Alysha Clark Pays Homage to Tennessee Basketball Pioneers in Homecoming Season

While she was quick to pay homage to women like Betty Wiseman and Pat Summitt, a duo who helped lay the foundation for women’s basketball in the state, there’s no doubt Clark is revered like the women she remembers from her days at Mount Juliet High School and in college at Belmont and Middle Tennessee State.

Wiseman led the creation of women’s basketball at Belmont four years before Title IX, building the program Clark would eventually play for during her first two years in college. Thus, a sense of nostalgia settled in while she prepared for AU Pro Basketball’s season in a city where Wiseman became the first Belmont coach or athlete inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame.

“When you think of women’s basketball in Tennessee, just being from here, you know B Dub – that’s who you know,” Clark said. “B Dub and Pat Summitt are the people that come to mind immediately. Just the impact that they had on the game, the impact that they had before it was cool. All the hurdles and things that they had to overcome. But they saw a vision, they understood the importance, and they didn’t let outside (noise) and all that stuff deter them from accomplishing the goal.”

Having the chance to be around Wiseman and learn her history, Clark is excited to share the Hall of Famer’s story during the AU campaign while helping basketball enthusiasts understand the impact she’s had on the women’s game.

“There are so many pioneers before us that we don’t know, or don’t know enough about,” Clark said. “And I think this is a perfect time to be able to tell those stories and tell that history, and it’s a beautiful thing, and being from here and being able to be a part of helping tell her story, it makes this even more special.”

COMING HOME

In addition to returning to her roots, Clark said Player Executive Committee members Sydney Colson and Theresa Plaisance enticed her to join Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball after hearing how the league operated over the first three years and how much they’ve enjoyed it.

“It’s the perfect amount of time, it’s four weeks, you’re playing against great competition, and you get to work on those skills and things that you normally are working out with a trainer during off-season,” Clark said. “You get to put that in live play and grow, and so that, for me, is exciting. And I’m just happy that I get to be a part of it.”

Clark said that regardless of where she’s been during the WNBA offseason, her approach to honing specific areas of her game has never changed. This year, instead of heading overseas, she will spend the next four weeks in the United States, stepping outside the role she’s used to in the WNBA to sharpen her abilities while staying within a team aspect in the league’s unique format.

She likes that AU enables her to be aggressive by allowing her to play more freely than she’s used to during the summer or overseas.

“The players are the coach, and you’re getting to just showcase the best of you while also still fitting within a team dynamic, which I love,” she said. “AU encourages playing the game the right way. That’s reflected in the scores and things that you earn points for, and I just think it’s a great balance of both. At the end of the day, there’s only a couple of superstars on every team. And so it’s ‘can you be a complementary player? Can you still excel while being in a different role?’ And so, yeah, I’m excited.”

For Clark, there’s also a role she’s thoroughly enjoyed during the latter years of her career — being a mentor to younger players.

“That’s something that I’m always passionate about, is giving back and giving back to the game,” she said. “And I know AU has a lot of younger players and young professional players. And so to be able to just pour into them, offer them the same wisdom that my vets gave to me over the years, is something that definitely excites me.

“And it’s already happened and taken place, and that is special for me because I get to pay it forward for the vets that helped me get to where I’m at.”

Said Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon, about Clark: “They don’t make ’em like AC anymore. She’s really special.”

Duane Clark would be proud.

HER SIXTH MAN

Immediately after Clark won her third WNBA title in 2023, she dedicated the season to her late father, Duane, who died in Sept. 2022. Clark said during a postgame television interview her father had been with her all season.

“He’s been my sixth man,” an emotional Clark said immediately after the Aces won the title. “I know he would be so happy right now. I’m just so happy, I know he’s with me. I wish he could be here. I wish I could hold him. But, this is for him, this entire season.”

Considering how Clark carries herself, her father would certainly be happy with any of his daughter’s accomplishments. Forget about the six rings she’s won – three in the WNBA and three overseas — not to mention the numerous accolades she’s accumulated.

It’s the person, teammate, and friend she is to people. It’s the poise and grace with how she treats others and the professionalism she adds to any space.

“I think she does a good job of getting the best out of people around her,” said Elizabeth Williams, who is also playing with Athletes Unlimited this season and will play for the Chicago Sky this summer.

Clark isn’t one to focus on individual accolades or goals, especially as she winds down her impressive career. An unsigned free agent — she said she will likely announce where she’ll play during the AU campaign — Clark is insistent on making an impact in the community she decides to play by doing things the right way, following her faith, and continuing to strive for her potential while continuing to bring out the best in others.

“And that’s something that I’ve always hung my hat on,” she said. “I’m not going to change the core of who I am just to try to go get an individual award (to) appease outside people. But if I can just continue to leave my mark in the communities that I’m in, make an impact on my teammates, and just reach my full potential, then I’ll walk away with everything that I’m supposed to walk away with.

“I want to make sure that when I walk away from this game I don’t have any questions, I don’t have any regrets. I want to leave it all out there and make sure I’m reaching everything that’s inside of me to be able to leave.”

As Clark has stitched herself into the same Tennessee fabric of Wiseman and Summitt, she’s given her father plenty of reasons to smile from above and remain proud.

W.G. Ramirez is a 38-year veteran sports reporter in Southern Nevada, serving as a correspondent for Athletes Unlimited. Follow him on X at @WillieGRamirez