GOOD FOLLOW - Minnesota Lynx Guard Jaylyn Sherrod Talks First Days in Minnesota, Saying Goodbye to New York & More

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Hey, what's up, everyone?

Welcome to Good Follow presented by DraftKings.

I'm Roz Golden Wooday, and today on this episode, we have an exclusive interview with somebody that I've been covering since her college career and now into the pros.

She is a 2024 WNBA champion.

She's only a second year player at a Colorado where she was a two-time all-Pac-12 selection.

And now, newly of the Minnesota Lynx, my girl, Jaylen Sherrod.

What's up, Jaylen?

So much.

I appreciate it.

I appreciate it.

Yeah, you know, we appreciate it.

What you, I mean, the fact that you made time for this, you just told me this is your first day in Minnesota.

Yeah, yeah, it's been a day, but it's been school so far.

I think the playing for real.

Yeah, like, can you actually take me what this, take me through what this last week has been like for you?

Because if I could even just go like August 1st, the New York Liberty announced that they waived you.

Then Saturday, August 9th, so we're talking about one week.

you get picked up by the links and then the very next sunday the very next day so Sunday one day later you're playing against your old team in the New York Liberty and interestingly enough your schedule the next two games are also against the Liberty

can you just take me through all that

um yeah it's been a hell of a week um a very emotional week I feel like uh

you know initially I mean, getting waved wasn't a surprise or a shock or anything.

We knew it was coming.

It was just business.

So it wasn't no like bad feelings or love lost there.

They made a decision.

So they had to do what they had to do.

But just more so like saying goodbye to like the relationships and friendships I had built over the past year and some change.

But then stayed in Brooklyn.

I gave myself the week, honestly, because I didn't know what was happening.

I didn't know what was going to happen.

The trade deadline was happening as well.

So it was just a lot of moving parts.

And I just, I stayed in Brooklyn, stayed to myself.

I I put my phone on do not disturb.

And I just, I had a solid week.

If you ask me, I was chilling.

So

then many called and they were like, you know, we want to sign you.

And I was like, okay.

It was a little, you know, I mean, being in the finals last year and everything, I was kind of like, I don't know where this is going, but they gave me an opportunity.

And like I said, it's business at the end of the day.

And I said this yesterday too, like, you know, just because the name across my, across the front changed, don't mean a mission to.

So it's still trying to win a championship and do whatever I can to help my team.

So it just is what it is.

But no, it's crazy.

Yesterday was crazy being back in Barclays and being on the other side.

Yeah, it was a little different, but I had fun.

We got the win.

So first game.

in the league's uniform with a dub so i ain't mad at it dubs in the chat it is what it does in the chat

dubs in the chat but obviously you're you're in the building that you know so many liberty fans loved you the team loved you were there any special moments good hellos goodbyes that you had with certain players yeah i mean it was it was a lot uh the fans were very welcoming and everybody for the most part was just happy that you know i got picked up and i got another opportunity But yeah, the teammates,

it's just been a week, man.

I actually got to say goodbye to a couple of them earlier earlier during the week i said about goodbye to a lot of them in connecticut when i left initially so yeah i got to see tosh before the game um the the video they gave um right before the game was really sweet um

and yeah so i i didn't get to talk to a lot of them but uh at the game because we got on the road right after but uh i mean i'll see him over the next week anyway

But no, the video and just the fans more than anything was just really touching and really sweet.

And just to know, like even though i didn't play all the minutes in the world i still had an impact there and i still meant something to that fan base and that team means something to me because it just goes to show like you you still have impact no matter what so yeah it was cool it was cool yeah no the video tribute is deserving you're a champion you know and those fans they loved you I mean, when you got on the court, man, people went crazy.

And let's just talk about part of why people fell in love, just even the journey of your rookie season.

From going undrafted, you know, last

draft out of Colorado to being waived by the Liberty, then getting re-picked up by the Liberty to sticking with them throughout the season and winning a championship.

