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Spelling bee champ Zaila Avant-garde finally gets to meet her basketball idol, Uconn alum and Dallas Wings guard Moriah Jefferson
Zaila Avant-garde has had a whirlwind summer, bursting into the national spotlight by winning the Scripps National Spelling Bee on July 8, becoming the first Black American to do so.
Sunday was yet another special moment for the 14-year-old rising star as she attended the Dallas Wings’ home matchup against the Connecticutsun—herfirstwnba game—andmetherbasketballidol, Wings guard and former Uconn star Moriah Jefferson.
The Harvey, La., native is just as much a basketball prodigy as a spelling one and aspires to one day play in the WNBA. She holds three basketball-related Guinness World Records, including the most bounce juggles in a minute with four basketballs, the most basketball bounces in 30 seconds with four basketballs and a tie for the most basketballs dribbled at once.
“Basketball, I’m not just playing it. I’m really trying to go somewhere with it. Basketball is
what I do,” Avant-garde told the Associated Press. “Spelling is really a side thing I do. It’s like a little hors d’oeuvre. But basketball’s like the main dish.”
Jefferson, who is from Texas and has spent the bulk of her WNBA career playing in San Antonio and Dallas, is Avant-garde’s “hero,” which made it all the more special when the four-time national champion at Uconn called her shortly after she won the
Scripps National Spelling Bee to congratulate her and invite her to a Wings game.
Avant-garde not only got to watch the Wings but showed off some of her basketball tricks at half-court for the Dallas crowd. She appeared on the TV broadcast at halftime and recounted getting to meet Jefferson in person for the first time.
“She came and said hello to me and that’s really big,” Avant-garde said. “She was the first female basketball player that I ever saw when I first started. I watch her videos every day. So that means a lot.”
Jefferson also spent time with her after the game, an 80-59 Dallas loss, taking pictures and trying to pick up some of Avant-garde’s basketball skills.
“As you can see, it’s not easy,” Jefferson said, laughing at the camera as she fumbled the balls. “So I have no idea how she does it every day.”
The interaction didn’t just mean something for Avant-garde but also for Jefferson.
“Game didn’t go the way I wanted it to but hanging out with @basketballasart [Avantgarde] made my day,” Jefferson posted on Instagram.