I recently had an opportunity to sit down with 6’2” Chicago Sky forward Tamera ‘T’ Young.
Copyright 2015 NBAE (Photo by Gary Dineen/NBAE via Getty Images)
Tamera shared details about growing up tall, the impact her family had on her life, and life after basketball.
Tamera aka T-Young is from Wilmington, North Carolina. She attended Emsley A. Laney High School. The very same high school Michael Jordan attended. The two Laney Hall of Famers met recently, a dream come true for Tamera.
She graduated with a degree in business from James Madison University and topped off graduation with a first round draft pick by the Atlanta Dream. She joined the Chicago Sky WNBA team a year later.
Fun Fact 1: Did you know Tamera’s athleticism extends itself to bowling? She played on the bowling team in high school.
During our interview we spoke about the tall experience and the key ingredient for tall women.
T’s TALL Experience:
T was short until she hit a growth spurt her freshmen year in high school. When her jeans started getting too short she had to become a bit resourceful. Baggy jeans were still in style during her high school years so she purchased jeans that were long enough but too big. She would wear shorts underneath the jeans in order for them to fit.
Tamera is very comfortable with her height. Her mother, who is only 5’4” relative to her 6’2” stature, played a major role in her self-confidence. Her mom constantly told her that she was beautiful as was her height. Her aunts and family members also contributed to her ‘height confidence’.
There are additional influential factors. Tamera credits her teachers, ironically shorter women, for instilling confidence in her height. She also credits team sports like Basketball for providing a sense of normalcy as there were other tall women involved in the sport.
Most popular question/encounter?
Do you model or play basketball?
While Tamera is not a fan of this line of questioning she has become quite accustomed to it. She finds the question about modeling a bit ironic given most models that she has met are 5’6″ or 5’7″.
Shopping with Tamera
I would describe Tamera’s style as ‘Tomboy Chic’ off of the court and ‘Polished’ in the office.
Favorite Clothing Stores: 36” Inseam
The GAP, The Limited, Express, Banana Republic, Top Shop and Nordstrom.
Favorite Shoe Brands: Size 10.5
Nine West, Vince Camuto, Aldo, and Nordstrom or Nordstrom Rack
Favorite Car(s) and Airlines: Leg Room Required
Cars – She currently drives a Jeep Wrangler & Dodge Challenger (has more leg room). A part of her car selection process is the ‘seat back’ test. It’s the test one conducts to determine how far the seat goes back. If you can see a person from the back seat window but their arms are still reaching the steering wheel it is a pretty good indication that they are tall.
Airplane – United Airline’s economy seats. If she can’t fly United she prefers exit seat rows. Extra leg room is a necessity. She gets extremely uncomfortable when sitting in a regular seat because her knees start to bother her. Something I can seriously relate too. After 3 hours my knees are screaming ‘get out of this car’ and ‘stretch me.’
Fun Fact 2: T had a coaching related internship with Georgia Tech the summer of 2012/2013. She has an upcoming internship with a well known financial services company that begins in 2016. She is a professional on and off the court.
Tamera’s Words of Wisdom
– Tall is beautiful.
– Confidence is key. When you look and feel confident people are less likely to pick on you.
T often tells her 13 year old niece that TALL is beautiful and encourages her to be confident.
Fun Fact 3:
Tamera has a line of t-shirts, head bands, and kick packs called TY1. Click here or visit www.TameraYoung1.com to learn more about Tamera and to find out how to purchase your very own TY1 t-shirt.
Are you a WNBA fan in Chicago and want to attend a game. Visit the Chicago Sky‘s website for details on how to purchase tickets.
Thank you Tamera for sitting down with TALL District founder J. Enovy!!!
TALL Blessings,
J. Enovy
TALL District
Founder
www.TALLDistrict.com
Your Go To Source for All things TALL
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