MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve hit a milestone this week when she became the third WNBA coach in history to win 300 games.
She's coached our Minnesota Lynx for more than a decade, earning four titles and Olympic gold for Team USA, all while being a role model for anyone who needed one.
This year, she's doing that by starting conversations — without saying a word
"Well, it was sort of borne out of this transition that we are in post pandemic of how we dress at work — for us its games," said Reeve. "I wasn't necessarily ready to go back to dress dressing and being uncomfortable and I said to the group, 'I just want to be ourselves in business casual.'"
For Reeve, "casual" meant "let's talk" in the form of a different statement T-shirt under her blazer each and every game.
"When you manger or CEO tells you that you are intimidating and you have to change, understanding you are not intimidating, they are intimidated — and there's a difference," Reeve said.
"Dear strong woman," it read, "you are not intimidating."
And the next game? "Hidden no more."
"I was a computer science major and so just that space of women in science where we were told at that time that these figures that were doing the work and being the best at it, but being hidden, and a man getting credit for it," she said.
Celebrating women is her favorite play, so it's only logical that her 'fits reflect that.
"Absolutely women belong every place where decisions are being made, and again, because its better for everybody," she said.
And if someone disagrees with her on that?
'Well-behaved women seldom make history," Jana said.
"That's a fun one — and it's true," said Reeve. "It's viewed as misbehaving when you ask for more in your place of work when you haven't gotten the promotion, you have been passed over… It's viewed as misbehaving saying, 'Why can't we just be happy with that?"
She knows some out there are saying, "Sure, Coach. Why can't you just be happy with all that you have? Just stick to sports, and wear a suit, not a statement."
"Obviously, we have heard for years just shut up and play and the answer is no. I'm a person; I am allowed to have thoughts," she said. "Coaching is what I do and it's not who I am. Same for our players — we have a platform and we feel a responsibility to use our platform to shine a light,."
Now, Reeve's hoping her team shines on the court Friday night in Chicago as the Lynx continue to fight for a higher seed in the playoffs.
WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+
Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota.
- Add KARE 11+ on Roku here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Roku Channel Store.
- Add KARE 11+ on Fire TV here or by searching for KARE 11 in the Amazon App Store.
- Learn more about the KARE 11+ app for Apple TV in the Apple App Store.
- Learn more about KARE 11+ here.
Watch more Breaking The News:
Watch all of the latest stories from Breaking The News in our YouTube playlist: