Spotlight on Candice Wiggins, Women's Basketball
She Plays the Hoops Game With Confidence and Without Fear
Sep 23, 2009
"What sets her apart is the intangibles," Stanford assistant coach Kate Paye said. "She’s a great player but what makes her so special is she’s a better person and a tremendous teammate."
Off Court, On Court Focus
Paye understands "intangibles" more than most people. She came to Stanford as a walk-on from nearby Menlo School and willed her way to becoming a member of a national championship team and moved on to a career in the WNBA. She’s played and coached with, against, and seen up close and personal, the best to ever put on the uniform.
She sees it in Wiggins. Even without putting it into words, Paye sees something special, call it desire, or the need to consume and process as much information as possible, in Wiggins, who was blessed with ability and thrives on hard work.
Intangibles: Wiggins may not even be aware of those qualities in her character. For her, it’s not about numbers or attention; it’s about the next opportunity to play basketball, to see just how far she can push her ability.
Representing the United States
"She's more than a great scorer, she's a great player," Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer said. "She's used to scoring a lot. She likes to shoot and she likes to score. She thinks shot right away but doesn't force shots. She has confidence and doesn't get upset when she misses."
Wiggins, the all-time leading scorer in Pac-10 history and current member of the Minnesota Lynx of the WNBA, will attend the 2009 USA Basketball Women's National Team's training camp, which runs from Sept. 30-Oct. 5 at American University in Washington, D.C. as the U.S. begins preparations for the 2010 FIBA World Championship.
Wiggins, with 2,629 career points and a 19.2 points per game average while at Stanford, was with the senior team at the Good Luck Beijing Tournament in April 2008.
Career Scoring Leader
"It was good to get the record thing out of the way," Wiggins said at the time. "I think that the more that you don't think about your shot, the easier it is. I think the competitive nature and adrenaline outweighs fatigue. I always feel 100 percent, even if I'm not."
Her Stanford legacy long ago assured, the prestige of becoming the most prolific scorer in conference history may be lost to her.
"I depend on my defensive ability," Wiggins said. "You're in the flow of the game and you're taking the shots that they give you and that I've practiced. I can't always control how good my shot is, or how on it is, but I can always control how hard I work, so that's my main emphasis."
Titles Equals Accomplishments
It’s more of a gee whiz moment for Wiggins, as if she’s thinking 'what’s the big deal here?' Wiggins, who seemingly was touched by a unique talent as early as she can remember, just wants to know what she can do now, to see what happens next.
"Records are great but without something substantial; something we can accomplish together, individual records mean nothing," Wiggins said. "Every moment I've had, I cherish it. Nothing would mean more to me (than winning a national championship). I don’t know how many points I scored in high school, but what I do remember is winning two state championships. Those are the best memories."
Wiggins embodies the sense of purpose that is something bigger than the self. She checks ego at the door and steps into the framework of team. The purpose, it seems, is not just to score points, but to win, have fun and keep looking for the next opportunity.
"It's always nice to be recognized but I see the big picture," Wiggins said. "It's awesome to succeed with these people. They are so fun to play with."
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