BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider

MADISON, Wis. — LaTonya Sims remembers her first experience as an entrepreneur. She was 13, growing up in Racine, Wisconsin when she and a neighborhood friend launched a snow shoveling business that lasted several winters.

Sims said she got the desire to have her own business from her parents, Brenda and Eugene, who augmented their 9-to-5 jobs by buying and flipping houses.

"They worked so hard — so hard — I've never seen two people work harder than they did," Sims said.

"That really inspired me. They did all the work themselves. They would get these houses, tear them down and build them back up. My dad was very talented in that manner. My mom would help as well and I would, too. I would go over and help put up drywall and paint. That experience inspired me to be an entrepreneur."

Entrepreneurship in the business world is about accountability, work ethic, confidence and, more often than not, having an appetite for risk.

That description also pertains to elite athletes and Sims definitely fit that profile during her career with the Wisconsin women's basketball program.

Sims was a smooth, athletic, 6-foot-3 guard at Racine Park High School in 1997 who came to Madison and put together a one-of-a-kind career.

She was the Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Year in 1998. She was a first-team all-league pick as a sophomore and a second-teamer as a junior and senior. She led the Badgers in scoring and rebounding as a sophomore and a junior. She was a two-time Most Valuable Player and currently ranks sixth on the all-time UW career scoring list with 1,857 points. She then took her game to Europe after a brief fling with the WNBA.

"She was certainly one of the best that ever played there," said Jane Albright, who coached the Badgers from 1994 to 2003 and recruited some of the most accomplished players in program history. "A very elite athlete. Very coachable. Very likeable."

Sims left UW with a degree in business and spent time as a software developer and an online marketer before changing course. She now has her own operation called "Upper Level Sports Academy" that helps young athletes and their parents navigate the college recruiting process.

"Less than two percent of high school students go Division I and even less than that go pro," Sims said. "I try to prepare them for after college as well."

How did UW help Sims shape her approach to this highly competitive field? After all, it's changed drastically since Sims played for the Badgers thanks to the advent of the transfer portal, NIL and individual branding.

"It really taught me about being good at time management," she said. "I'm a business owner now, so having good time management skills is really important.

"The University of Wisconsin is such a unique experience. The campus is beautiful. There's great people on campus for the most part. It's such a world-class experience with the sports and the atmosphere.

"It really shaped my life because every job I've ever taken, every opportunity I've taken, I definitely look for stuff like that. How's the experience going to be?"

Albright recalled that even though Sims was a Parade All-American — the first in program history — "she was really under the radar" at the outset of her career. Case in point, was Sims' debut. She had 20 points and 12 rebounds as the Badgers toppled fourth-ranked Stanford, 90-82, at the Kohl Center.

"The women's basketball world didn't know her as much as you do some people," Albright said. "(Stanford coach) Tara (VanDerveer) had no idea who she was."

That's not the case anymore. Sims is now a UW Athletic Hall of Famer.

 

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High Five

One: Sims was navigating the grocery store near her home in Milwaukee when her cell phone hummed with a call from a familiar area code. She let it go to voice mail, then listened to the message.

"Hi, this is Chris McIntosh," it began.

Sims had a momentary spasm of concern.

"Uh, oh, am I in trouble?" she thought.

Hardly. McIntosh, the Wisconsin director of athletics, was reaching out with news that would make Sims happy and proud.

Two: Sims was a year behind McIntosh as UW student-athletes. She recalled seeing him in the weight room and knew of his status as a standout football player, but she's more aware of his current profile.

"When they hired him as AD, I said, 'That's a great hire,'" Sims said. "I've been following him, his hiring and decision-making, and I'm, like, 'Wow, they knew what they were doing when they hired Chris McIntosh.'"

Three: If Sims could relive a moment from her time at UW, it would be the off-season trip the UW women's basketball team made to Australia.

"We were there two weeks and traveled all over Australia," she said. "I still talk about that trip to this day. It was one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had."

Four: Sims said the most impactful person during her time at UW was Jim Johannes, professor emeritus at the school of business.

"He is just amazing," Sims said. "I credit him a lot with the success that I've had. Man, he was such an ally for me to get into the business school and major in business."

Sims said Bill Herbert was another important guide from the UW School of Business.

"He fought hard for me," she said. "I'll never forget them."

Five: Sims is the ninth women's basketball player to be added to the UW Athletic Hall of Fame, following two of her teammates. Tamara Moore was inducted in 2017. Jesse Stomski was enshrined in 2020.