Women’s basketball Head Coach Ganiyat Adeduntan knows the sport isn’t life and death.
Between her years playing college basketball at Florida State University and beginning her coaching career, Adeduntan worked as a nurse practitioner — an experience she said helped her learn to see the bigger picture. Since returning to basketball full-time in 2014, she’s carried those lessons with her, approaching her players holistically and prioritizing them as people first.
“When I think about coaching our players, I think teaching and educating is the best part of what we do,” Adeduntan said. “We also have to be able to see them, not just as basketball players but as human beings, as people.”
Hired by GW Athletics in April after four years as the head coach at Colgate University, Adeduntan — known around campus as “Coach G” — said she’s spent significant time connecting with players, both new and experienced. She said she’s prioritized building a unified culture within her program, creating a team that plays hard and feels “connected” to each other.
“We’re going to play with a certain level of passion because this is a game that we enjoy playing, so that’s what we want people to see and feel,” Adeduntan said.
While she’s had to adjust to a new group of players, acclimating to Foggy Bottom hasn’t been difficult for Adeduntan. She’s been here before — serving as an assistant coach from 2017 to 2022. Now back in D.C. as the program’s leader, she said she feels incredibly grateful for the privilege to guide the team and help shape its future.
“This level of gratitude fills me constantly,” Adeduntan said. “I’m also humbled to be the head coach of this program, understanding that it is a privilege to have this opportunity.”
Adeduntan’s first year as an assistant coach at GW saw the Revolutionaries capture an Atlantic 10 title and secure an NCAA Tournament appearance that year, the team’s most recent trip to March Madness. After four seasons, she left to take the top position at Colgate, where she steadily improved the team’s record each year, establishing a culture of growth and success as their head coach.
Since returning to GW, team culture and identity have been at the helm of Adeduntan’s vision as she builds her program from the ground up.
“Value, our expectations, our standards, how we show up every single day, what our nonnegotiables are and then the identity of how we want to be and how we want to look or want this thing to feel like every single time we step on the floor,” she said.
Consistent with her holistic approach, she said she’s focused on making sure her players represent the program in all aspects of their lives. She added that she looks to see the team mature during their time on the team, both on and off the court.
“Every single day, we’re always talking about representing GW women’s basketball,” Adeduntan said. “And everything that we do, how we show up in the classroom, how we’re showing up in meetings, how we’re showing up every single day on the court. Our standards are very high.”
In Adeduntan’s view, building a strong team culture is the first step toward returning the program to its championship-caliber standards. Historically, the team has won seven A-10 Championships and made 18 NCAA tournament appearances over the tournament’s 43-year history. Between 1991 and 2008, the program earned 15 of those bids, advancing as far as the regional finals in 1997.
While she understands returning to this level of play immediately is unrealistic after nearly a decade of subpar play, she believes it is in the cards eventually. While the team works toward that vision, Adeduntan said she is looking to see consistent small improvements.
“We understand that we have a lot of work to do,” Adeduntan said. “We have a big gap to close, but we’re not focused on that end result. We’re focused on the process and what it takes every single day and showing up and giving my best.”
In her efforts to stress consistency and effort, Adeduntan had the team name captains for the first time — leaders who, she said, set examples through strong communication and day-in, day-out hard work. The team selected senior forward Caia Loving and, in her first year at GW, senior guard and forward Emma Theodorsson for their leadership abilities, both vocally and by example.
She also said she’s instilled this attention to detail into her staff, as well, hiring people who share her focus on teaching.
“It always starts with your staff, being on the same page and connected, and what we’re trying to do, what our goals are and then being able to trickle down out to our players, individually and as a full team,” Adeduntan said.
As the team nears opening day, Adeduntan is looking to see results beyond the win-loss column. She’s emphasizing process, looking for competitiveness and enthusiasm as her “measurement” to open up her tenure with the program.
“Are we coming out and giving our best effort?” Adeduntan said. “Focus on the process and the results will take care of itself.”
