Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1158434
72 PRESEASON 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED WOMEN'S BASKETBALL BY LOU SOMOGYI N otre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw was outspoken ear- lier this year about female bas- ketball coaches needing to get more opportunities on the men's level, just as men do in the women's game. That dream was achieved by one of her staff members this summer. Mc- Graw can now better appreciate the adage about "be careful what you wish for because you might get it." Niele Ivey — the point guard for Notre Dame's 2001 national cham- pions, an assistant and top recruiter for McGraw since 2007, and a Ring of Honor inductee at her alma mater in 2016 — was one of six new hires announced by the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies Aug. 5. The 41-year-old Ivey became the ninth active woman on an NBA coach- ing staff, and the third this offseason. She joins Lindsay Gottlieb, who is on new head coach John Beilein's staff at Cleveland, and Kara Lawson, who was hired by head coach Brad Stevens and the Boston Celtics. Ivey will be working under new Memphis head coach Taylor Jenkins, with her role to be more defined once training camp commences in September. In recent years, Ivey has received offers for head coaching jobs at univer- sities, but bypassed them for at least two reasons. One was the enormous success she was experiencing at Notre Dame, which has been to seven of the last nine Final Fours, highlighted by the 2018 national title. The other was maintaining a stable environment for her son Jaden Ivey, a guard who committed to Purdue this summer. Jaden recently revealed that he would transfer from Mishawaka Marian High School (where 2013-16 Fighting Irish guard Demetrius Jack- son also excelled) and play his senior year at powerful La Lumiere School in LaPorte, Ind. "Because of where Jaden was, it had to be the exact perfect situation for her to leave," McGraw told Blue & Gold Illustrated. "When this offer came, the initial reaction from everybody was, 'You've got to go! You can't even think about this one because this is too good to pass up.' "That was my first reaction — but of course it's now tempered with a lot of sadness. It's very bittersweet. I'm so excited for her, but it's a huge hole to fill." An All-American point guard for McGraw, Ivey also was named the 2001 Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award winner that year as the na- tion's best player under 5-8. After playing several seasons in the WNBA, the St. Louis native was hired by Mc- Graw in 2007 and became an instant force on the recruiting trail, starting with landing local prodigy and na- tional top-five prospect Skylar Dig- gins in November 2008. In addition to coaching the point An Offer She Couldn't Refuse Niele Ivey accepts a post with the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies Ivey (right), the point guard for Notre Dame's 2001 national champions and an assistant coach for Muffet McGraw (left) since 2007, became the ninth active woman on an NBA coaching staff. PHOTO BY MATT CASHORE