Can you talk about just your rookie season and navigating some of the extreme highs and lows that you had to as a rookie?

Yeah, for sure.

I think for me, it was just more about

being with my fewer.

I think last year was a tough journey for me, just in a new environment and a new space and learning how to navigate, you know, constant changes.

Going undrafted wasn't planned, so that started it all.

But then, you know, going to training camp and actually, you know, I feel like more so training camp proved to myself that I could play in this league and I was like, all right, we're good.

Like, I just need a shot.

And then getting cut and going back home was the toughest because I still had to stay motivated.

I still had to stay ready.

I still had to, you know, put in work without knowing where the work was going.

And so then got the call to come back up.

And it was just like, I mean, it was smooth sailing because I was in training camp and I knew everybody already.

So it wasn't that much of an adjustment.

But last year in general, I've always said delay, not the nod.

And I've always said that.

you know, it taught me to be with my feet where it taught me how to be a good teammate, even though I wasn't playing 40 minutes.

It taught me how to, you know, show up for people,

even though I didn't feel like I was

getting what I wanted out of the situation and just like how to, how to still be present, even on days you don't feel like being present.

So that was not something I really had to worry about in college because like I didn't have the luxury of not being president at Colorado.

I didn't have the luxury of

not showing up on a game.

It was, you know, for five years, it was kind of.

I was the engine and the energy behind that team.

So I had to show up.

I knew that was my job.

Whereas here, it was more so like, you know, you're not the one that's always getting looked at.

You're not always being the one that's dependent on a high-pressure moments or whatever, whatever.

So, what do you do?

How do you still,

you know, make an impact?

How do you still be a good teammate?

How do you still show up in a new role?

So, it really taught me how to just be a good teammate.

And I think that was the biggest lesson of all.

Um, and obviously, winning the championship is a blessing.

Um,

it was a lot to take in because I think I said in one of the videos, like, I wasn't even here three months ago, so it was just uh

trying to you know, figure it out and adjust.

And

it worked out in the end.

So I can't complain at all.

It worked out.

Your maturity, your growth, the lessons learned are so key.

And also, like, there have been rewards along the way.

So can we just talk about God real quick?

Because,

you know, you said it worked out.

Like,

after all of that.

You won a championship with the New York Liberty on your birthday.

Game five of Liberty versus Lynx was October 20th.

Your birthday is October 21st.

So essentially at midnight, as you're bringing in your 23rd birthday, it had to have happened somewhere around the celebration, like the popping of champagne for the championship.

Did that

mean anything to you after all you've been through that you get a championship on your actual birthday?

Yeah, it did.

I mean, honestly, I was just in so much like,

it wasn't shock, but just more like a disbelief of how the year turned out.

Because if you would have told me, like, in March, that would have been what happened in October.

I would have told you, like, all right, bro, relax.

Like, you're doing too much.

So it was just the way it all worked out.

But no, God is just.

I said this yesterday.

I don't remember who I was talking to, but I was like, man, I haven't questioned God on this journey so far.

I'm not about to start questioning him now.

And I really don't know why the cars get, why I get dealt the cars the way I I do.

But like I said, it's, it's worked out for me.

God has allowed me to get here.

He's allowed me to be here.

He's allowed for, you know, two of the best teams over the past two years to want me.

And, you know, I can't question that because I think like most people don't realize the emotional like toll all of it is.

Especially like I'm still very young.

Like I'm only 23.

So I'm still trying to figure out life.

on top of my job that is always constantly changing and just trying to always like, you know, be the best version of myself while I'm dealing with all of this.

But no, I've always leaned on God and I'm going to keep leaning on him.

And like I said, I don't know why, you know, a week ago, I was with New York and this week I'm with Minnie, but I don't question him.

I don't question his plan or his purpose because it always has worked out for me.

So we're going to keep riding with it and I'm going to keep showing up and letting, you know, his light shine through me as much as possible.

I heard you have a tattoo.

is and i think it's the first one you ever got it says without struggle there is no progress.

That was your first ever tattoo.

