When Geno Auriemma talked about “greatest trash talker” Diana Taurasi and “knucklehead” who talked trash vs LeBron James
Geno Auriemma has coached many great players during his illustrious career at UConn. In the Connecticut Forum's "Husky Nation!" talk on May 4, 2023, he opened up about basketball legend Diana Taurasi and explained why she was the greatest trash talker he ever coached in the collegiate ranks.
Moderator Kimberley Martin steered the conversation toward trash-talking, asking Auriemma what he tells his players about it. Former UConn players Sue Bird and Morgan Tuck, also part of the forum, immediately looked to their left to hear Auriemma’s response.
"I was fortunate or unfortunate, but I was fortunate to coach the greatest trash talker in the history of women’s basketball — Diana Taurasi," Auriemma said.
Auriemma explained that he admired Taurasi’s style of trash-talking because she backed it up with her play. He alluded to Dillon Brooks as an example of how trash-talking shouldn’t be done, referring to the former Memphis Grizzlies player as a "knucklehead" for talking trash to LeBron James.
"So I like it when they do it and nobody knows it. Because if you do it and you show somebody up bad, like the knucklehead from the Grizzlies who’s talking about LeBron. If you’re gonna say that, then you better back it up," Auriemma said.
Brooks had taken aim at James following Game 2 of the Grizzlies’ first-round series with the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2023 Western Conference Playoffs. Memphis, coming off a 103-93 victory to tie the series at 1-1, saw Brooks criticize James in a postgame interview.
Brooks called James “old” and said he wasn’t afraid to “poke bears.” He added that he doesn’t respect anyone until they score 40 points against him. The remarks provided ample bulletin board material for James, who led the Lakers to a 4-2 series win over Memphis.
James averaged 22.2 points, 11.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists through six games, while Brooks struggled after Game 2, scoring just 36 points on 14-for-50 shooting for the rest of the series.
Geno Auriemma, Diana Taurasi led UConn Huskies to three straight NCAA titles
Diana Taurasi found success under Geno Auriemma, with the pair leading the UConn Huskies to three consecutive NCAA titles from 2002 to 2004. Taurasi was instrumental in the historic three-peat, earning the Naismith College Player of the Year award in 2003 and 2004.
Taurasi finished her college career at UConn with an incredible 139-8 record, averaging 15.0 points, 4.5 assists and 4.3 rebounds. She may have trash-talked her opponents like no other during her time with the Huskies, but she backed it up with outstanding play.