`A front-row seat to the magic': Coale says Paris' addition a big boost
NORMAN — Courtney Paris knew her playing career was wrapping up during the winter while playing overseas f or Turkey's Ormanspor.
“I' m not young ,” Paris remember thinking repeatedly during the season. “I'm not 25. I've gotten older. My career's gotten harder. Things started to hurt.”
That got her thinking about her future. She still enjoyed being a part of a team and had discovered, in mentoring former Notre Dame star Arike Ogunbowale, that she liked guiding young players.
Now, Paris will continue the role of mentorship with her alma mater after being named as an assistant coach for OU earlier in the week.
Paris and Sooner coach Sherri Coale spoke publicly Friday for the first time since Paris' hire. Paris, just months removed from her playing days, both in the WNBA and overseas, hasn't coached before.
“I think when this opportunity happened, those feelings I was having, although I wasn't necessarily saying, `I want to go be a coach,' when Coach Coale presented the opportunity to me it was like, this made perfect sense to me,” Paris said. “I love Oklahoma, I believe in
Oklahoma, so this was an easy move for me to make.”
It's often difficult for great players to become effective coaches.
But Paris said her unique experience will provide good buil di ng bl ocks. After starring at OU and becoming the sport's first four-time All-American, she struggled to find a place in the WNBA. But then, she became a two-time WNBA rebounding champion and was a key bench player for Seattle's 2018 championship team.
“It gave me perspective,” Paris said of the start of her pro career. “I played every single position on every single team, as far as my role on the team, and it taught me so much. It's hard to tell kids, `Well, I know how it feels,' when you don't know how it feels. It's hard to relate to the player that's not playing when you're the star player. But now I can relate to every situation, because
I played every role.”
With Paris joining a staff that already has Jackie Stiles, the Sooners now have two of the most decorated players in women's college basketball history on their sidelines.
“Both of them became all-time greats because of how they worked at their craft and because of how they were able to get people to play with them and for them and not just alongside of them, and I think that is the magic for great players,” Coale said. “So, if you play in our program, you get a front-row seat to the magic. I think that will
be as much of a draw as the records that they hold or the points that they've scored.”
And Coale said if a game between coaching staffs ever breaks out, her team will be head-and-shoulders above the rest.
“There's no staff i n America that wants to play our staff five-onfive,” Coale said Friday. “Forget about it. Just forget about it. A.T. (Amanda Thompson), Courtney (Paris), Jackie Stiles. I'll be smart enough to receive the inbounds pass and throw it to one of them and let them go to work.”