So

when did you get this tattoo?

And at that point, why?

I got it because I mean, that's just like, at that point in time, it was just a constant reminder of myself.

Like, it's going to be a struggle.

Like, life is not easy.

It's never going to be easy.

And it's going to come with the, you know, toys.

I mean, at that point, I was dealing with.

What was I dealing with at 15, 16?

I think it was around that time my hip head first started to become an issue.

And if I was 16, I was turning 17 because I graduated high school at 17.

So I didn't play but eight games that season of high school.

So I was dealing with that.

And, you know, being told like I probably would never play basketball again and trying to figure out what to do and walking on crutches throughout my high school.

It was just a lot.

And especially when you go from being like, the best player on your team to you know having to sit there and just watch it was very hard and very tough and that was the first time i had ever dealt with an injury of that magnitude so i think it was just like a reminder like you you have to go through something in order to get to the other side it's never

it's never a one-way path it's it's gonna be some some fight gonna be some hill and there but you got to get to the other side so i i feel like that was just the start of me starting to understand like and mature into a ways of understanding like you know life ain't easy i was only child growing up so i kind of got everything you know, I was the baby and I got, you know,

spoiled a little bit and handed to a little bit.

So like, it started to really understand like life was bigger than that and mature in that level.

Hey guys, we got to go to break.

We'll be right back.

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Welcome back to Good Follow.

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I'm still here with the exclusive interview with Jalen Sherrod, newly of the Minnesota Lynx.

Let's take a listen.

So I know you're an only child, but it's interesting.

I also feel like we've talked and you've talked about like,

I do my own, I'm very comfortable doing my own thing.

Like in some ways, you're an introvert.

Like, how have you navigated being an introvert, but at the same time, maybe stepping up outside your comfort zone, but also being yourself?

I would say for me, it's just about finding that balance.

I think I said this my whole career: like, who I am on a basketball court versus who I am on a date debate is kind of like two separate people.

I feel like, and I've heard that a lot too.

Um, because people always

got her Sasha Pierce, and then Beyonce got

me, yeah, yeah

for sure I mean I get it like when I was at Colorado I got it so much like you're so quiet off the court but on the court you're so fiery and passionate and it's just like I don't I don't really know like

how the the switch flips um but I do know like it's just kind of who I am I don't really like doing too much off the court um

I never have I've always kind of stayed to myself and been comfortable in that so um I think also allowing my teammates to see that side of me helps.

People can't like meet you where you are if they don't know you.

Um, I'm really big on that.

So, kind of like landing in my world, like

we would, we would go to the movies, we would go out to eat, we would do different things that necessarily like I wouldn't have done unless they invited me out, unless they brought me along with them and stuff like that.

So, I try to like never turn down an offer to do something with teammates because I feel like that just kind of allows you to gel and and build camaraderie and stuff like that together.

So,

but no, I most of the time I'm chilling by myself.

It's just me and my dog most of the time.

So what have you done so far with the links and the players?

Have you had a chance to like mix in?

Have any of them tried to mix you in?

I mean, I just got here like 48 hours.

But we have had, I got here, we had a game.

And then we went,

we came back to Minnesota.

And so then today I've been moving because I had to like get my stuff in and move it to the apartment and whatnot so I really haven't had time to like do anything um because like I said it's only my second day out here so

well I'm excited I know I know they'd be out and I know they'd be out and about I've seen the stud buds and whatnot so we'll see very we'll see

are you gonna make the stud button stream

I don't know man I don't know if they asked me you know I just said I don't turn down opportunities for teammates So I can't go back on my word.

Now I was joking with them that I was going to, you know, I'll one day get a pink lock or something.

I'll throw a lock in there or something.

So we'll see.

We'll see.

I am screaming.

Not a single pink lock just to, just to, you know, add a bit of a shot.

I can't do nothing more.

Can't do nothing more for you.

I'll give you one, though.

Yo, so so many teams.

could use a point guard right now.

I'm sure you've seen all the different news and injuries and all the things.

