6-foot-1 Da’Nasia Hood can play all three frontcourt positions and she proved that this season, averaging 21.5 points and 11.8 rebounds for Kotka Peli-Karhut in Finland. After spending her whole amateur career in Texas, she signed her first pro contract in Puerto Rico. Last season she was supposed to play in Israel, but… Well, it’s her story, we’ll just let her tell it.
21 points and 12 rebounds per game in your first season in Europe! Are you happy with those numbers? Were you expecting such an easy transition to playing across the world?
I am okay with those numbers. I feel like throughout my first year of playing, I have grown a lot and have been able to work on some things that were not as strong in college. I think my transition has been interesting and allowed me to grow in multiple ways both on and off the court. I have been training since I got out of college, so I knew that there would be some translation of the work I was putting in on the court. However, I still know that there is a lot of room for me to keep growing to reach an even higher level of my game.
You were raised in San Antonio, played high school ball there and then went to Texas State in San Marcos, an hour away from home. Then you played as a pro in Puerto Rico, still relatively close… and warm. Suddenly you’re playing in Finland, which is not only far away, but cold. Like really cold. How did you adapt?
Yes, coming to Finland was definitely something I had to adapt to. The cold weather was not what I am used to being from Texas, but I just bought me a few coats and was open to the experience of living in a Nordic country and it has truly been a blessing.
In what way?
It was a blessing because it allowed me to come play in a safe country where I could focus on expanding my game. I’ve had the opportunity to meet great people and mature through a complete opposite experience from home. I’m grateful that I was invited and openly accepted into a new environment that has pushed me in ways I didn’t know I needed as far as continuing to find my consistency as a professional basketball player. Since college, all 3 teams I played with had women who were far more experienced than me who gave me advice, guidance, and little nuggets to continue growing as a player and a person. Finland allowed me to finally put those gems all together and I think they have jelled together well, as I have been able to keep…
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