Black History Month Spotlight: Sheryl Swoopes
02/17/2021
Black History Month is an annual celebration of the achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their role in U.S. history. For the third week in February 2021, we commemorate WNBA All-Star and AAU alum Sheryl Swoopes.
Sheryl Swoopes signed herself into basketball history when she signed as one of the original players for the newly formed Women’s National Basketball Association in 1996. The Brownfield, Texas native became part of the inaugural class of professional athletes that has now catered to thousands of young women, such as present stars and fellow AAU Alumni Sabrina Ionescu and Breanna Stewart. A trailblazer in her own right, Swoopes also dabbled on the coaching side of the court, developing youth athletes on the AAU Club, Cyfair Premier, and volunteering with her son's AAU team, the Texas Running Rebels.
Swoopes was named as one of the WNBA’s Top 15 Players of All Time at the 2011 WNBA All-Star Game. She represented the United States in three Olympic Games appearances and is one of only ten women’s basketball players to have won an Olympic gold medal, an NCAA Championship and a WNBA title. She was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016 and in 2017, was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
Swoopes made a lot of other “firsts” in her tenure in women’s basketball. She was a trailblazer for women's sports around the globe, racking up records, titles, and other accolades.
Swoopes was the second player in WNBA history to win both the regular season MVP award and the All-Star Game MVP award in the same season. The first player to accomplish this was Lisa Leslie, Swoopes’ Team USA teammate. Swoopes is also the first player in WNBA history to record a triple-double in both the regular season and the playoffs.
The most noteworthy being that Swoopes was the first women's basketball player to have a Nike shoe named after her: the "Air Swoopes."
Before she gained national prominence, the Texan started playing basketball with her three older brothers and began competing at age seven in a local children’s league called Little Dribblers.
In college, Swoopes led the University of Texas Tech Women’s Basketball team to the 1993 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championships. She set several records while playing there and is still a part of the women's basketball record books in many categories, including single-game scoring record (53 points on March 13, 1993 vs. Texas, tied for tenth place), single-season scoring (955 points in the 1993 season, fourth place), highest championship tournament scoring average (35.4 in the 1993 tournament, second place), best single-game championship scoring performance (47 points vs. Ohio State, 1993 championship), which broke Bill Walton's record, and scoring record for championship series (177 points, five games). She set the record for the most field goals in the championship game with 16. The Lady Raiders retired her jersey after the championship run, making her one of only three Lady Raiders to be honored this way.
Swoopes was named to her first USA national team in 1994 and competed in the 1994 World Championships, held in June 1994 in Sydney, Australia. She then continued as a member of the USA team at the 1996 Olympics, held in Atlanta, Georgia. The USA team dominated the competition, rolling an undefeated 52-0 pre-Olympic and Olympic season. The ladies’ win over Brazil (117–87) is considered by some to be the "best woman's basketball game the world has ever seen.
And just like that women’s basketball was more popular than ever, thanks to Swoopes and the 1996 U.S. team, dubbed the “Dream Team.” Swoopes would go on and win two more Olympic gold medal in 2000 and 2004.
Back on the WNBA floor, Swoopes was recruited by the Houston Comets, which she helped lead them to the 1997 WNBA Championship. She then followed that up with another Championship title in 1998, 1999, and 2000. The four-time WNBA champ accumulated over 2,000 career points, 500 career rebounds, 300 career assists, and 200 career steals. Her extraordinary scoring and defensive ability made her the first three-time WNBA MVP (2000, 2002, and 2005) and the first three-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year (2000, 2002, and 2003).
After her playing years, Swoopes decided to give back to the basketball community that raised her. In 2010, Swoopes was an assistant basketball coach at Mercer Island High School in Washington. She became head coach in 2013 at Loyola University Chicago’s women’s basketball team.
In July 2017, Swoopes returned to her alma mater, Texas Tech, hired as the women's basketball program's Director of Player Development, where her job included resuming work as broadcast color analysis for Lady Raiders games. Swoopes was promoted to assistant coach for the Lady Raiders on January 1, 2018.
