For Alysha Clark, basketball has always been about more than winning championships. It's been a passport to the world, a source of lifelong friendships and, perhaps most importantly, an opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others.
But long before the WNBA championships, professional accolades and international adventures, there was Mt. Juliet High School, where a teenage girl who considered herself a volleyball player discovered a passion that would change her life.
Clark was born in Denver, Colorado, and spent much of her childhood moving across the country with her family. After living in Las Vegas, Utah and Kansas, she arrived in Mount Juliet in 2002 at age 16. Though she'd called several places home, something about the Middle Tennessee community felt different.
"I feel like I was born and raised there," she says.
Her parents had always emphasized the importance of making others feel seen, valued and cared for. In Mt. Juliet, Clark found a community that welcomed her with that same spirit.
She also found a basketball program that would lay the foundation for an extraordinary career.
Under the leadership of Coach Fryer, Mt. Juliet High School's girls basketball program was known for its discipline, demanding work ethic and competitive culture. Clark, who had primarily played volleyball before moving to Tennessee, quickly discovered an entirely new world.
"Honestly, it started at Mount Juliet High School," she says of her professional success. "That was my foundation."
The lessons she learned there extended beyond basketball. From understanding the game to developing the discipline required to compete at the highest level, Clark credits those formative years with shaping the player she would become.
And despite the many places her career has taken her, Mount Juliet remains home.
Redefining Success
Clark's professional journey hasn't always been easy. Before becoming a WNBA champion, she experienced the uncertainty of being cut from teams twice, fighting for a roster spot and gradually earning her place in the league.
Those early challenges forced her to reconsider what success really meant.
Like many professional athletes, she initially measured achievement through wins, points and rebounds. But when her career didn't follow the path she'd envisioned, she began focusing on something she could control: becoming better every year and making a meaningful contribution wherever she was needed.
Eventually, her definition of success expanded well beyond the basketball court.
"Are people remembering me for things off the court? To me, that's what success really is now," she explains.
That philosophy has guided her community involvement, including a children's toy drive she established in Seattle that continues today, her literacy advocacy and her commitment to making people feel valued.
"If I can make one person smile today, or one person feel seen, and one person feel valued, that is success to me."
Basketball has also given Clark opportunities she never imagined as a teenager. Her first airplane ride came because of the sport, which eventually allowed her to travel internationally, experience different cultures and develop relationships around the world.
It's a perspective she carries with gratitude, recognizing that her greatest accomplishments aren't necessarily reflected in her professional statistics.
Finding Love Through Loss
In 2022, Clark experienced a loss that would profoundly change her perspective when her father passed away unexpectedly.
Basketball, a passion they'd shared throughout her life, became an important outlet as she navigated her grief. But as she began finding her footing, she noticed something she hadn't fully considered during that difficult first year: her young nieces and nephew were grieving, too.
One evening, while sitting on the couch with her nieces, her youngest asked a question that stopped her in her tracks.
"Auntie? Paw Paw’s in the sky, right?"
That simple moment sparked conversations about how children process loss and eventually inspired Clark to begin researching childhood grief. An avid reader and literacy advocate, she wanted to create something that would help children understand their emotions while celebrating the people they'd lost.
Together with co-author Chiara Mars, she developed Paw Paw’s Playlist, a children's book inspired by her family's experience and their deep connection to music.
Clark's parents met while performing, and music has always been central to her family. The book uses that connection to explore how memories, songs and everyday experiences can keep loved ones close, even after they're gone.
"I hope they feel like they're not alone," Clark says of children who read the book. "I hope they feel seen in this story."
Writing it also helped Clark understand something about her own grief: sadness and happiness don't have to be mutually exclusive.
Even during a championship season, she'd struggled with guilt over experiencing moments of joy while her family continued grieving. Creating the book helped her recognize that she could celebrate life's blessings while still missing her father.
"That was the biggest lesson through this, was that these two feelings can exist at the same time."
A Grateful Heart
As Clark looks toward the next chapter of her life, she's increasingly focused on mentorship, leadership and using her platform to encourage others.
She hopes young people see authenticity in her example, recognizing that success doesn't require perfection and that kindness can have an impact far beyond anything accomplished on a basketball court.
And as Thanksgiving approaches, the woman whose career has taken her around the world finds herself especially grateful for two things: community and peace.
The support of family, friends and the communities she's called home has helped her navigate life's most difficult moments. Just as meaningful is the sense of stillness she's found along the way.
"Honestly, just like a peace of mind and a quiet heart," she says, becoming emotional as she reflects on the journey.
After years of professional competition, personal loss and extraordinary achievements, Clark has discovered a different kind of fulfillment in appreciating the present and the people who share it with her.
It's a perspective rooted in the same values she learned growing up and strengthened by the Mount Juliet community she still proudly calls home.
And it's reflected in one simple philosophy she hopes others will carry forward.
"It's free to be a kind human."