expanded that coverage over subsequent years, but it wasn’t until 2021 that they aired every tournament game. That’s so recent! Man, I really was a devoted fan with such little access…
I got to see Stanford in-person a handful of times while I was still living in Juneau. My family is from the San Francisco Bay area, and during one visit in the 90’s, I went to two Stanford home games and took my grandma with me. I could only get nosebleed seats, but it was still very cool to be there in person and share it with my grandma. In 2004 I went to the PAC-10 women’s basketball tournament in San Jose, immersing myself in four days of women’s basketball and watching Stanford win it. I was in heaven!
My wife Kris surprised me with 2010 Final Four tickets for my 40th birthday. She got the tickets well before we knew who would make it to the Final Four, and I was thrilled when Stanford was one of the teams! At the Final Four, they give fans an opportunity to go through an autograph line with players and coaches of each team. We asked if I could take a picture with Tara. She put her arm around me and said, “We're best friends, aren't we?” I lost all ability to speak, so starstruck. As with many older digital photos, I can’t find where we saved that one. Stanford lost the championship game to UConn that year in a fairly disappointing game, but it was still so awesome to be there!
Tara VanDerveer, Now
Back to the masterclass. I’ve watched a bunch of interviews with Tara over the years, but they were always relatively short. I am very excited and curious to listen to her in this context and get a better glimpse into how her brain works, basketball-wise during four two-hour classes.
Last night was our first class, and while I was only participating via Zoom from St. George, Utah (not in-person, darn it!), it was pretty cool to listen to her talk. They had some technical difficulties at the beginning, which sort of made me laugh, given that I’ve put Stanford on such a pedestal for many years. They’re really just like any other group trying to combine an in-person and Zoom meeting.
After the technology stuff was resolved, Tara and her guest, Marianne Stanley, discussed several aspects of the importance of point guards. They included a lot of highlights of college and pro players, including Jennifer Azzi from early 90’s Stanford (one of my favorites back in the day), and less well-known players including Caitlin Clark, Chelsea Gray, Paige Bueckers, Olivia Miles, and Steph Curry. Marianne Stanley is a successful coach in her own right, so they’re two people with great knowledge and experience.
I consider myself a student of the game, and I feel like I have pretty decent knowledge and understanding. Kris and anyone else who watches a game with me will hear my near-constant analysis (whether they want to or not😊). In fact, I’ve been known to beat the professional commentators to their own impressions fairly regularly. It drives Kris nuts, but shout out to my dad who used to do the same thing. I think that means it’s hereditary? While I expected to learn more about basketball in general, I mostly wanted more insight into Tara – all the things that make her such an icon. I definitely got some of that. Also, since I know 30+ years of Stanford players, I get to hear stories about some of them as well as interesting back story.
They talked about their “hometown” Golden State Valkyries who are in their first WNBA Championship series in only their 2nd year in existence. They have amazing support in the Bay Area, and you can tell everyone at this class was following closely. She said the GM and coaches have skillfully and very intentionally put together players with skills that complement each other, and they’re all playing unselfishly for the good of the team. It’s a huge key to any successful team.
Two quotes I came away with: “Two things I don’t do well with: selfish or lazy.” She said as a coach, you need to figure out why either or both of those things are happening and try to help a player change for the better.
Also, this:
All in all, it was a good first class. I’m looking forward to the next three, where Tara invites other coaches I admire. It won’t create a one-on-one opportunity to talk with Tara and call her by her first name with permission. But after so many years as a fan, it’s just really cool to feel a little more connection to this person and program that has meant so much to me and greatly fueled my love of basketball.
Here are some pics from the 2024 Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas - the last games Tara coached before her retirement.
About the Tree.
You may or may not know that the Stanford Cardinal (no s) does not have an official mascot. Stanford was the "Indians" until it dropped that in 1972. According to Google:
"The famous Stanford Tree began as a 1975 halftime joke by the Stanford Band, which satirically parodied the school's lack of a mascot by rolling out a giant redwood tree representing El Palo Alto."
The tree is different every year as new students design it, so over the years, I've noticed many creative versions. Here it is at the 2024 Pac-12 tourney.
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