Celebrating Lindsay Whalen

Last Monday Lindsay Whalen announced her retirement.  It wasn’t a surprise given she is now the head women’s basketball coach at the University of Minnesota. To an outsider it seems almost impossible that she could play for the Lynx and coach at the ‘U.  The day before her retirement announcement I watched the Lynx lose to Seattle on television.  When someone asked why the Lynx were doing so poorly I promptly said, “they’re old. Lindsay is going to retire and the team is at the end of their run.”

Though her retirement wasn't a surprise, I think it caused many to pause and reflect on how very special Whalen is as an athlete and a person. She is arguably the most famous Minnesota woman’s athlete that has ever competed.

Her accomplishments are amazing.  Four-time WNBA champion; five-time all-WNBA all-star; two time Olympic gold medalist; led the Gophers to a final four appearance.  She’s won more games than any athlete in WNBA history.

I’ve been enjoying Whalen ever since she took to the lane as a Gopher. I remember often watching her drive for a lay-up or make a startling pass and thinking, “how did she do that.” Since then she has won wherever she has landed. She made the finals with the Connecticut Sun in her first two season. She won on the United States Olympic team. She’s won with the Lynx.  What an amazing ride for a kid from Hutchinson, Minnesota. 

Whalen fits the stereotypes of the best that a Minnesotan offers. She is classy, understated, witty, gives credit to the people around her, hard-working and is a winner.

One of my favorite memories of Whalen took place when she played for the Olympic team. I was watching one of their games while taking a break from a church conference I was attending in Florida. In their game the Olympic team (though a big favorite) was struggling. Geno Auriemma, the coach of the team, put Whalen in. In a short time Whalen brought an energy to the game that turned the tide back to the Americans. She dove for a few balls, got a steal, took a charge, and the Americans were on the way to victory. A few days later they were standing on a podium with gold medals hanging around their necks.

With Sunday being Whalen’s last regular season home game with the Lynx, I told my daughter, Hannah, that we had to attend the game. I wasn’t the only one with this thought. I couldn’t find a reasonably price ticket in the lower bowl of Target Center. We ended sitting in the upper level.

Whalen was at her classic best. It seemed that everyone in the crowd (including me) wanted to cheer for her. We cheered when she was announced in the starting line-up. We yelled when she hit a key three in the fourth quarter that propelled the Lynx comeback. We stood and clapped when she was taken out of the line-up with a little more than a minute to go. We laughed when the announced crowd was 13,013, undoubtedly a take-off on Whalen’s number 13. The night was hers and everyone cheering the Lynx celebrated the win.

After the game a celebration for Whalen was set up. The celebration started when Mike Thibault, coach of Washington, and Cheryl Reeve, coach of the Lynx, and a few other players spoke.  Whalen then took the microphone. She was out-of-this world funny. She cracked jokes about her parents and grandparents and other players on the team. She talked about Taco John’s and Burger King. My favorite joke was when she asked who missed the shot for her seventh assist. I couldn’t have laughed harder if I had been in a smoke-filled lounge listening to a stand-up comedian. Finally she wrapped it up by thanking the fans. We stood and applauded.

On the way home Hannah and I talked about watching her coach next year as a Gopher. Whalen has already said in print and last night that her eventual goal is a national championship. And though that seems improbable, I have learned to never underestimate Lindsay Whalen.

Well done, Lindsay Whalen; well done!  What a privilege it has been to watch you perform.

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