Getting to Know...
Charise Holloway
JaLea Bennett
Cherice Harris
TUCSON, Ariz.--- In part four of our 13-part “Getting to Know” series, ArizonaWildcats.com sits down with freshman guard Taryn Griffey.
ArizonaWildcats.com: With all that you have been through with your ACL injury, do you believe it has helped you grow stronger as a person?
Griffey: “Yes it has because I have had to rely more on my leg outside of basketball to help me get places and do things. It has also helped me grow mentally and test my patience. Basketball wise, it’s also been helpful seeing things from a different perspective on the sideline.”
ArizonaWildcats.com: Do you believe everything happens for a reason and why?
Griffey: I actually do believe everything happens for a reason because my mom has always said everything happens for a reason. Ever since then, I’ve honestly never really questioned it and have never really doubted what has happened to me. I just feel like you go through things that help you become a better person overall. I believe God gives his toughest battles to his strongest soldiers.
ArizonaWildcats.com: What motivates you and why?
Griffey: Playing basketball is what I do and is what I want my career to be. Just being able to come back and being able to play basketball at a high level is going to be awesome. It’s going to feel really good to prove the doubters wrong?
ArizonaWildcats.com: What is one of your biggest fears?
Griffey: “I’m not going to lie, I’m afraid of injuring myself again, but my dad has always told me that no matter what, if you play hard in sports, you are going to get hurt. It just is what it is. Whether it’s spraining an ankle or something of that nature, but actually I don’t really have a fear of coming back and trying to play. It is more a fear of not playing my best and getting too frustrated with myself.”
ArizonaWildcats.com: How important of a role does your family have in you playing basketball?
Griffey: “They have supported me a lot through everything and even though they are not here with me, they still support me any way they can. It helps that my brother (Trey Griffey | WR for football team) is here because we are really close. Even when he is on the road I will call or text him and talk about everything.
ArizonaWildcats.com: When did you know that you wanted to play basketball at the collegiate level?
Griffey: “When I was five I realized that I wanted to play basketball. I fell in love with it when I first began playing. I played other sports too, but I just knew basketball was the one for me very early on.”
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