Like, why the lengths?

Why do you think this is the right fit?

And what are you hoping to bring to this team?

Beyond popular belief, when you're in my position and you go undrafted and you know, you kind of get dealt the cards, you get dealt, um, you don't have the luxury of picking your opportunities.

Um, you just got to go where you get them.

And um, if God presented me with an opportunity, who am I to tell him no?

So, that's kind of where this move was, and how we got to that point.

Um, in terms of like other moves, yeah, I mean, I can't speak for other people, but I just know like for my situation, it just kind of

happened the way it did.

And Mini

was actually, when I went undrafted, the two calls I got to go to training camp was Minnesota and New York.

Ultimately, I decided to go to New York, but Minnie has been, the relationship has been there.

My agent has had a relationship.

We just decided to go to New York.

But so, yeah, it's been interest there.

I know Cheryl came to a couple games, my fifth year, Colorado.

So it's been there.

But I'm just excited.

I think it's a good fit for me just because of like their, for one, defense, obviously.

And then two, just seeing like,

you know, you hear the two small gesture a lot when you're my size, but to see like CW and T doing what they do at the level that they do in a system that kind of works to, you know, who they are.

plays to their strengths regardless of their size and them being able to be so good in it i think is just

showing where i can go um showing you know the next move for me and and so yeah i'm excited especially to be around people that i think has the same kind of mo as me in terms of like defense and just being a dog and just you know

we on paper we might not stack up or you might not think of us as this and that but they carry themselves with such a high standard and they carry themselves as with so much confidence that it just kind of breathes through this team and i mean like i said i ain't been here for 48 hours but you can see that already.

So I'm excited.

And they're really good teammates to one another.

Like, it's a genuine connection here.

I think this is a genuine group of people.

And, like I said, this is all off two days of being on this side.

But

for what I see, man, it's genuine and they really care about each other.

They really want to win.

And

when you got people that are very passionate about what they do, it's kind of hard to stop them.

So I'm excited.

Yeah.

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For sure, I think that there's a lot that like of relatability between the players.

I think you certainly fit the mold there

of maybe players that have been slept on or got a chip on their shoulder.

And, you know, one thing about Cheryl Reed, man, she gonna bring it out and put a squad together.

So it's a really nice situation.

And I think you don't even have to comment on this, but I think if like, if it were the Liberty and the, and the Lynx in the finals,

I think you'd possibly be eligible to win a get a ring either way.

But you know what?

So Mustafa would have a contender, but we shall see how the season plays out.

You mentioned, though, you know,

Courtney and Natisha, but you've had a chance to learn from some very elite point guards.

When you were, I mean, that's part of the reason why you kind of had to wait your turn at the Liberty.

Literally, you come in and it's one of the legends of the league in Courtney Vandersloot.

This season, I know you were very close with Natasha Cloud and she was whispering in your ear.

Even Sabrina, there's a lot to learn.

Like, what did you take away from the chance to be that close to these types of star point guards?

I just learned a lot.

Each and every one of them presented something different.

Just to go,

I went down a list like two months ago about what i learned from each one but like slew was more like a tactician type like how to get your shot off how to slow down and desail and picking spots picking angles off the board like i just learned so much in terms of like

how to work as a point guard in this league and my size from slew posh

i love tash um you just kind of learn like I think the biggest thing I learned from Tosh was off the court, honestly, is just be yourself no matter what room you walk into.

I think, you know, I tend to shy away from things, and Tasha is the total opposite.

So, being around somebody who is so proud and open and vulnerable with who she is and what she's about, and the things she loves, it was just admiring to see,

especially the Black woman in that space, too.

It was admiring to see Sab

was Sab, man.

Sab gets thrown so much.

that I think from her, I just learned to like weather the storm.

I think people don't realize

outside pressure Set put on herself, but then also her own pressure.

Seth wants to win.

She's so competitive.

So just like, it was so many times I would tell A, bro, like, breathe, bro.

You ain't got to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders.

