CONFIDENT AND COMFORTABLE

By Mason Kelley

By Washington Huskies

November 2^nd, 2018

When Jody Wynn finally got a chance to catch her breath, she went skiing. She took her daughters, Jada and Kaeli, drove up to Snoqualmie Pass and spent a day on the slopes.

After a whirlwind year that saw the coach relocate her family from Southern California to Seattle to take the reins of the Washington women’s basketball program, she wanted to take advantage of the outdoor opportunities her new home provides.

She wanted to spend a day outside of the gym, soak in a little sun, snow and fresh air.

“You can go to the water, go to the mountains, go to the city, the countryside,” Wynn said. “There are just so many places you can go. There’s a little bit of everything.”

During her first season with the Huskies, Wynn was so focused on setting a firm foundation for the program, there was barely enough time to watch the seasons change.

It was a tough transition. But when the season ended, the coach could exhale.

“Being able to take a breath helps,” Wynn said. “Last year, we were kind of on that ever-circulating, merry-go-round that never stops. Now things have slowed down a little bit where we can enjoy some of the time we do have.”

When Wynn decided to leave Long Beach State and head north, it was a tough decision. The Brea, Calif. native had never lived outside of Southern California. She played at USC. All of her previous coaching stops (Pepperdine, USC and Long Beach State) were in the area. Wynn’s roots are in California.

It was home.

The only way she ever planned on leaving the life she had built with her family was for a big-time job in a vibrant city with a diverse culture. Washington and Seattle was the perfect mix for Wynn and her family.

“There wouldn’t have been a move if it wouldn’t have been to an amazing city, an amazing university and an athletic department that loves women’s basketball and supports women’s basketball,” she said. “It would never have been a thought.”

Wynn saw the move as a challenge and an opportunity, a potential power program with great administrative support in one of the nation’s most progressive cities.

“We left a place that was home,” Wynn said. “Our friends were family. To depart from all that, it had to be an amazing place with opportunity for excellence everywhere you look. Seattle is certainly it. There’s just so much opportunity. It’s booming. To be a part of a women’s basketball program that has been there and done that before, I feel like we can take this program right back up to where it belongs.”

Washington was the perfect job at the right time. But it brought steep challenge.

“Everything we did was 110 miles an hour,” she said.

Not only was Wynn implementing her system last season, the Huskies didn’t return a wealth of experience. Each day provided a chance for Wynn to teach and every game brought an opportunity for players to implement what they learned.

“Going through the course of the year, they had this tremendous in-game experience for the first time,” Wynn said. “It built their confidence. Nothing replaces experience. The confidence is a lot higher this year. We’re more comfortable.”

With a year of experience for the coach and her players, Washington is ready to take a step forward when it opens the season against Cal State Fullerton at 7 p.m. Thursday in Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion.

“We’re not overconfident, but there’s a sense that this is what we do and this is how we do it.”

This year, the teaching continues. The difference, though, is Washington’s returners can now help spread the message.

“There’s a lot of positive feedback, encouragement, reinforcement coming from our returners and being passed to our newcomers,” Wynn said. “It makes it fun to come to practice every day and build on what we started last year.”

As the Huskies embark on a new campaign, Wynn is focused on the present, while working to secure the talent to continue building in the future.

“We’re recruiting the state, not just the city of Seattle, but the whole state,” Wynn said. “The priority is to take care of our state first and then recruit nationally and internationally as well. People need to know we’re here to take care of the best players within the state.”

Wynn recently joined juniors Amber Melgoza and Mai-Loni Henson downtown for a photoshoot. It was another opportunity for the coach to spend some time exploring her new home, while sharing an experience with her players off the floor.

Each opportunity to venture somewhere new provides a new connection for Wynn in her new home.

“It’s a great city,” Wynn said. “There’s so much it offers. First and foremost, there’s so much pride in their sports, whether it’s through the university or through the professional ranks. There’s just a lot of care in sports. It’s fun to pick up the Seattle Times, no matter what time of year, and you see great sports.

“There’s a lot of pride in the teams. I love that, being in a great sports city. There’s something for everybody.”

Now that the season has arrived, Wynn will have to put the exploring on hold. As the seasons shift, Wynn’s attention is in the gym because, right now, the building process continues.