Yarden Garzon is undoubtedly one of the best Israeli basketball players to emerge in recent years.
The 22-year-old, 6-foot-1 guard, originally from Ra’anana, starred in the NCAA over the past four seasons, spending three years at Indiana before transferring to Maryland for her senior year.
According to many projections, Garzon was expected to become just the second Israeli to play in the WNBA, but she ultimately went undrafted a few months ago. She later signed a rookie contract with the Phoenix Mercury, though the team eventually decided to let her go.
Now, as she looks ahead to the next chapter of her career at Euroleague powerhouse Zaragoza in Spain, Garzon sat down with The Jerusalem Post and a myriad of topics were discussed, from her early beginnings as a basketball player all the way to present day.
“I’m doing really well,” Garzon began. “I’m working on getting ready for next season. While I’m excited to finish my college career, I expected things to go a little differently, but as the saying goes, we plan and God laughs. Now I’m about to begin my professional career.”
Athletic upbringings
Growing up in a home with a very athletic family helped begin to mold Garzon as to who she is today.
“My dad played basketball in Maccabi’s youth system and my mom played volleyball for many years. Growing up, we were always outside playing soccer, basketball, riding bikes, whatever we could. Then one day I joined a basketball program and that’s where it all started.”
“Basketball-wise, I don’t think I had one specific role model where I said, ‘I want to be like her when I grow up,’ unfortunately. I wasn’t really exposed to that. But every year I wanted to be better than the girls who were three, four, or five years older than me. I’d watch them and think, ‘Okay, I want to do a step-back like her. I want to shoot like her. I want to pass like her.’ So throughout my journey, I was always looking two or three steps ahead at the kind of player I wanted to become and that’s where I found my role models.”
Having an older sister in Lior who is a high-level basketball player is also helpful along the way for Garzon.
“I think it really comes from our family and it’s great that we have each other. We understand what the other is going through. She went to college before I did, so when I moved to the US, she helped me a lot with what to do and how to handle everything. It’s great to have someone who truly understands me and is going through similar experiences that we can share.”
After starring in high school and local youth leagues in Israel, Garzon was recruited by colleges in the United States and chose to attend Indiana.
“I arrived at Indiana as an 18-year-old kid who didn’t know much and I grew tremendously. Of course, I developed as a player on the court, but I also developed as a person. Those years between 18 and 21 are really significant because that’s when you learn so much and become an adult. Living away from home was mainly about growing up.”
After three years at Indiana, Garzon decided to move to Maryland for her last year of eligibility.
“I felt I needed new opportunities, maybe a different system and to test myself in a different environment. I chose Maryland mainly because I wanted to learn from head coach Brenda Frese, who’s known for developing players into impactful professionals. I think I fit in pretty quickly and I connected well with the coaching staff and the players. Unfortunately, we had a lot of ups and downs that season and it didn’t go exactly the way we wanted. There were a lot of injuries and a lot of changes, but that’s part of life.”
During her four years in college ball, Garzon was fortunate to be able to play in the NCAA Tournament, March Madness in each of her seasons.
“I don’t think anyone who hasn’t experienced it or been in the American college system can truly understand it. All eyes are on you. It’s the biggest event of the year. It’s broadcast to millions of people. I’m really happy I got to be part of it for four years. The level of organization, the quality of the players, the facilities, you really can’t compare it to anything else.”
After her senior year at Maryland, Garzon was not selected in the most recent WNBA Draft, which of course was disappointing as she had been highly rated during her time in college.
“There’s really no way to sugarcoat it. It was a huge disappointment because there were high expectations. I was projected in pretty much every mock draft. For a few hours, it was difficult to accept. But I think that’s the beauty of it, every player has their own path. I’ll make it to the WNBA, I’m sure of it. It’ll just happen through a different route.”
Following the draft, Garzon did sign a rookie contract with the Phoenix Mercury and was able to head to training camp, but at the end of the day it didn’t work out due to an injury and she was released.
“It was a great experience. I started training camp really well and I was getting very, very positive feedback. It looked like things were heading in the right direction. Unfortunately, I got injured during camp, so I wasn’t able to give everything I had or fully prove myself through the end of camp, which was really disappointing. But yes, I believe I’m absolutely at the level of that league. I know I can play there and contribute to teams, and I believe I’ll get there.
“On one hand, of course I was disappointed. I wanted to make the WNBA this year. On the other hand, I completely understood their decision because with my injury it was difficult to continue when the season was starting and I couldn’t be on the court. It was especially frustrating because of the injury. They really gave me as much time as they could to try to get back on the court, but injuries are part of every athlete’s career, and you have to deal with them.”
On the bright side, Garzon was recently selected as one of Forbes Israel’s 30 Under 30 which was a real boost for the hoopster.
“I think it’s very special and it’s encouraging to know that people see me and recognize what I’m doing. I’m really proud to be Israeli wherever I go. It’s a great feeling to receive that recognition. It’s a huge honor, and now I just want to keep working.”
See more Israeli sports coverage at www.sportsrabbi.com/en