Chamique Holdsclaw

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Chamique Holdsclaw

Position	Forward
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight	172 lb (78 kg)
Team	Los Angeles Sparks
Nationality	United States
Born	August 9, 1977 Astoria, New York
College	Tennessee
Draft	1st overall, 1999 Washington Mystics
Pro career	1999 – present
Former teams	Washington Mystics (1999-2004)
Awards	Sullivan Award (1998) Naismith Award (1998, 1999) WNBA Rookie of the Year (1999) Six-time WNBA All-Star

Chamique Shaunta Holdsclaw (born August 9, 1977 in Astoria, New York) is a basketball player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).

Contents 1 High school years 2 College years 3 WNBA career 4 Trivia 5 Vital statistics 6 External links

[edit] High school years

Holdsclaw grew up playing basketball. While attending Christ The King Regional High School in Queens, New York, she played for the school's women's basketball team, and led them to four straight New York State Championships in basketball.

[edit] College years

Holdsclaw went to the University of Tennessee in 1995, where she played under coach Pat Summitt and helped to lead the Lady Vols to three consecutive Women's Basketball Championships. At Tennessee, Holdsclaw became the school's all-time leading scorer and rebounder among both the men's and women's programs with 3,025 points and 1,295 rebounds. She was also only the fifth women's basketball player in NCAA history to have 3,000 points. In 1998, Holdsclaw received the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States.

[edit] WNBA career

In the 1999 WNBA Draft, Holdsclaw was selected by the Washington Mystics 1st overall. In her first season, she was named the Rookie of the Year and was a starter in the inaugural WNBA All-Star Game. She averaged 16.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game in her first season. The next year, Holdsclaw was named to the Olympic team, helping to lead them to a gold medal.

During her subsequent seasons in the WNBA, Holdsclaw continued to improve her numbers. In 2002, despite missing several games with an ankle injury, Holdsclaw averaged a double-double per game with 19.9 points and 11.5 rebounds. By 2003, she was averaging 20.5 points and 10.9 rebounds per game. On July 24, 2004, however, she failed to show up for a game against Charlotte, played one more game in reserve and then didn't play the rest of the season including the entire playoffs. At first, Holdsclaw refused to discuss the reason for her absence, other than to rule out cancer, pregnancy and drug addiction, but following the season, she told The Washington Post that she was suffering from clinical depression and that she had been ashamed to discuss it with the public.

On March 21, 2005, Holdsclaw was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for DeLisha Milton-Jones.

In May 2006, Holdsclaw took a sudden two-week leave from playing for the Sparks, but later clarified that this was due to the serious illnesses of her father and stepfather. As of late June, she was averaging 14.4 points per game and 7 rebounds per game.

[edit] Trivia

• In 2002, Holdsclaw was inducted as an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.
• Only female basketball player ever to be featured in Slam Magazine in October 1998.
• Also released her own shoe BBMiqueShox.
• Published a book during the 2001 off-season, Chamique: On Family, Focus and Basketball.
• Travels in her free time including favorite vacation spot Barcelona, Spain.
• Hero is her grandmother for teaching her blind faith and sacrifice.
• Her #23 jersey was recently retired at Tennessee.
• Has a street named after her in Tennessee.
• She currently resides in Beverly Hills, CA.

[edit] Vital statistics

• Position: Forward
• Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
• College: University of Tennessee
• Team(s): Washington Mystics, Los Angeles Sparks

[edit] External links

• WNBA Player Profile
• ESPN.com article about Holdsclaw's depression
• Chamique's MySpace

Preceded by: Tracy Reid

WNBA Rookie of the Year 1999

Succeeded by: Betty Lennox

Preceded by: Kate Starbird

Naismith College Player of the Year (women's) 1998–1999

Succeeded by: Tamika Catchings

Women's National Basketball Association | WNBA's All-Decade Team
Sue Bird | Tamika Catchings | Cynthia Cooper | Yolanda Griffith | Lauren Jackson | Lisa Leslie | Katie Smith | Dawn Staley | Sheryl Swoopes | Tina Thompson Ruthie Bolton | Chamique Holdsclaw | Ticha Penicheiro | Diana Taurasi | Teresa Weatherspoon (Honorable mention)