TCU Women's Basketball: An Interview With Lauren Heard
Everyone, of course, has heard of Lauren Heard, who over the course of her career has tallied more points than any athlete in the history of the TCU Women’s Basketball team.
I had the privilege to speak with her in a one-on-one interview. I found her to be every bit as focused and driven as one would assume of an athlete of her ability.
Naturally, to begin, I wanted to know what it felt like to “have accrued more career points than any individual in program history. Can you tell me how that feels?”
“It feels great. Looking at it in totality is a reward for the hard work I’ve put in for five years. It wasn’t a goal I sought, but just working hard and trying to seize every moment and opportunity on the court . . . I’m very grateful.”
“Do you have any favorite memories on the court this season?”
“Nothing against Tech, but our win at home was super fun. It was one of the moments when our team showed an unbelievable amount of resilience. I was dribbling the left lane, tried to make a dump pass to Yummy (Morris), but it was tipped . . . and Aja Holmes hit the three. Our team wanted to show fight and that’s what we did. It was super good for us and super good for future girls to know what it takes to win in the Big 12.”
“I assume you’ve played basketball your whole life. What got you into it early on?”
“My mom played basketball at UNT. My dad ran track. But it wasn’t just basketball. I stuck with basketball, track and volleyball. But I had to choose. My dad was my track coach in the summer. Eventually, I had to tell my family basketball was where my heart is. My dad was a little upset that I pushed track to the curb but he was happy I found my passion. I played on a really good high school team. It made me grow and pushed me. Playing in those tournaments I got the good looks because everyone was watching our dynamic team, and TCU was one of the first to call and I never looked back.”
“You mentioned your father was somewhat disappointed you put track to the curb. How does he feel now that you’ve succeeded so greatly at TCU as a basketball player?”
“I think he understands. But I know he’s proud of me. And he always said whatever you do, do it all the way. Play with joy.”
“That’s a lead-in to another question. Athletes are celebrated for their prowess, at the same time we expect them to be role models. It doesn’t follow that because one has a particular gift, they’ll be someone whose example others should follow. What responsibility do you think the athlete has to being a moral leader? Is that important to you when you evaluate athletes? Are the two intertwined?”
“I think they’re very intertwined. I think we make a mistake to try to separate them. My mother told me when I was little that to whom much is given much is required. Whether in the college or professional level, we have a responsibility. If it was easy anyone could do it. It’s important that we don’t take it for granted, this opportunity. A young girl that’s watching me wants to see how I’m treating my teammates. If I’m not scoring do I still celebrate my teammates? Have gratitude and be present in the moment. Carrying yourself with class and grace is very important because you never know who’s watching you.”
“Why did you decide to come to TCU?”
“One of the things we touched on earlier in this interview is morals and character. One of the things that influenced my decision to commit here was being on the phone with all these coaches who have all these selling points, but a lot of coaches make the mistake of not talking about life. If basketball ended, how would I be in a good position for life? That was one of the things Coach Pebley talked to me about. She said I think you’re great and talented. There are things you can work on, but I love who you are. I like your character. I think you could be a really good basketball player but you could also use this institution to be a really good person. That was amazing to me and my family. That transparency.”
“As a team you’ve had some mixed results. You’ve had a lot of wins and some losses. What do you think the team needs to work on to maximize its potential?”
“First and foremost, maturity. Being used to playing against Big 12 and other conferences in pre-season. Having that awareness and translating it to the game in being consistent. When you have that knowledge, you can go back to the court and keep practicing those things so it becomes a habit. Basketball is definitely a game of habit. You can’t have accidental wins. Everything has to be something you can do again.”
“For you, how do you keep your work from being a job? On the one hand, we’re talking about consistency. It’s easy for that to be laborious. How do you maintain that consistency? How do you keep it fun while being consistent?”
“When I think of a job, this is what I have to do. I have to go to work. With basketball it is a job. If you want to be successful. But I think of it not as I have to do this but I get to do this. That goes back to gratitude. I get to put a TCU jersey on and walk into a facility designed for me and these other girls. It’s such a blessing. It’s just about the mindset.”
“Do you find it hard to be a good student and a good athlete simultaneously?”
“Definitely. It's funny the two words go together because they don’t work together in real life. You have to make it work. You have to be in the classroom. But then the basketball demand is considerable. If you have a game, the university is going to write an email to your professor saying you’re going to miss class. So this one class I’m missing consistently . . . what’s going on in it? So you’re emailing your professors, checking the class list to see if you no someone who can give you notes or tidbits of what I missed.”
“I’d like to ask how you feel about TCU as a whole as a student-athlete? Is it a place you're happy to call home? Do you have criticisms in addition to whatever praise you might have?”
“I love TCU. When I got here I loved TCU and now that I’m leaving I love it, if not more. I love that the sports were not excluded from each other. If someone does really well, like the track team, TCU women’s basketball is probably going to say something about it. Beach volleyball is doing great. We know about it. We celebrate each other. That is huge. It’s not this sport versus that sport.”
I conclude with two questions. “I would like you to imagine you are speaking to your teammates next year. What advice would you give them? I would also like you to imagine you are speaking to yourself fifteen years ago. What advice would you give yourself?”
“I would tell them to ask yourself do you really love basketball enough to do all the hard things it takes to win. If the answer is yes, then you look at last year, you look at the body of work. Now what are the things that will make us better? Accountability has always been huge to me. First and foremost, accountability. I love basketball, so what can I do about it? You have to back up the work. What you put in you get out. It’s taking those small details, going to the film room, getting in the gym and applying yourself and changing what hasn’t worked in the past. Getting out of your comfort zone. We have to change and get uncomfortable and do things we haven’t done before. I would tell them be serious and be all the way in it.
As for me, knowing what I know now, I would tell myself you can do it. When I first started basketball, I would get steals and because I was fast I would run down the court for a layup. People would say you’re good but you don’t have a jump shot, you’re not a killer from the three. There are areas that to be great you have to grow in. I regret not taking that and learning how to shoot and having a midrange. In that moment, I thought, I can’t shoot, and so it was defense, defense. Which is good but I never allowed myself to get better at it. I did eventually, but it took a long time. If there’s an area that I need to get better at and someone with experience and wisdom says, “Hey you need to get at this level if you want to be successful . . .’ Now I’ll go work for it. I would tell myself you can do it, just work for it. Everything I have accomplished has been the product of my making a decision to work for it. Outside of basketball, I would say be yourself, be who you are. I would say that to myself, my teammates now. Do not waver and change your values and principles for the approval of anyone. If you don’t stand for something you’ll fall for anything. I believe that.”
If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything. Wisdom from one of TCU's finest athletes.
Of note: this interview has been heavily truncated for reasons of space.
The interview in full is provided below:
Among other things, Ms. Heard also addresses her favorite teammates, how she feels about Coach Pebley, her favorite classes, and her major.
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