Q&A: Baylor's Darianna Littlepage-Buggs on her funniest insect-related NIL deal
Baylor Bears guard Darianna Littlepage Buggs has one of the most clever NIL deals in college basketball.
Littlepage-Buggs is in her third season with the Baylor program and has earned several notable honors while under head coach Nicki Collen, including Big 12 Freshman of the Year and All-Big 12 Honorable Mention. The junior guard and her Bears teammates want to add another accolade to their resumé: national champions. To do that, Baylor has to squash the competition with an elite defense, something Littlepage Buggs knows about through her fitting NIL deal with Raid.
The partnership, which has been going strong with NIL campaigns for two seasons, has catapulted Littlepage-Buggs and Baylor men's basketball player Jeremy Roach to the top of the list for the best NIL deals that perfectly play on words. Still, Littlepage-Buggs admits that she was nervous about joining the Raid family.
"I didn't know how people were gonna take it," Littlepage-Buggs shared with For The Win. "So, I was kind of like, 'I don't want my name to be related to bugs...' But ... on the brighter side, I'm also like, 'This is a cool opportunity as well.' So, I think just through partnering with them, it's also made me love my name even more."
Before the women's March Madness tournament, For The Win chatted with Littlepage-Buggs about her perfect insect-themed NIL deal, what she learned about herself after returning from injury, and the wildest things Baylor has played in the locker room to get hyped for a game.
What do people think when you tell them about your NIL deal?
They're initially like, "What?" And I'm like, "Yeah ..."
As I further explain [more] ... "Oh. BUGS! I get it ..." Then, they usually watch the videos, and they're like, "Oh my Gosh. This is so cool!" A lot of people ― they really love it. I'm pretty sure their initial l reaction isn't like, "Ugh, bugs ..." I honestly feel like the people love it at first sight.
In your latest March Madness campaign, how did you and Jeremy Roach keep a straight face when bug jokes are flying?
Oh, man. It was fun. This is our first time doing it together. He was at Duke last year and then transferred here this year, so that was a plus for us. I think it just made the process even smoother, and it was just fun to do ... I had a really good time, and honestly and truly, I think when it comes down to it, you do have to be serious. But it was really hard ...
Sometimes you tend to just say your lines and then you're kind of just like, "Okay, what's next?" I think that was the hardest part because you have to stay in it. And there was some eye contact ... It was a little awkward, but I think we just made it work and didn't make it so much about awkwardness ― but just made it more fun.
What makes Baylor such a dangerous NCAA tournament team?
We have depth. Everybody could score ― inside and out. So, it's kind of like playing as honest. I think that's just our biggest strength ... You take away one thing: we have more things.
And then eventually, it's just, "Okay, we'll have to play honest because I'm not sure who's gonna just go off and score." I think that's just the beauty of our team. There's a lot of versatility.
You recently came back from injury. What did you learn about yourself while away from the court?
The first thing I really noticed was ― I know I've always been loved, but one thing for me that was even better was actually seeing it and honestly cherishing it ... I honestly and truly felt the love to such a great extent, and I absolutely love that.
I think that played a great role in my recovery process because it helped me keep my mind off of my injury and just [say], "Oh, okay. You know, there's people that love you ..." I also say just patience and gratefulness ... I can't take anything for granted... I am able to come back, and that's not everybody's situation. But just being grateful. I do get to come back, and I do get to practice. I do get to run. I do get to shoot hoops ... You know, all that just made me even more grateful.
Let's do some fun questions. Which of your Baylor teammates is responsible for being the locker room DJ?
Kyla Abraham. She's putting on the music every time.
I don't know what we're playing. We can be sad. We can be hyped. We can be in the middle ... There's been a couple of times you listen to Gracie's Corner ... Kyla is definitely on the aux ... I think there was a time when we're listening to... I think the veggie song. I don't know. We just went in there and vibed.
Who is your favorite WNBA player to watch?
Breanna Stewart. She's awesome. I've been watching her since middle school, and just hearing her story, I feel like I relate to her a lot ... She said she plays some positions just because she's tall. She struggled and trying to figure out what she's best at. But then, you know, going to UConn and just flourishing from there.
I just love her versatility and the way she uses her length. I think that's something that I really admire. Because it's like, "Okay, I'm tall, but I can't, I can't be a little guard because I'm not a little guard. I'm a big guard. So, I need to use my big guard skills ― But knowing that you gotta play me honest, and I can shoot the ball. I can go get a bucket, but I can also be a great teammate.
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