The Los Angeles Sparks are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Sparks compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded before the league's inaugural 1997 season began. Like some other WNBA teams, the Sparks have the distinction of not being affiliated with an NBA counterpart, even though the market is shared with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Charlotte Sting were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Charlotte, North Carolina, one of the league's eight original teams. The team folded on January 3, 2007.
The American Basketball League, often abbreviated to the ABL of 1996 was a professional women's basketball league in the United States. At the same time the ABL was being formed, the National Basketball Association (NBA) was creating the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The ABL began league competition in the Fall of 1996, while the WNBA launched its first game in June 1997. Both organizations came into existence during a surge in popularity for women's basketball in the United States that followed the perfect 35–0 national championship season for the Connecticut Huskies in 1995 and the undefeated, gold medal-winning performance of the United States Women's basketball team at the 1996 Summer Olympics.
The Utah Starzz were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Salt Lake City. They began play in the 1997 WNBA season as one of the league's eight original teams.
Jacqueline Joyner-Kersee is a retired American track and field athlete, ranked among the all-time greats in the heptathlon as well as long jump. She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals in those two events at four different Olympic Games. Sports Illustrated for Women magazine voted Joyner-Kersee the Greatest Female Athlete of All-Time. She served on the board of directors for USA Track & Field (U.S.A.T.F.), the national governing body of the sport.
Dawn Michelle Staley is an American basketball Hall of Fame player and coach who is currently the head coach for the reigning champion South Carolina Gamecocks women's team. Staley won three Olympic gold medals with Team USA as a player and later was head coach of another U.S. gold-medal winning team. Staley was elected to carry the United States flag at the opening ceremony of the 2004 Summer Olympics. After playing point guard for the University of Virginia under Debbie Ryan, and winning the gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics, she played professionally in the American Basketball League and WNBA. In 2011, fans named Staley one of the top 15 players in WNBA history. Staley was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012. She was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.
Katrina Price was an American basketball player. A star guard in her college career at Stephen F. Austin State University, Price committed suicide after her rookie season in professional basketball.
Yolanda Evette Griffith is an American professional basketball hall of fame player who played in both the ABL and WNBA. A former WNBA MVP, she is considered one of the greatest rebounders and defensive players in the history of Women's Basketball. She last played in the WNBA as a member of the Indiana Fever. In 2011, she was voted in by fans as one of the top 15 players in WNBA history. She is sometimes called by her nicknames: "Yo" and "Yo-Yo". Since retiring from the professional ranks, Griffith was as assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She is currently an assistant coach with the Boston College Eagles. Griffith was inducted into the 2014 Women's Basketball Hall of Fame's class on her first year of eligibility.
DeLisha Lachell Milton-Jones is an American retired professional basketball player and head coach of Old Dominion. Milton-Jones played college basketball for the University of Florida. She was a first-team All-American and SEC Player of the Year her senior season.
Adrienne Goodson is an American former basketball player, a 6-foot forward noted for her exceptional rebounding ability, especially on the offensive glass. Her professional career in Brazil, the ABL, and the WNBA spanned 14 years.
The Columbus Quest was a professional women's basketball franchise located in Columbus, Ohio, in the now-defunct American Basketball League (ABL). They were one of the league's original eight teams that started play in 1996. In the league's brief history, the Quest was its most successful franchise, winning both championships the league awarded.
The Colorado Xplosion was the first women's professional basketball franchise in Colorado, an American Basketball League (ABL) team based in Denver. Playing from 1996 through 1998, the team produced many memorable moments for Colorado sports fans and followers of women's professional basketball in general.
The Portland Power was a women's professional basketball team in the American Basketball League (ABL) based in Portland, Oregon. The Power began play in 1996, and disbanded when the ABL folded at the end of 1998. The Power hosted home games at Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which had a capacity of 10,934.
The Seattle Reign was the first women's professional basketball franchise in Seattle, Washington, USA. The Reign was a charter member of the American Basketball League (ABL). The team played from 1996 through 1998. The team's name was a reference to the city's reputation for rain and its location in King County, with an additional allusion to "The Reign Man" Shawn Kemp, then the city's biggest basketball star.
The New England Blizzard was a women's professional basketball franchise based in Hartford, Connecticut. The Blizzard was a charter member of the American Basketball League (ABL). Playing from 1996 through 1998, the team produced many memorable moments for New England basketball fans and followers of women's sports in general.
Carolyn Jones-Young is an American former professional women's basketball player. A 5'9" guard, she played for the New England Blizzard of the American Basketball League (1996–1998), and also played for the Portland Fire of the Women's National Basketball Association. She holds several ABL career records.
Shana L. Williams is a retired American track and field athlete who competed in the long jump. She is a two-time Olympian, having competed in her event at the 1996 and 2000 Summer Olympics. Williams won the silver medal at the 1999 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Maebashi. Her personal best of 7.01 m ranks her as the fifth best American in the long jump on the all-time lists. She is a two-time USA Indoor champion and also won the gold medal at the 1998 Goodwill Games.
Taj McWilliams-Franklin is a former American professional women's basketball player.
Lisa Boyer is the associate head coach of the South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team since 2010. Prior to her time with the Gamecocks, Boyer was the head coach of the Bradley Braves women's basketball team from 1986 to 1996. As an assistant for the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2001 to 2002, Boyer was the first woman to coach in the National Basketball Association. Boyer was inducted into the Ithaca College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014.
The American Basketball League was the first independent professional basketball league for women in the United States. The ABL lasted two full seasons: 1996–97 and 1997–98. On December 22, 1998; with almost no warning, the ABL declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy and suspended operations. Each team had played between 12 and 15 games of the 1998–99 season.
