Oklahoma Women's Basketball Star Aaliyah Chavez Enters Year Two With the Right Mindset

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Aaliyah Chavez sounded pretty locked in at SEC Tipoff.


Not hyped up. Not forced. Just clear on what she wants year two to look like.

That is a good sign for Oklahoma. After the kind of freshman season she had, the easy trap is trying to do more of everything. More shots. More moments. More proof. Chavez is already talking like she knows better.

“I mean, there’s so many things that I could say, I think, just to come out here and play my own game,” she said.

“I don’t think I have to force it to prove that I’m someone. I think, just going out there playing who I am, and what’s best for Oklahoma.”

She does not need to reinvent herself to justify the attention. She already forced the league to respect her. Now the job is to stay aggressive without getting tight.

And the résumé is why people are watching so closely. Last year Chavez started all 33 games, led all true freshmen in the country at 18.4 points per game, and still added 4.2 assists and 3.8 rebounds. National Freshman of the Year from ESPN and CBS Sports. All-SEC second team. A ridiculous 92.9 percent from the free-throw line, including 62 makes in a row.

She was not a nice surprise. She was one of the best stories in the sport.

This year is different though, and she knows it. The roster around her has changed a lot. That can mess with some players. Chavez sounded energized by it.

“Yeah, I mean, I’m very excited for this year,” she said.

“Obviously, almost a whole new team, so just learning everybody and learning how our style is going to be. I think it’s just so exciting because practicing has been so much fun.”

Oklahoma is young, deeper, and still putting the identity together. For Chavez, that means the sophomore jump is not just about scoring again. It is about helping the new pieces settle in faster. Making the right extra pass. Trusting the people around her. Being the player defenses game-plan for without letting that turn into forced basketball.

She already showed some of that last year. The points jumped off the page, but the decision-making mattered too. She could run offense, punish help, and stay efficient. The next step is doing all of that as one of the clear faces of the team.

That is the harder part. Nobody is sneaking up on her now. She is going to see more attention, more bodies, more designed looks to make somebody else beat you.

If she stays true to what she said this week, Oklahoma should be fine with that. Play her game. Do what helps the Sooners. Let the result follow.

Oklahoma does not need a different Aaliyah Chavez in year two. It needs the same one, just more comfortable elevating everybody else with her.

If that happens, the Sooners are going to be a problem again.