Duke women’s basketball found a leader in Dorchester’s Taina Mair

College Sports

By Trevor Hass, The Boston Globe

March 19, 2026 | 11:34 AM

3 minutes to read

Taina Mair was in a bit of slump — at least by her lofty standards — in the two weeks before the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.

Before Duke left for Duluth, Ga., coach Kara Lawson pulled Mair aside and gave her a dose of the honest feedback that defines their relationship.

In order for the Blue Devils to win the tournament, Lawson told Mair, she needed to be confident. Mair got the message, leading Duke to a second straight conference championship and earning tournament MVP honors.

“She just pushed me to a different level,” said Mair, a Dorchester native. “That allowed me to play more freely.”

Mair’s greatest superpower is her ability to take constructive criticism and use it to improve. No matter how much she accomplishes, she understands she’s never a finished product.

That mentality helped her win championships and earn Gatorade Player of the Year honors at Brooks School in North Andover. After a strong freshman season at Boston College, she transferred to Duke and blossomed under Lawson’s tutelage.

Mair is averaging 11.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.5 assists. She’s hoping to finish her career with a major splash and guide the third-seeded Blue Devils — who open the NCAA Tournament on Friday at 11:30 a.m. against 14th-seeded Charleston — to their first national championship.

“She has great self-belief,” said Lawson, who worked for the Celtics in 2019 and 2020. “Any time we go into a game, she truly believes that she can perform well and we’re going to win. It’s genuine.”

Mair grew up watching her sister Trayana play and wanted to be like her. Her mother, Mercy Pineda, signed her up for a program called No Books No Ball. She built a sense of community at the Curtis Hall Community Center in Jamaica Plain, and Fields Corner park in Dorchester.

In seventh grade, she joined the United Conquerors AAU program and practiced twice a week with coach Ushearnda Stroud.

When Stroud landed a job with Mass Rivals, she brought Mair with her, then did the same at Brooks after Mair’s freshman year at Holderness School.

Stroud fondly recalls a remarkable play during Mair’s sophomore season when she intercepted a pass like a safety, raced the other way, and banked in a winning 3-pointer as time expired.

“It was going all around as the shot that introduced the NEPSAC to Taina Mair,” Stroud said. “She ran over to me, and she was like, ‘Job done.’ Every time she has a game on the line, as long as Taina Mair has time left on the clock, she’s going to find a way to get the win.”

Brooks captured the Class D title her sophomore year and Class B crown her senior year in 2022, with Mair scoring the clinching bucket to cap a stellar career. Mair, a 5-foot-9-inch playmaker, averaged 24.5 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists as Brooks went undefeated.

After a season at BC, Mair entered the transfer portal. She didn’t expect to garner as much interest as she did.

But Duke felt like home, and her family approved, which is what she cared about most. Mair said Lawson saw something in her she didn’t see in herself.

Leaning on Lawson — a Naismith Player of the Year, WNBA All-Star and champion, and Olympian gold medalist who also played point guard — has enabled Mair to unlock her potential and reach the next level.

Lawson believes Mair’s “no nonsense” Boston roots and upbringing with her mother as a role model have empowered her to embrace being coached hard.

“She wants to be pushed,” Lawson said. “She wants to be challenged. There’s not a lot of young people like that.”

Lawson has helped Mair master details, such as how to make the right read in the pick-and-roll and ensure that every dribble has a purpose. Mair is able to think independently and identify how to attack a defense without Lawson saying a word.

Lawson said Mair’s “nuanced basketball mind” sets her apart, and that telling each other the truth allows them to achieve greatness together.

“I wake up every day with great belief in her,” Lawson said. “I know she wakes up every day with great belief in me. When you have that type of connection, you can get amazing results.”