WNBA - Diggins' Diary: Follow My Lead

Before she had her name in the Notre Dame record books, a deal with Jay-Z’s media agency and her own hashtags, Skylar Diggins was a big sister.

With no fewer than four younger siblings, Skylar was a role model long before she donned a Tulsa Shock -- or even a Notre Dame -- jersey.

“I can remember times when, you know, kids get to an age where it’s monkey see, monkey do, and you have to be a role model for them,” Diggins said. “I know (my siblings) were looking up to me and I just tried to be that example for them.”

Given that platform – by virtue of birth order – Diggins felt a responsibility to give her siblings a playbook for success.

“I’d try to do the right things for them and always do the things I said I was going to do,” she said. “Keep my word. Work hard. Be goal oriented. And do everything in my power to achieve my goals and kind of give them somebody to look up to and someone to be like.”

Growing up in South Bend, in the shadows of Notre Dame’s campus, Diggins had someone like that to look up to as well. In addition to her mother, who Diggins called the, “perfect example of a strong, humble, woman,” a young Skylar also admired Niele Ivey, then a point guard on Notre Dame’s women’s team, who won a National title in college and went on to play five years in the WNBA.

“She was always someone that I looked up to at a young age,” Diggins remembered. “She was right there in the city of South Bend and I just loved to watch her and the team play. I loved the way she took command of the game and was a great point guard and did all the things that as a player I wanted to become.”

When it came time for Diggins to play at Notre Dame herself, Ivey was the Recruiting Coordinator and then an assistant coach, focusing on the guards. Diggins said that her relationship with her former idol came full circle because Ivey “actually really played a crucial role in my development as a player.”

As Skylar's talent blossomed, her fame exploded. Therefore, given this rare platform -- by virtue of stature this time -- Diggins continued to play the role of big sister, just to a bigger audience.

“I just want to encourage the youth to try everything you want to try,” Diggins said. “I think that’s important, whether it be basketball or piano or art or whatever you want to do – try it. The more time you put into your craft, the better you’ll become at it. Stay focused on your goals and don’t let people try to pull you away for peripheral things. “

It only takes a casual scan of Diggins’ flourishing social networks to see the kind of impact she has on young people. Let's start, of course, with Twitter, where she is constantly sent messages like these.

Skylar Diggins says good bye to her family and friends at her childhood rec center in South Bend Indiana.