"I love you pops": Iowa's Jada Gyamfi shares wholesome collage to wish her "goat" on his special day

Iowa women's basketball forward Jada Gyamfi wished her dad, Nana Gyamfi, a warm happy birthday on Instagram. The senior posted photo collages, which include her dad playing with a dog, with herself and former Iowa player Gabbie Marshall at a Hawkeyes game and her dad in a parking lot.

She captioned the post, "happy birthday to my goat! I love you pops. #21!!!"

Iowa star Jada Gyamfi wishes her dad Nana Gyamfi a happy birthday on IG. Image via @jadagyamfi

Jada Gyamfi credits family for inspiring her to play basketball

Growing up, Jada Gyamfi did not think of playing college basketball since she did not watch a ton of the sport. However, the Iowa forward comes from a family of athletes.

Her older sister, Maya, played basketball at Northern Iowa and her brother, Chancelor, was a first-team All-American on the Iowa Western football team. In addition, her mother, Jamie, played basketball at Ellsworth before transferring to Mount Mercy, while an aunt, Melanie House, played basketball and golf at Luther College.

“I was kind of always around the sport, and then whenever my siblings started playing I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, looks like so much fun. I really want to do that,’” Gyamfi said, according to The (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) Gazette.

“My mom made me wait a little bit because I was a little too young to start, but as soon as I was able to play, I hit the ground running and completely fell in love with it.”

Gyamfi also recounted how her older siblings impacted her development.

“On the court, just learning from them and being able to watch them and take their advice,” she said. “They also definitely toughened me up a lot when I was really little and just getting started.

“They made me very physically tough and mentally tough. So, they definitely get a lot of credit for how I am today as a basketball player.”

Gyamfi joined her first basketball team in second grade and subsequently joined an AAU program in third grade. She also played for Urbandale High School, but later transferred to Johnston High School where her career really began.

The Hawkeyes forward also said her mother was her biggest motivator to continue playing basketball.

“She played college basketball, and she didn't play Division I, and her dream was to always play for Iowa because she’s also from Iowa, so that was my driving force,” Gyamfi said. “I wanted to kind of fulfill what she didn't really get to fulfill for herself.”

Now in her senior year, Gyamfi has struggled for playing time. Nevertheless, she's known for bringing positive vibes to the team and making her teammates feel comfortable wherever they are.