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Two tiny teammates join Cal women’s basketball team

Coaches' babies are already an integral part of the team

In this Aug. 30, 2017 photo, California women’s basketball head coach Lindsay Gottlieb, right, holds her son Jordan next to assistant coach Kai Felton and her son Weston as players surround them in Berkeley, Calif. The California women’s basketball players suddenly have two tiny teammates on board for this season, the new sons of Gottlieb and Felton. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
Lindsay Gottlieb (right with son Jordan in 2017) is leaving UC Berkeley after eight highly successful years as the women's basketball head coach to be an assistant coach with the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers. (AP photo by Marcio Jose Sanchez)

The two new coaches on the Cal women’s basketball team clock in at just a few feet tall and no more than 50 pounds – combined. There’s Baby Jordan, son of head coach Lindsay Gottlieb, and Baby Weston, son of Assistant Coach Kai Felton.

The babies were born less than a month apart and have already become an integral part of the team’s coaching staff.

They’ve already gone on a recruiting trips and met the some of the big-name players and coaches in basketball, like Steph Curry. They come to practice most days – often in Cal gear – and Weston even has a crib in his mother’s office. Jordan prefers a bouncy chair.

The pair of babies have so far brought a sense of joy and spirit to the team.

Jordan “won’t be here every day forever, but with the feeding now it makes it easier,” Gottlieb told the Associated Press in a story about the pair. “At some point it might be he comes by two days a week or three days a week, or maybe he comes by and pops into practice and then goes to watch an Olympian in the pool or goes to a class in Berkeley, a kiddie class. It’s so cool the opportunities for him.”

And the players seem to appreciate the adventure. The team’s season starts November 10 against St. Mary’s.

“They’re being great mothers and great coaches, too, spending time with their kids, with us,” senior guard Mikayla Cowling told AP. “It’s a good dynamic going on. It’s crazy having all of them in the office all the time, but it’s a joy to have.”

 

You can read the complete story on the Associated Press website.