Scoring Hoops And Hearts

Kelly Graves and his unique vision lead the Oregon Ducks women’s basketball team to new heights.

By Kindra Roy

The elaborately painted trees on the Matthew Knight Arena floor are covered by a flood of yellow jerseys. Fans jump to their feet, clapping in unison to the fight song that echoes throughout the gym, signaling the beginning of a face-off between the women Ducks and the UC Riverside Highlanders. Captured by the astonishing ease of Sabrina Ionescu and Erin Boley’s warm-up routine, the crowd’s eyes are pulled downcourt, lost in the rhythm of flawless layups. Back at the tunnel, the coach sneaks in, unnoticed by the majority of the audience. Walking with a casual yet professional aura, he greets the opposing coach with a warm two-handed handshake before finding his seat at the Oregon bench. Leaning back, with one arm cast over the chair and one on the score table, he taps his fingers to the blaring rap music, a smile plastered across his face.

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With a welcoming grin and a voice oddly similar to John Wayne’s, Kelly Graves’ interactions with the public do not necessarily scream “championship-winning basketball coach,” and that is not the only thing about the Oregon Ducks women’s coach that is unusual. With over 30 years of coaching under his belt, Graves has turned around his fair share of programs, and during that time developed a unique coaching style that has captured the hearts of players and fans alike.

Graves came to the Oregon Ducks as the head coach of the struggling women’s team in 2014. Since then, the team has been transformed, blossoming with new philosophy and talent into a nationally-ranked team heading for a championship. But Graves didn’t originally set out to be a women’s basketball coach, let alone for a top-ranked team in the nation.

Graves’ road to glory was not the most predictable. In fact, it all started during his junior year of high school. Graves was a star player at Dixie High School in St. George, Utah when his family made the decision to move five hours north to the city of Logan. But the newly hired head coach, Mark Poth, was not ready to see Graves go, making his first project as head coach to convince Graves, and his parents, that he should stay at Dixie High School for his senior year. Poth taught Graves a valuable lesson about the importance of a family-like team atmosphere when he opened his home for Graves to stay in, and this devotion and generosity toward Graves set the story in motion.

The bond Graves built with his high school coach led him to his first college coaching job, working alongside Poth for the men’s team at Big Bend Community College in Moses Lake, Washington. With little money, Graves was taking on odd jobs just to get by: managing the dorms, cleaning the gym floors, and even plowing potato fields.

“I lived in the basement of a booster’s house for $100 a month rent. I just did whatever I could because I really wanted to coach,” Graves said, reflecting on the financial struggles during his early years of coaching.

When the women’s head basketball coach position opened at Big Bend, the paycheck looked appealing. His lack of experience with women’s basketball did not deter him, especially with the promise of $2,500 added income. “The only reason I said yes was because it was $2,500,” Graves admitted, “and that was when I first started coaching women’s basketball. It was a complete accident. I hadn’t set out to do it, but it was the greatest move that I ever made.”

His first year head coaching for Big Bend led the team to their first winning record. From there, Graves worked his way up, first assisting at the University of Portland before taking on a head coaching position at St. Mary’s College of California, where he advanced the team to their first NCAA Tournament. But family is important to Graves, so when his wife, Mary, informed him she wasn’t happy there, it was time to pack up and move to somewhere else. That is when Graves found himself back in Washington as the head coach at Gonzaga, a struggling program with a dream to match the success of their men’s team.

“I left the best program in the league to take over the worst, and we went 0 and 14,” Graves recalled. “And don’t let the record fool you, we weren’t that good. We were even worse than the record.”

After losing every conference game his first year at Gonzaga, Graves still believed in the team and their potential. Sticking around after a challenging first season, Graves elevated the program into a national team, earning West Coast Conference coach of the year eight times as the team dominated their way into ten consecutive conference championships. Graves made a name for himself, and after turning around Gonzaga’s program over the span of 14 years, he was ready for a new challenge. “It was my turn to talk to Mary. I told her I want to coach the best, I want a chance to win a national championship,” said Graves. “We had just outgrown Gonzaga.”

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The Duck women had endured a rough stretch of seasons. Their 2010-2011 season record of 3-14 increased by four wins the following season, only to decrease to 2-16 in the 2012-2013 season. They were looking for a new coach, and Graves was looking to transform the team. “I thought it was a gold mine,” Graves recalled, and jumped at the opportunity.

Taking on the Ducks was not a walk in the park for Graves. “It’s humbling to go from 10 straight championships to what we had that first year,” Graves said, addressing the 6-12 conference record, “but we changed it, we changed it quickly.” By the 2017-2018 season, the Ducks had a conference record of 16 wins, 2 losses, soon clinching their first PAC-12 tournament championship as well as back-to-back Elite 8 appearances.

The talent and record were not the only part of the team growing. More and more people found themselves immersed into the Ducks’ seasons, many of which had never previously been women’s basketball fanatics, some not even previously devoted to basketball at all. It’s a phenomenon Graves likes to call, “Our Women’s Syndrome”: the increasing fan base that has reached beyond the normal and expected. Graves believes it is rooted deeper than good performance: “they’re not necessarily fans of women’s basketball, they’re fans of our team,” he explained, “because they are easy to cheer for, not just because they make baskets. They are good people.”

At the center of the team are Graves’ core values, inspired by his philosophy of family atmosphere and priority of relationships and teamwork. “Usually when you think of athletics, it’s hard work, toughness, discipline,” Graves shared, “but for us, it’s passion, unity, integrity, thankfulness, servanthood.” On his team, Graves encourages open communication and equal power, refusing to use a whistle and inviting players to call him by first name. Additionally, Graves encourages his players to be vulnerable, to make sacrifices, and to exercise humility. As a team, they commit to shaking the hand of every visitor at practice, signing autographs after every game, and celebrating every assist as much as the points. “We don’t just focus on the product on the court, the product on the court comes as a byproduct of how you treat each other, how you work together.”

Last year, during their 2018-2019 season, the team cruised into the Final 4, losing in a 67-72 point matchup against Baylor, the eventual champion. To many, it may have seemed like a devastating defeat. Graves and his team see it differently: “you turn the page, and I think our players did just that.” Graves took the lead, offering it as motivation for the coming season. “What’s passed is passed, learn from it,” he tells his players, “you either win or you learn, there are no losses.”

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The Ducks rolled over UC Riverside in an 84-41 victory, predicted by fans and analysts alike. Throughout the game, their play and interactions reminded each fan why they are so fond of the team. From the first quarter to the fourth, Graves sat back, allowing the team to direct the game largely themselves. They did not disappoint. Despite the clear early lead, the Ducks gave nothing less than their best, reflecting on their promise to play with passion no matter the circumstances. Ionescu launched herself at various tables throughout the game in an attempt to keep live balls in play, regardless of the constant cushion between the Ducks and their opponent. The team communicated with ease, nodding in nonverbal recognition and encouragement after both successful plays and missed shots. Staying true to their values of teamwork, the players credited each other by pointing to teammates with gratitude for important assists. The bench erupted with praises after eloquently delivered plays, using the moments to celebrate every player’s accomplishments and contributions. They played hard, played humble, and had fun.

The Ducks have their eyes set high for this season. However, when asked the team’s goal, Graves did not answer with the obvious. Instead, he remained true to his core values and previous beliefs: “our goal is to get better every day.” For Graves and the Ducks, winning their third consecutive PAC-12 championship is not the focus, and neither is winning the national championship. “But if we stay humble, if we stay hungry, if we keep working hard,” Graves says, “we will achieve all those outcomes.”