The Ute women's basketball team was just finishing practice one afternoon in March when I stopped to talk with guard Shona Thorburn. We had known one another for about 1 1/2 years.
I asked about her plans after she finished school. She said she was hoping to play in the WNBA, despite coming from a relatively unheralded program. She said she could only work hard and hope they liked her game. I asked what she wanted to do if a pro basketball career didn't work out. She said she'd love to be a TV sports commentator, maybe work at ESPN.
Turned out it didn't take long to reach both goals. She's not commentating yet, but she is appearing on ESPN. She was there for the Utes' long run in the NCAA tournament, and as a member of the Minnesota Lynx will appear in Tuesday's season-opener on ESPN2 against Connecticut.
As they say in the basketball business, "Count it!"
What next for the Hamilton, Ontario, native, a place in Parliament? Don't laugh. Lately, it seems what Shona wants, Shona eventually gets.
"I do set goals," said Thorburn in a telephone interview Saturday. "I put my mind on it and things have kind of played out how I had planned. I've had highs and lows, but this has been a crazy high for the last few months."
Thorburn isn't the flashiest player on the court. If she gets in the game Tuesday, she'll be the one lurking in the shadow of taller players, doing the things that don't always get noticed. The same person ESPN-TV commentator Nancy Lieberman accidentally called "Thorn Burn" on Draft Day.
Don't expect her to be the center of attention; she plays on the same team as No. 1 overall pick Seimone Augustus.
At the same time, don't plan on her shying away, either.
"I'm a little tentative right now, but that's to be expected," said Thorburn. "I mean, I'm a rookie. I'm playing with great players, but I'm getting comfortable and communicating with the coaches. All I can control is how hard I work and hope for the opportunity to play. I've been busting my rear and having fun."
Which is exactly what she did at Utah.
Thorburn's career took a dramatic swing just as her college days waned. Although she had a successful college experience, few expected her to be the No. 7 draft pick — highest in Mountain West Conference history. A 2005 conference co-MVP, she ended up the league's all-time assist leader. Still, a Utah player had never been drafted. She shot a sub-par 36 percent as a senior.
But that doesn't mean she played poorly. Her passing and leadership were a major component in the Utes coming within a free throw of the Final Four. When one of Thorburn's two attempts missed, the game went to eventual NCAA champ Maryland in overtime.
"It comes up now and again," she said. "It's turning into a joke. But I was never embarrassed. To feel defeat after having the opportunity to go to the Final Four made me stronger and feel proud of myself."
She points out that calling timeout in the NCAA title game — when his team was out of timeouts — didn't stop Chris Webber, either.
Consequently, she was optimistic when the WNBA Draft rolled around in April.
"It was such an honor and a huge accomplishment. But other than myself, my agent and the coaches at Utah, no one knew anything" about where she might be drafted.
When the season ended, the Lynx called immediately to say they had the Nos. 1 and 7 picks.
"I knew I wasn't going to be first," she said.
August has been everything a No. 1 pick should be, said Thorburn: gifted but modest and willing to learn.
"We just sort of stand there in awe and watch her in practice. There are times when she does not miss one shot," said Thorburn.
But after Augustus, Minnesota turned its attention to Thorburn. Though she isn't expected to start Tuesday, she may yet be the team's floor leader.
"We don't have a starting point guard returning, so she will have every opportunity to earn a spot from the beginning," said coach Suzie McConnell Serio on Draft Day.
They may even want to plan on it.
I know Thorburn is.
E-mail: rock@desnews.com