Arizona’s Leilani McIntosh Has “Unfinished Business” At Cal

Cal guard Leilani McIntosh has accomplished a lot in her career at Berkeley. 

The fifth-year player was top-10 in the Pac-12 in three-point percentage, assists and minutes played, and the Phoenix native feels like there’s so much more to accomplish in her final year with the program.

“I feel like I need to bring everything together,” McIntosh said. “I’ve progressed in all my years and I think I’ve got a little bit of unfinished business.”

Part of those goals could help McIntosh get to the WNBA and lengthen out her playing career. But she’s a Bear through-and-through, meaning one of her main goals is beating rival Stanford in her final year. Cal got close to taking down the Cardinal last year in Berkeley, but Stanford eventually took the game 60-56. Leilani had 19 points in that matchup. 

“All games are important but I think that sits with me a little more, especially losing to them as close as we did last year,” McIntosh said. “Just getting over that hump and getting my Stanford dub here has been my personal goal.” 

The point guard and head coach Charmin Smith have grown together at Berkeley. They’ve been together for a half-decade, and their bond has only continued to evolve. 

“She’s been loyal and consistent,” Smith said. “She loves Cal, she loves our program. I think that allows her to be a great leader. People know that she’s invested. She came back for a fifth year in a time when people are jumping all over the place.” 

Leilani McIntosh’s Path to Cal

It’s strange to think the mainstay in the Bear backcourt almost never ended up in Berkeley.

After a decorated career at Xavier College Prep, McIntosh had a relatively quiet recruitment. She ended up finding an opportunity that checked a lot of boxes at Pepperdine. She could continue playing, get a great education and learn from Waves head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones, whom McIntosh formed a strong relationship with throughout her recruitment.

“I thought, ‘Let me get this scholarship so my mom doesn’t have to pay for college. Let’s continue to focus on academics,’ which is why I initially committed to Pepperdine. Two days before I was supposed to report, they had a coaching change.” 

Milton-Jones took an assistant coaching job at Syracuse, and McIntosh was faced with a decision: gamble and see if the unknown head coach would fit her style at Pepperdine or look for other opportunities. 

She chose the latter and it was certainly the right move.

Weeks prior, Charmin Smith was hired as Cal’s coach and made McIntosh a priority when she re-opened her recruitment. The point guard “committed blindly” and pivoted to the Bay Area.

“I got the job in June and we got Leliani mid-July,” Smith said. “Thank God we got her. She’s been a piece that we needed.

“I remember she was excited about the opportunity and she was worthy of a Power 5 experience. She has definitely proved us right about that.”  

Adding Tools to the Tool Belt

As a freshman, McIntosh was the only Pac-12 player to record over 110 assists and over 50 steals. She was a distributor and has seen her shot develop over the years. She is now one of the most consistent three-point shooters in the conference.

“Leilani has grown exponentially every offseason,” Smith said. “She’s added tools to her tool belt every single time and I think we’re going to see a lot more of her in this fifth year.”

Part of that growth has come from the support system she has. McIntosh’s mother and siblings are a driving factor that keep the point guard going. Coaches like Smith and Xavier head coach Jennifer Gillom have been constant role models in McIntosh’s life.

“(Gillom) has always been a coach that tells it like it is regardless how she feels that I’ll take it. I can appreciate her that she can do that,” McIntosh said.

In fact, Gillom continues to train her old point guard in the offseason.

“She was really getting on me this summer. It was almost like it was Xavier all over again,” McIntosh laughed.

Leilani McIntosh will continue to play as long as she can, but she knows her game and her size will be picked apart in the process. But the 5-foot-5 guard is used to proving the doubters wrong. She’ll take the same approach as in her recruitment when many schools doubted she was a Power 5 level player.

The Bears saw through that and are still seeing the benefits.

“She’s our facilitator, our leader, our point guard,” Smith said. “She’s a huge part of what we do. I love how she has developed into one the best point guards in our conference. I think that she has a career after playing at Cal.”