You know, you're human.

So,

um, that.

And then also, I got to throw MJ in there.

MJ, my dog, man.

I love Marie.

Yeah.

She's just a solid assassin.

She don't say too much, but I ain't never seen somebody move like that at all.

Like, the stuff she does is just crazy.

Like, I remember one time I asked her, I was like, bro, did you really like grow up doing that?

Because, I mean, most people, you know, you do the stuff that Maureen do, they're going to be like, hey, bro, you're doing too much.

So it's just like, bro, the fact that she like, she practiced that, she works at it, she's comfortable at it, she's confident in it.

It's like, hey, bro, I can't be mad at you.

It's crazy.

I just, I shake my head every time I see it.

It's crazy.

The stuff Maureen be doing is.

That's That's actually funny.

When I found out that Maureen Johannes is actually like, that's your dog.

That's your

people's on the Liberty.

Can we expect to see a little one-foot, two-foot from you ever, or that's just Maureen thing?

And I don't need your break.

One foot child.

Yeah, I told her.

I said, I'll do one.

And then we can change like the speed.

We can, we can swap it.

So I

maybe one day, far future, though, no, no near future, far future, but I don't know.

It's fun.

I used to like mess with her and like get in her workouts and try to do it.

It's crazy, though.

It's literally like, no, she's one-on-one for sure.

I'm gonna get you out on this because you are so many things, Jaylen.

Um, you know, another cool part of your story is you have three degrees from Colorado.

Am I correct in that?

So, take me through your degrees.

Like, my question is, with all of the success you were having in ball in college and like rebuilt, re like building this program up to success, what was was fueling you to succeed in academics as well honestly uh my mom instilled in me early like you you student first athlete second um that was her mo

she was you know valedictorian she was someone

my mom was all of that so i kind of like ain't had no choice

I had no choice, man.

She was going to snatch the ball away if I wasn't doing good at school.

And I tell people all the time, like, I don't like school.

Like, it's not that I like it.

I'm just like, it's a blessing, but I'm just good at it.

So it's like, I kind of like, I don't know.

And I also think like growing up and looking back at it, it was a discipline thing.

Like it kept me disciplined.

It kept me, you know, grounded.

It taught me like prioritization

and

managing my priorities and knowing like, okay.

You can't go out to school and party if you got a pay-per-due the next day.

you got an 8 a.m.

class.

But yeah, I think, you know, my undergrad, I got it in three.

And then my actual quote-unquote senior year, I got a master's in leadership.

And then my fifth year, I did started the criminal justice, which I just finished.

So it was cool.

I actually like didn't know what to do with myself this whole summer without being in school.

It was the first summer I ever had where it was just ball and you go home.

Like it was nothing else.

I ain't had no schoolwork.

I ain't had no homework.

So it was different.

It took a lot of adjustment.

But I actually got out, started hanging out with the team a lot more and doing things.

So I was adjusting in the crib.

But yeah, it was an adjustment without school for sure.

I'm actually taking a course

starting next week because I just couldn't.

I don't know, bro.

I missed school a little bit.

So it's just one course, but it's not, it's nothing crazy.

Guess what?

For someone who's like, I don't really like school like that, you like it.

You, you like the

drumming of it.

I definitely like my program that I'm in right now, that I was in.

Yeah.

Just a criminal justice aspect.

And I don't know.

It gives me something to do other than basketball, honestly.

It's important to have something else that defines you as well and that you can pour into.

And like, look at your life, girl.

You just getting started.

You are 23.

You got three degrees.

Shout out to mom.

You're a WMPA champion.

You only play for contenders.

You are an inspiration.

To come full circle,

it's no surprise.

You got that kind of reception when you came back to play against the Liberty at Barclays.

And as a broadcaster who's seen you through college, it's just been a pleasure to watch you grow and blossom and just see your maturity.

Thank you.

I appreciate it.

Anytime.

Thank you for making time.

All right, guys, that's it for this episode of Good Follow Show presented by DraftKings.

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