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On Her Way Back Again
2/1/2019 11:57:00 AM | Women's Basketball
By Daniela Schneider, GoDuke the Magazine
On November 1, 2018, Kyra Lambert was supposed to be cleared from injuries for the second time in her Duke career. She was set to play in Duke's first game of the season at Northwestern just over a week later. But on the same day she was going to be cleared, Lambert went in for her third surgery. Her season was over before she even got the chance to start it.
Injuries happen in a matter of seconds. All it takes is one wrong move, one wrong step, one wrong play, and everything is taken away. It is every athlete's worst fear. And it has happened to Kyra Lambert three times.
On March, 18, 2017, everything changed for Lambert. She was a sophomore, and she was the starting point guard of a top-ten ranked Duke team. The Blue Devils made it to the NCAA Tournament that season, and faced an unranked Hampton in the first round. Lambert was going for a ball when one of Hampton's players dove for it at the same time. Lambert tore her left ACL and lateral meniscus for the first time, and on March 31 she went in for surgery. Duke's hunt for a national championship took a turn for the worst by losing its primary ballhandler and fourth-leading scorer.
Fast-forward to January 2018. Lambert had just made the decision to take the redshirt, and was on course to making a full recovery to return for the 2018-19 season. But later that month she tore her left ACL and medial meniscus once again. She was in practice and went up for a layup, solo, and just planted wrong. She went back in for surgery that February.
Rehab, again.
Lambert was determined to come back. But as she has learned, her plans do not always work out how she imagines they would. At the end of October, Lambert was doing agilities in practice and planted to back-pedal. And she felt it. Another torn left ACL and medial meniscus. Lambert never even got the chance to put on her jersey. She was back in rehab, with a few more scars on her knee from the third surgery.
Lambert's left knee serves as a constant reminder of what she has been through, and who she has become because of it.
“I have grown so much because of this injury,” said Lambert. “I have grown more because of the injury than I think I would have without it. I know it's kind of weird to say. I don't wish it upon anybody by any means, but when you spend so much time and devote so much time to one thing, it's kind of hard to imagine yourself without it.”
Everything was taken away from Lambert when she could not play anymore. The gym was her safe haven. Whether she needed to think, or if she just needed time to herself, she would come to the gym to shoot, dribble, or even just sit. She is a self-proclaimed gym rat. And it was all taken away from her.
“When you're not able to do something you absolutely love, it hurts and you're lost and trying to find something that you can do to get your mind off of it,” said Lambert. “But to not even be able to do that. It's the little things like putting on pants or taking a shower. It's the little things we do every day that we take for granted. It really just opens your eyes.”
Lambert sits on the bench for every single game as one of the team's four captains. And although she may not be able to play and lead her team on the court, she has become a different kind of influence. Lambert has been nicknamed by head coach Joanne P. McCallie as the Coach K of the women's basketball team. Lambert has always felt like she could one day be a coach, and now having seen the game from a different perspective, a coaching perspective, she is one of the team's biggest leaders. Younger players look up to her not only because of her extensive knowledge and experience in the game, but also simply because of who she is.
“Kyra is a great leader,” said freshman Miela Goodchild. “She is an amazing person with such a caring heart. She wants the best for everyone and she's such a determined person.”
Her determination and love for the game drives her inextinguishable dream to one day be able to put on her jersey again, but self-determination can only go so far without a support team in her corner. Lambert's trust in her faith and support from her family have been key to her recovery and positivity throughout her journey. Lambert's support system even reaches the West Coast with her best friend, Japreece Dean, who now plays at UCLA. The two played AAU basketball together in high school. Dean has been a constant through Lambert's journey, from just asking how she is faring to making sure she is doing all she needs to get back on the court. To Lambert, not even blood could make the two of them closer.
And then there is her Duke family. The women's basketball team is no stranger to injuries. Past and present players can feel for Lambert, since many of them have gone through the same nightmare. Haley Gorecki has had two surgeries in her Duke career, as has Mikayla Boykin, who has suffered the same injury as Lambert twice. So to have a group of people know exactly what she is going through and be able to empathize with her struggles and triumphs has been huge for Lambert throughout her recovery.
Lambert's positivity throughout the past two years has taught her that good can come out of almost anything. She has discovered new hobbies, made new friends, connected with professionals, and appreciated everything Duke has to offer. She will graduate now in the spring, and continue on to Duke's Fuqua School of Business in the Master of Management Studies program. But the biggest thing these injuries gave Lambert was confidence in herself.
“This was my biggest fear by far, and it's happened three times. If i can overcome this fear three times, I can handle anything.”
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