Shirley Simson, an 84-year-old mom of 4, grandmother of 14 and great-grandmother of 10, stood contained in the foyer of Las Vegas’ Bellagio Lodge & On line casino on an early January afternoon ready for her journey. She wore shiny pink athletic shorts with the phrase “SPORT DRIP” printed throughout, a white single-leg sleeve working down her left facet, a white capturing sleeve on her proper arm and a white headband with “CANDY” in its middle tying again her grey hair. Alongside two of her grandchildren, Shirley deliberate on making a 20-minute journey to Henderson, Nev., the place the Las Vegas Aces are headquartered. She hoped to work out contained in the WNBA workforce’s facility.
Earlier than the trio departed, a teen — “a younger lad,” in Simson’s phrases — noticed her close to the resort’s entrance and requested for a photograph. She had by no means been stopped like that earlier than. She was stunned, however she obliged anyway.
Simson has lived nearly all her life in obscurity. For round 4 a long time, she was a registered nurse in southern British Columbia, Canada. Now retired, she gardens, performs bridge, creates stone sculptures and participates in two guide golf equipment. Regardless of her age and top — she was as soon as 5-foot-6 however says she’s shrunk to 5-4 — Simson can also be a basketball participant. Or, quite, she is attempting to be one.
She’s hoping to grow to be a WNBA All-Star. “To me, life is value residing,” Simson says. “I simply suppose you must benefit from it since you’re solely right here for a sure size of time.”
In mid-October, Simson’s journey to the skilled ranks started. Her grandchildren, Parker, 25, and Hunter, 21, pitched her on it, and he or she was instantly recreation. “I used to be having fun with being with them,” Simson says, “and I used to be at all times any individual into issues slightly bit zany anyway.”
They movie her working towards at their native recreation middle then share the edited movies on the Instagram and TikTok accounts of their basketball accent model, Courtroom Sweet, which they based in the summertime of 2020. They’re aiming to provide no less than 50 movies of her, presenting it as a sequence with every titled “Grandma to the WNBA.” Simson voices over her footage, utilizing Gen Z phrases like, “I’m strapped,” “I began cooking,” and “chef Curry with the pot, boy.”
“I don’t know what it means, however they don’t perceive lingo from my period,” she says.
The venture is aspirational, after all. Simson’s grandchildren hoped it might deliver extra consciousness to their firm. Nevertheless it was additionally a manner for her to get in higher form after present process a left knee alternative final March. Most significantly to the trio, it permits them to spend extra time collectively.
“She’s one in every of our greatest associates, genuinely,” Parker says.
Simson final performed leisure basketball in nursing college six a long time earlier. In her first exercise again, she struggled. “I used to be hopeless,” she says. “I couldn’t dribble. I couldn’t get it to the basket, until I used to be doing it granny fashion.” That didn’t deter her, nevertheless. Nor did it flip off shoppers. Her progress has subsequently attracted the eye of tens of millions.
The sequence debut obtained practically 2 million views on TikTok alone. Three different movies have gotten greater than one million views on the social media platform. Three movies on Instagram have crossed the five hundred,000-view plateau. Simson says she doesn’t actually perceive social media. “I don’t have sufficient time in my life to do all that,” she says. However, she appreciates that folks have adopted alongside. Parker and Hunter incessantly present her the feedback. “We predict that’s the good half for her,” Parker says. They’re overwhelmingly optimistic. “I’m delighted that folks have taken curiosity as a result of one of many most important components is, in case you’re shifting, you’re grooving,” Simson says.
Her exercises begin sooner than any normal WNBA or faculty apply. On coaching days, Simson wakes up at round 5:30 a.m. and begins preparing. By 7 a.m., she’s on the court docket, outfitted not solely in her grandchildren’s accent model but additionally their basketball sneakers, which she wears solely after placing on two pairs of socks and inserting an additional in-sole. Her grandchildren run her via her drills, like two-ball dribbling and pin-down capturing. She practices each underhand and overhand jumpers. She’s nonetheless utilizing an eight-foot hoop; they hope to finally attain WNBA regulation.
Shirley Simson works on her agility with steering from her grandchildren. (Courtesy of Courtroom Sweet)
In a single video, Simson pushes away her walker. In one other, she lifts free weights and does break up lunges. She practices her vertical soar — it’s 0.67 inches — and completes a three-cone drill in simply over six seconds. A number of movies present her racing via a step ladder, generally with a basketball, which she says is among the many most troublesome workout routines. “Baba, you’re 84-years-old. You’re doing nice,” her grandchildren inform her when she struggles.
The WNBA has began taking discover of Simson. In December, the Connecticut Solar commented “Grandma… the place you at?”
“That was like holy crap,” Hunter says. Quickly after, and following Simson’s urging throughout a video itself, the league’s official account left eye-emojis on its Instagram and TikTok content material. Liberty star Breanna Stewart even shared a video of Simson on her Instagram story.
Nonetheless, the Simsons’ Las Vegas journey didn’t precisely pan out as they hoped. With out an appointment, Parker says a safety guard on the Aces facility turned them away. As a substitute, they filmed a video on the sidewalk exterior.
The Simson grandchildren hope the venture creates extra alternatives for “Grandma Shirley,” who they lately launched a separate Instagram web page for. It’s known as “EasyMoneyGranny,” a play on Kevin Durant’s “easymoneysniper” deal with.
They’d like to see her obtain an invitation to a WNBA All-Star Sport or for her to play a ceremonial position on the draft. “We simply wish to have it result in some cool adventures for her,” Parker says.
That prospect excites Simson, although it produces some worries too. She’s requested her grandsons: “What if any individual desires me to really come after which I’m not ok? What if a workforce takes me and I play awful?”
They reply: “Baba, don’t fear, they’re not gonna count on you to be dunking and doing loopy stuff.”
It additionally doesn’t assist quell any nerves {that a} household trip and a vacation chilly quickly halted Simson’s exercises. However having recovered and settled again in at house in British Columbia, her journey to the WNBA will proceed.
“These of us who’re lucky sufficient to nonetheless be alive, we should always present folks that outdated folks can do issues and outdated folks can have desires,” Simson says. “Although we would neglect rather a lot, we positive know find out how to do rather a lot too.”
(High photograph of Shirley Simson: Courtesy of Courtroom Sweet)