A 16-year-old Maya Moore makes a layup for Collins Hill High School 5 From the Midwest to the South CHAPTER 1 Maya Moore looked ready to play A white headband held back her hair Long sleeves covered her arms Her Jordan shoes were laced up tight Maya’s team the Minnesota Lynx had a big game that night It was the Women’s National Basketball Association WNBA playoffs But before the game started a ceremony took place Maya was getting an award She had been named the From the Midwest to the South
Maya was a very energetic child But she and her mother lived in a small apartment Sometimes her mother had a hard time stopping Maya from running around inside So her mother put a small basketball hoop on the front door After that basketball was Maya’s favorite sport 6Maya Moore 2014 WNBA Most Valuable Player MVP She thanked her mother She thanked her teammates Maya was nervous through the entire ceremony She could not wait for the game to start Finally it was time to play And Maya did what she does best She scored 26 points The Lynx beat the San Antonio Stars 88 84 Maya had worked hard to become the best player in women’s basketball But her journey started 25 years earlier Maya was born on June 11 1989 She lived in Jefferson City Missouri She did not have any brothers or sisters It was just Maya and her mother at home
Moore holds up her MVP award before a WNBA playoff game in 2014 7 From the Midwest to the South But they were not alone Maya had lots of younger cousins She used to babysit them When something went wrong Maya usually took the blame Babysitting taught her responsibility at a young age It also taught her the value of leadership Maya first picked up a basketball when she was three years old She joined her first team when she was seven Maya spent four seasons with this team She was one of the tallest players This helped her score more points than any of her teammates Maya often dreamed of playing in the WNBA The league started in 1997 when she was eight An uncle gave Maya a
