Jada Wynn was finishing seventh grade when her mother was hired as the head women’s basketball coach at Washington.
For four years, Wynn had visions of playing for the Huskies. Her mother, Jody, was the head coach and her father, Derek, was the Huskies’ associate head coach, so it was a natural fit.
Her plans changed, however, after her parents were let go by Washington in March of 2021.
Ultimately, the sharp-shooting, 5-foot-11 guard landed at Colorado, and she couldn’t be more excited as she begins her journey with the Buffaloes.
“I really love the coaching staff and everything that they believe in,” Wynn, a freshman, said during CU’s annual basketball media day on Wednesday. “I love the system we run and the girls on the team have been really welcoming. So, I’m really excited for the season to start.”
Rated a four-star recruit by ProspectsNation.com, Wynn heard from several schools after her parents left Washington. Colorado head coach JR Payne and her husband, associate head coach Toriano Towns, were quick to call.
“I’ve always loved coach J and coach T; they’re amazing people,” Wynn said. “My parents had nothing but good things to say about them. So coming here, it just kind of felt like family and it just felt very familiar, too. Them being married was also like my parents, very similar. They have similar personalities, too. So it just kind of seemed like the right fit.”
On and off the court, the Buffs are excited about how Wynn fits into the program.
On the court, she has shown the ability to do a little of everything. Last year at Troy (Calif.) High School, Wynn averaged 16.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. Playing her first three years at King’s (Wash.) High School, she was first-team all-conference twice.
A year ago, CU reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013, but did so despite struggles offensively. The Buffs were the worst 3-point shooting team in the Pac-12, at 30.0 percent.
Payne said the Buffs have worked quite a bit on their shooting this offseason, but adding players such as Wynn will help.
“Jada Wynn is, in practice, one of the best shooters we’ve had,” Payne said. “She’s a freshman that is confident and played a lot of high level basketball so far.”
Wynn is eager for the challenge of proving herself at this level, as she hopes to give the Buffs some scoring punch.
“(Shooting) is what I love to do and there’s a lot of opportunities to do that in our system and our offense, which is one of the other reasons why I picked here,” she said. “I’m really excited to just be playing games and showing people what I can do and kind of making a name for myself outside of my parents.”
Having grown up around Pac-12 basketball, however, Wynn knows it won’t be easy to crack the rotation as a freshman. She will compete with, among others, juniors Frida Formann and Tameiya Sadler. (Sadler and forward Quay Miller both played for Jody Wynn at Washington before coming to CU last year).
“That’s what makes it fun, because every day practice is very competitive,” Wynn said. “Having Frida over me and looking up to her and her kind of teaching me things about the system and different good shots, bad shots – all that has been very nice.
“It’s just fun to be playing against people that are at that high level and where you want to be. I’m looking forward to how that kind of shakes out and playing with different people in different rotations.”
