Dee-Dee Wheeler is coming back to Tucson, and this time she plans on staying.
After years of traveling the world playing professional basketball and living and working in her hometown of Chicago, the former UA women’s basketball standout has been named Tucson Unified School District’s new Director of Interscholastics. Herman House, who has held the job for decades, is retiring.
On Tuesday night, Wheeler watched online as the TUSD board unanimously voted her into the role. She will start in June.
“I was ecstatic,” said Wheeler, who played at the UA from 2001-05. “I want that family feeling — for them to want me as much as I want to be there. Tucson is my second home.”
In Chicago, Wheeler has worked in athletics with high school, middle school and elementary students.
Most recently, she was the of District-Wide Director of Elementary Sports for Chicago. Wheeler said she loves helping children. It wasn’t long ago, after all, that she was one of them.
“I’ve been the kid who needed athletics, the student whose reason I went to school was because no attendance meant no play,” Wheeler said. “Being able to direct from this experience, along with playing basketball in Europe and the United States, I’m someone who has done it. I come from a very tough upbringing and it’s important to have enriching programs. Not everyone is going to play D-I sports, but if they learn from a coach, their team, a mentor, they can be successful. I’ve experienced first-hand what quality programs can do for a child. I felt a sense of belonging.”
Wheeler said TUSD will continue to offer “equitable access for all students, regardless of gender and no discrimination.”
Expect her to build more connections between the district and the UA. A point guard, Wheeler made a huge impact on the court for the Wildcats — so much so that she was inducted into the McKale Center ring of honor alongside fellow greats Adia Barnes, Shawntinice Polk, Davellyn Whyte and Ify Ibekwe.
Wheeler was the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year in 2002, and was named the all-conference team three times. Her coach at the UA, Joan Bonvicini, said she’s thrilled for her former star.
“I am happy for TUSD — they made a terrific choice,” Bonvicini said. “She will help and bring something new, being a former athlete and always being a part of and giving back to the community. She understands athletics as a student-athlete and playing basketball at a high level.”
Bonvicini recruited Wheeler out of Chicago, where she was a star at Dunbar Vocational High School on the south side. Bonvicini still remembers visiting Wheeler and her grandma, Addie Dunlap, at the apartment they shared.
“They didn’t have a lot of money, but education was very important,” Bonvicini said. “Dee-Dee was determined to do well. She, like others, had to overcome adversity. She found a way to be successful and I’m happy I could help guide her in any way. She went back to Chicago and moved up the ladder, and she’s done it on her own.”
After graduating from the UA, Wheeler played for the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks and Houston Comets before heading overseas to Turkey, Bulgaria and France.
Wheeler returned to Chicago when her basketball career was over. She was visiting Tucson last fall when she learned of House’s impending retirement. Once the position was posted, Wheeler submitted her application right away.
“She wanted it very badly and wanted to move back, to have this opportunity to stay in athletics and help young people here in Tucson,” Bonvicini said.
Wheeler said she’s always felt pulled back to the desert.
“The last 10 years, I’ve questioned my decision to return to Chicago. What would life have been like if I’d gone back to Tucson?,” she said.
“The city embraced me — the support, the feeling and atmosphere is something I want for my daughter (Addison, age 6). She is constantly asking, ‘When can we go back to Tucson?’ I want to give my daughter the opportunity to ride her bike to school. I feel more support in Tucson. My foundation is there. I don’t look at this as relocating; I am going back home.”
And Wheeler’s first stop when she gets back to Tucson?
Eegee’s.
