Whirlwind in the W (pt. 1)
Whirlwind - A situation in which you experience a lot of different emotions; and/or a situation when a lot of different things happen very quickly, one after another, typically difficult for someone to control
With the 2022 WNBA season right around the corner, I feel inclined to share some of my whirlwind experiences from the W. After all, I am arguably the most wanted, unwanted player in the history of the league. Since being drafted 14th overall in the 2015 WNBA draft, I have played for eight of the 12 WNBA franchises. In the 2021 WNBA season alone, I played for THREE different teams. I’m what our profession likes to call a “bubble player.” My job in the league is far from guaranteed, and I have to fight like hell just to make it through training camp. I’m a jack of all trades, but a master of none. Yet, despite all of this, I’ve had the opportunity to suit up alongside some of the greatest to ever do it. Not because of my own statistical contributions (those are very minimal in the W), but because of the lessons I’ve learned and applied along the way. Lessons that I’ll continue to implement long after the ball stops bouncing.
The W, in my opinion, is the most competitive league in the world. With only 12 teams in the league, and each team holding 12 or less roster spots, there are only 144 women who can say they play in the W at any given time. This league is filled with trailblazing, extraordinary women who continue to break barriers, shatter ceilings, and amplify voices and stories that otherwise would go unseen and unheard. The women of the W are bold, beautiful, and brilliant. It’s an honor and a privilege to say that I’ve played alongside such amazing women for five seasons.
But if we want to talk about the league as a business, then I owe it to you all to be completely honest and transparent. The WNBA as a business is BRUTAL! You can throw all the physical demands you want at me. I played at the University of Tennessee – there isn’t a practice, workout or conditioning drill that I haven’t already seen. But the demand that the league takes on your mental and emotional well-being, well, that’s a completely different monster.
I admire players who know they’re always going to have a roster spot at the start of a new season. It has to be an incredible relief to know your income is guaranteed and your job is safe. And don’t get me wrong, those players deserve that type of stability and consistency! But that’s a peace of mind that I’ve never experienced. My story has a completely different ring to it. It’s beautiful, because it’s mine, but man, there’s been some really ugly moments. My story is one of a girl who took blow after blow after blow, and never gave up. One that had to fight tooth and nail for every opportunity she got. My time in the WNBA has been nothing BUT a whirlwind. But to be honest, I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. It was in the struggle that I learned how strong I really am.
I remember the night I got drafted like it was yesterday. I wasn’t invited to the draft, so I got to watch the draft on TV with my closest friends and family by my side. (10/10 would recommend. I’m so glad I got to share that moment with those I love most.) Leading up to the draft, I had no idea where I would get drafted, or even IF I would get drafted. All I knew is I had put in the time and work, and the rest was in God’s hands. It was a total dream come true when then-WNBA President Laurel Richie stepped to the podium to say: “And with the 14th pick in the 2015 WNBA Draft, the Los Angeles Sparks select Cierra Burdick from the University of Tennessee.” The room erupted! Joyous shouts and warm embraces filled the space. I’m sure I hugged everyone, but the one hug I remember most was with my mom. All the struggle we had endured up to that point, all the obstacles she climbed to ensure I had a chance, all the love and support she poured into me on a daily basis – it was finally paying off. I wiped away a few tears... “We did it, Ma. I’m going to L.A.!”
My assistant coach in college always used to tell me, “Never get too high, never get too low. Stay even keel.” Part of the reason she preached this to me so incessantly was because I didn’t always channel my passion and competitiveness in the most productive ways. I could go 0-100 real quick when it came to a ref making a bad call or one of my teammates taking a cheap shot from a rival opponent. (Ask any one of my college teammates, I was ready to risk it all when it came to having their back on the court.) In hindsight, I was clearly still in the early practice stages of “Staying Even Keel 101” during my Tennessee days. But as I became a pro, this advice, although still difficult to execute at times, became critical in my ability to navigate the WNBA whirlwind. Because ima be honest, the W whirlwind just hits differently. It’ll have you floating on cloud nine on draft night and then lying in a pit of despair a month and a half later.
Two weeks after the draft, I made my way out to Los Angeles to get some extra work in before training camp started. Training camp is by far the most grueling part of the season. Your body is stretched to its physical limits, rest and sleep are scarce, and anxiety and nerves are at an all-time high. But despite all of this, I was feeling good about my chances. I had overheard our captain, Nneka Ogwumike, tell reporters that out of all the rookies, she felt like I had stood out the most. (Insert blushing Emoji) As flattering as Nneka’s comments were, they didn’t mean too much in the grand scheme of things. Unfortunately, she wasn’t the head coach or general manager.
The final day of training camp fell on June 4, exactly seven weeks after the draft. The Sparks were a veteran-loaded team, so I knew that realistically there was only one available roster spot. I had put in the time and work. The rest was in God’s hands. I was called into a conference room where the general manager, head coach and all three assistants sat around a large, oval table. They started to talk about how well I did in camp and how difficult it was to select the final 12-woman roster. (In my head I’m thinking just cut to the chase already!) And then the tone in their voices shifted, and I could tell where this was inevitably going. I couldn’t even tell you what all was said. I just remember how my heart fell to my feet and how my eyes welled with tears. All I could think was, Don’t let them see you cry! Don’t let them see you cry! I thanked them for the opportunity and escorted myself out of the room and to the nearest bathroom.
I barely made it through the door before I collapsed at the sinks. Just as quickly as I had celebrated with family and friends as I watched my childhood dream come to reality, I was now left kneeling on a bathroom floor, alone, crying and praying for God to make a way. I didn’t even play in an official game. I thought my dream was over before it had started. I was mortified.
I eventually mustered up enough strength and courage to pull myself off the bathroom floor. I imagine I called my mom and agent on the way back to the hotel, but as far as details go, I remember nothing. I’m pretty sure I repressed those memories. As I packed my bags and prepared for my flight back to the East Coast, I received a phone call from a number I didn’t recognize.
“Hey Burd! This is Michael Cooper, head coach of the Atlanta Dream. How ya doing?”
So much for staying even keel. My emotions were spent! The human body should not have to endure such emotional turbulence.
God must have heard my prayers on that bathroom floor, because the Dream wanted to acquire me off the waiver list and hoped to have me in-market in the coming week. I had gone from the clouds to the pit, but I was getting a second chance. And not only was I getting a second chance, but I also was getting a chance to play close to home!
One thing I’ve learned through this journey is God’s plan is always greater than my own. Even in my hardest moments, He’s got a way of working it all out for good.
I was headed back to the East Coast. Atlanta was exactly four hours from home and four hours from good ol’ Rocky Top. I made my WNBA debut against the Chicago Sky on June 19. I scored 11 points and pulled down three boards in 15 minutes of action. The same friends and family that celebrated by my side as I got drafted were now in the stands watching me play in my first-ever WNBA game.
If it was up to me, the story would have been written differently. But thankfully, it wasn’t up to me.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)
Never get too high. Never get too low. Stay even keel.
