Provo • BYU women’s basketball coach Jeff Judkins was stunned. The Cougars were stumbling in their conference opener against San Francisco, and his normally reliable veteran point guard Haley Steed was the reason.
Her passing and decision-making were poor. During the timeout, Judkins confronted Steed, and not in the politest of language.
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Haley Steed file
» A Nancy Leiberman Award finalist in 2012, she suffered three ACL tears in her first three seasons at BYU, playing a combined nine games between 2007 and 2009.
» She holds BYU’s single-season record for assists (237) and has now been part of the women’s basketball program for seven of coach Jeff Judkins’ 12 seasons as head coach.
» Judkins began recruiting Steed her sophomore season at Clearfield High School, where she was a four-time all-state selection.
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"Haley, you’ve got to start playing, kid. What’s the problem?" Judkins demanded.
"I had a bad whole first half," Steed acknowledged, as BYU overcame a small bump to defeat San Francisco on Jan. 5 in the West Coast Conference opener.
The in-game exchange serves as only a small portion of their relationship. Judkins and Steed, two gym rats bound by a deep love of basketball, have also been through the wringer together.
"When I recruited Haley, I knew Haley was going to be a great player," said Judkins, now in his 12th season at BYU. "Over the years, she has become more like a daughter to me than a player.
"Because of her injuries, because of what she’s gone through, her sacrifices, the time we shared together, I just feel like I know her better than anybody."
Steed’s unusual athletic path, one created by a series of injuries and an NCAA ruling that granted her two extra years of eligibility, has allowed her to play a seventh season of point guard for BYU. This time, seven has been good luck for both as they look to repeat as conference champions.
"Juddy probably yells at Haley more than anyone," said Haley’s mother, Kristen Hall. "I always laugh to myself at how much he yells at Haley. It’s an amazing relationship. There’s incredible respect both ways.
"I know [Steed’s injury] had to be a hard time for him as well. He didn’t blink an eye. We never felt anything but support. That was a big part of what helped Haley think she could make a comeback."
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Despite not being a playing member of the team, the 5-foot-4 guard didn’t waste her three lost seasons. Whether on the bench or during practices, she drank in as much of Judkins’ basketball philosophy as possible.
"She’s a coach on the floor," Judkins said. "She has the best feel of what’s going on out there better than anybody other than myself. I’ve been lucky — she’s a gem."
As they talked, they found common insight and occasional disagreement. Steed can challenge her coach — and has done so.
Judkins doesn’t hold back, either.
"We feel like we can feed off one another," Steed said. "I feel comfortable knowing I can go to him and he trusts me."
As with any relationship, this one took time to build. It also had a crossroad.
By 2009, Judkins had every right to look somewhere else for a point guard. He had recruited Steed, then known as Haley Hall, a celebrated All-State guard at Clearfield High, to run his basketball team.
Yet, in three years, Steed had played a total of nine games. She didn’t even make it to the start of 2007-08 because the left knee blew out in practice prior to the season opener.
Certainly, the third ACL injury should have been the final crushing blow.
Mentally, "I felt done," Steed said.
It was just after Steed had once again crumpled to the court, this time one game into the 2008-09 season, that the relationship between coach and player really changed.
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