Daily Iowan: What was your experience like entering the WNBA draft with Caitlin Clark, Kate Martin, and Gabby Marshall?
Jada Gyamfi: I personally knew Kate was going to be drafted, but we were there as friends of Kaitlyn, so naturally we knew she was going to be the No. 1 pick. Moga knew. So it wasn't a big surprise when it happened. But I literally sobbed when Kate was drafted. I thought, “This is so embarrassing.” But she works really hard, so it was great to watch. There is no one more worthy of calling her name than her.
Do you have any memorable funny moments off the court?
when we were abroad [last offseason] — I think we were in Croatia — so we went kayaking. I had never been in a kayak before. Gabby was my partner and we were really bad at it. I thought they needed to call a helicopter to rescue us. We were drifting to islands and being overtaken by a group coming from behind.Even a coach [Lisa] Bruder suddenly ran past us. That's how you know it's really bad. Coach Bruder shouldn't have hit us…we were just spinning around. We cried five times by the time we got back to land, but we laughed the whole time.
Are you the type of person who always brings energy and positive vibes to a group?
I'm the youngest of four, so I grew up being the go-between, just the cold one, whereas my other siblings were more outspoken.when i arrived [to Iowa], I was the same person I was on my high school team and my AAU team. Truly, what you see is what you get. What I look like on TikTok is exactly the same as who I am in real life. I don't understand people who change their personality. I don't have enough energy for that.
What was your “welcome to college basketball” moment when you realized this wasn’t going to be the same as high school?
Since I came here, because of my size, I played guard on offense and post on defense, but that quickly changed.I remember the first time I guarded in the paint [former Iowa center] Monica [Czinano]. She gave me her amazing stuff on her breasts and she really took the wind out of me.
What is it like to have a pregame meeting with Coach Bruder, where everyone sits in a circle on center court?
[Bluder] It does a great job of grounding us and often focuses on mindfulness. For example, why we are there, what we did to get there, and who we are playing for. Towards the end of the season, we spotlighted our seniors and talked about their favorite things and things unrelated to basketball. And she always did a great job of incorporating literature into it. She read a book by Billie Jean King, one of our favorites. We talked a lot about Dr. Christine Grant.
What do people not know about Caitlin Clark?
I always say she is very adorable and loves being around people. She loves hugs and she's like a cuddle monster. And you can't say that at all on the court. On the court, she doesn't like people touching her or getting it in her face, which is very strange because that's what she's used to. [She’s] He's probably one of the dumbest people I know, which is strange because I'm not like that at all. I'm like, “Why is it so weird?” She's cute anyway.