Adit Deng

The Light She Gives: The Evolving Game of Adit Deng

She learned basketball from her brother, rediscovered herself through injury, and now plays for every young girl who needs to see what’s possible.

For Adit Deng, basketball didn’t start with a ball — it started with a role model. “My older brother,” she says without hesitation. “He was my blueprint. Watching his footwork, his discipline — it made me love the sport before I even played it.”

By the time she was 12, her parents signed her up for club basketball, and that’s when everything clicked. But it wasn’t until a few years later that she found the real turning point. “At first, I was just playing for fun,” she says. “But once I committed to training multiple times a day — lifting, shooting, doing the little things — everything changed. I realized the game gives back exactly what you put in.”

That mindset turned Adit from a player into a student of the game — someone who started to see basketball not as a pastime, but as a reflection of life itself.

Her toughest challenge wasn’t just physical. “The hardest part for me,” she says, “was letting other people define my game.” She learned, often painfully, that confidence is as critical as conditioning. “In college, I realized basketball is just as mental as it is physical.”

Then came the injury year — a broken hand, months on the sidelines, and endless self-reflection. “It forced me to ask, ‘What do I bring to the team when I can’t play?’” The answer surprised her. “I realized my energy mattered. My voice mattered. Cheering, supporting, being present — that was my highlight of the season.”

She calls it a blessing in disguise. “That year taught me that leadership isn’t about minutes or stats,” she says. “It’s about what you give — even when you can’t give on the floor.”

What keeps her pushing isn’t just personal goals. It’s community. “The STMU family, the Calgary basketball community — they’ve been such a blessing,” she says. “Coaching younger players, seeing their eyes light up when they meet a female athlete — that’s everything.”

She remembers one moment vividly: a basketball camp with Athletic Edge and the Calgary Police Service, where she worked with newly arrived kids from around the world. “A little girl came up to me in awe,” she recalls. “She told me she’d never seen a female athlete before. Her excitement — that’s something I’ll never forget. Because I was once her, watching women on TV and wondering if it was possible.”

For Adit, that’s what success looks like — leaving a legacy of visibility and hope. “If a young girl sees me and thinks she can do it too,” she says, “then I’ve already won.”

Off the court, she’s got layers — lots of them. “I was an arts kid before I was an athlete,” she says. “Music was my first love.” She sings, plays piano, writes poems, and still finds peace in creativity. “It’s all connected,” she says. “Basketball is rhythm too.”

Ask anyone around St. Mary’s, and they’ll tell you Adit is more than a player — she’s a connector, a bridge between talent and heart. She doesn’t just show up for the game. She shows up for people.

That’s Adit Deng — artist, athlete, mentor, and motivator. A woman whose presence feels like the sport itself: grounded, expressive, and alive with meaning. She plays to win, yes — but more importantly, she plays to remind others that they belong here too.