Draft Diary: A'ja Wilson talks going to Las Vegas
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) What a great introduction to Las Vegas!
It was a long flight from South Carolina, but the weather couldn't have been better and I really enjoyed every minute of it.
Driving from the airport to the strip, I was flattered to see on the side of hotels and on billboards giant welcome signs with my picture on them. It definitely was a good welcome.
It got even better when the sisters of Alpha Kappa Alpha, my sorority, surprised me with their own warm welcome. They let me, and my parents, know that they are there for me if I need them. So cool!
I had been to Vegas once before, but I was just a wide-eyed adolescent then. Now it's definitely a lot different.
The first day there was a lot of work to be done off the court. I think I must have hit almost every radio and TV station in the city. One of the radio stations though had a really, really awesome surprise . They knew that Chipotle was my favorite thing to eat and gave me a year's supply of free burritos.
Yep that's right, I can walk into any store and give them a card and get a burrito.
That wasn't the only surprise in store for me. During one of the TV interviews, I told them that I had always dreamed of doing the weather. After watching the professional weatherman do the forecast, I figured why not give it a try - being the crazy, carefree girl I am.
They put me in front of a green screen and I did the weather report. Now, I just thought I was putting on a show for them, but little did I know they recorded it and put it out on Twitter for everyone to see. Not bad for a first time! I got most of the weather report right.
I got a chance to meet coach Bill Laimbeer and we talked about the season and had dinner next to the Bellagio fountains. Definitely was cool watching that show.
Oh yeah, there definitely was the basketball part of the trip too. I got in a workout or two with coach Laimbeer and Kelsey Bone and officially signed my first contract . I'm now officially a pro.
Now I'm back in South Carolina for a week, trying to finish up all the school work that's left and attend my final classes. I'll be back in Vegas soon for training camp with the Aces and fortunately I'll be able to return on May 12 to South Carolina to graduate and walk with my class. Then it's off to Dallas the next day for a preseason game.
---
South Carolina star A'ja Wilson is chronicling her path from the end of her college career to the start of her WNBA career, including getting drafted by Las Vegas and her first trip to her new city.