Now, Swoopes is working on her non-profit, Back to Our Roots, hosting basketball clinics and speaking across the world as a motivational speaker and mentor.
###
A new interactive exhibit showcases the history of AAU Girl’s and Women’s Basketball through the years at the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee. The display recognizes the AAU’s vital role in advancing the development of women’s and girls’ basketball in the United States.
You can read more about it and see photos from the exhibit here.
Swoopes was named as one of the WNBA’s Top 15 Players of All Time at the 2011 WNBA All-Star Game. She represented the United States in three Olympic Games appearances and is one of only ten women’s basketball players to have won an Olympic gold medal, an NCAA Championship and a WNBA title. She was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016 and in 2017, was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.
Swoopes made a lot of other “firsts” in her tenure in women’s basketball. She was a trailblazer for women's sports around the globe, racking up records, titles, and other accolades.
Swoopes was the second player in WNBA history to win both the regular season MVP award and the All-Star Game MVP award in the same season. The first player to accomplish this was Lisa Leslie, Swoopes’ Team USA teammate. Swoopes is also the first player in WNBA history to record a triple-double in both the regular season and the playoffs.
The most noteworthy being that Swoopes was the first women's basketball player to have a Nike shoe named after her: the "Air Swoopes."
Before she gained national prominence, the Texan started playing basketball with her three older brothers and began competing at age seven in a local children’s league called Little Dribblers.
In college, Swoopes led the University of Texas Tech Women’s Basketball team to the 1993 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championships. She set several records while playing there and is still a part of the women's basketball record books in many categories, including single-game scoring record (53 points on March 13, 1993 vs. Texas, tied for tenth place), single-season scoring (955 points in the 1993 season, fourth place), highest championship tournament scoring average (35.4 in the 1993 tournament, second place), best single-game championship scoring performance (47 points vs. Ohio State, 1993 championship), which broke Bill Walton's record, and scoring record for championship series (177 points, five games). She set the record for the most field goals in the championship game with 16. The Lady Raiders retired her jersey after the championship run, making her one of only three Lady Raiders to be honored this way.
Swoopes was named to her first USA national team in 1994 and competed in the 1994 World Championships, held in June 1994 in Sydney, Australia. She then continued as a member of the USA team at the 1996 Olympics, held in Atlanta, Georgia. The USA team dominated the competition, rolling an undefeated 52-0 pre-Olympic and Olympic season. The ladies’ win over Brazil (117–87) is considered by some to be the "best woman's basketball game the world has ever seen.
And just like that women’s basketball was more popular than ever, thanks to Swoopes and the 1996 U.S. team, dubbed the “Dream Team.” Swoopes would go on and win two more Olympic gold medal in 2000 and 2004.
Back on the WNBA floor, Swoopes was recruited by the Houston Comets, which she helped lead them to the 1997 WNBA Championship. She then followed that up with another Championship title in 1998, 1999, and 2000. The four-time WNBA champ accumulated over 2,000 career points, 500 career rebounds, 300 career assists, and 200 career steals. Her extraordinary scoring and defensive ability made her the first three-time WNBA MVP (2000, 2002, and 2005) and the first three-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year (2000, 2002, and 2003).
After her playing years, Swoopes decided to give back to the basketball community that raised her. In 2010, Swoopes was an assistant basketball coach at Mercer Island High School in Washington. She became head coach in 2013 at Loyola University Chicago’s women’s basketball team.
In July 2017, Swoopes returned to her alma mater, Texas Tech, hired as the women's basketball program's Director of Player Development, where her job included resuming work as broadcast color analysis for Lady Raiders games. Swoopes was promoted to assistant coach for the Lady Raiders on January 1, 2018.
Now, Swoopes is working on her non-profit, Back to Our Roots, hosting basketball clinics and speaking across the world as a motivational speaker and mentor.
###
A new interactive exhibit showcases the history of AAU Girl’s and Women’s Basketball through the years at the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee. The display recognizes the AAU’s vital role in advancing the development of women’s and girls’ basketball in the United States.
You can read more about it and see photos from the exhibit here.
Email
Print
