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.
The South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team represents the University of South Carolina and competes in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Under current head coach Dawn Staley, the Gamecocks have been one of the top programs in the country, winning the NCAA Championship in 2017, 2022, and 2024. The program also enjoyed success under head coach Nancy Wilson during the 1980s in the Metro Conference, when it won five regular season conference championships and three conference tournament championships.
DeWanna Bonner is an American-Macedonian professional basketball player for the Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Bonner played college basketball for Auburn University. After a successful college career at Auburn, she was drafted by the Phoenix Mercury with the fifth overall pick of the 2009 WNBA draft, and was traded to the Sun 11 years later.
Skylar Kierra Diggins-Smith is an American professional basketball player for the Seattle Storm in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Diggins was drafted third overall by the Tulsa Shock in the 2013 WNBA draft. In high school, she was the National Gatorade Player of the Year and the Gatorade Female Athlete of the Year. She played college basketball for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and led the team to three consecutive Final Fours and two consecutive NCAA championship appearances. She finished her Notre Dame career ranked first in points and steals, second in assists, and as a two-time winner of the Nancy Lieberman Award as the top point guard in the nation.
Odyssey Celeste Sims is an American professional basketball player for the Dallas Wings of the WNBA. An AP and WBCA All-American, Sims was born in Irving, Texas and graduated from MacArthur High School.
Moriah Jefferson is an American professional basketball player for the Connecticut Sun in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was drafted second overall by the San Antonio Stars in the 2016 WNBA draft. Jefferson played point guard for UConn women's basketball team, where she won four consecutive national championships. She finished her UConn career ranked first in assists, second in steals, and as a two-time winner of the Nancy Lieberman Award as the top point guard in the nation. On May 16, 2019, Jefferson was traded to the Dallas Wings.
Alyssa Thomas is an American professional basketball forward for the Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the Maryland Terrapins. The New York Liberty drafted Thomas 4th overall in the 2014 WNBA draft, and immediately traded her to the Sun along with Kelsey Bone and a 2015 first-round draft pick in exchange for Tina Charles. Thomas is the University of Maryland's all-time leader in scoring, rebounding and double-doubles for both the women's and men's programs, and one of only three athletes in NCAAW history with six career triple-doubles. In the WNBA, Thomas recorded eleven career triple-doubles. She is one of four players to record 15+, 15+, 10+ with 0 turnovers, the only WNBA player to do so ever.
A'ja Riyadh Wilson is an American professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Wilson played for the South Carolina Gamecocks in college, and helped lead the Gamecocks to their first NCAA Women's Basketball Championship in 2017, and won the NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player award. In 2018, she won a record third straight SEC Player of the Year award, leading South Carolina to a record fourth straight SEC Tournament Championship, becoming the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina women's basketball history, and was a consensus first-team All-American for the third consecutive season. Wilson swept all National Player of the Year awards as the best player in Women's College basketball for 2018. In the 2018 WNBA draft, she was drafted first overall by the Aces.
Tiffany Mitchell is an American professional basketball player for the Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She also currently plays for the Galatasaray of the Eurocup and Turkish Basketball Leagues. Mitchell played college basketball for the South Carolina Gamecocks, where she was a two-time SEC Player of the Year. After concluding her collegiate career, she was selected ninth overall in the 2016 WNBA draft by the Indiana Fever. During the WNBA off-seasons, Mitchell has played overseas in Russia, Turkey, Israel and Australia.
The 2016–17 Southeastern Conference women's basketball season began with practices in October 2016, followed by the start of the 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season in November. Conference play started in early January 2017 and concluded in March with the 2017 SEC women's basketball tournament at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. The South Carolina Gamecocks were both regular season and tournament champions, with the Mississippi State Bulldogs as runner-up. Both teams received bids to the 2017 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament and advanced to face each other in the championship, where South Carolina claimed their first-ever national title.
Allisha Gray is an American professional basketball player for the Atlanta Dream of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and Elitzur Ramla of Israel. She won a gold medal in Women's 3x3 basketball, at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Te'a Omari Cooper is an American professional basketball player who is a free agent in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played for the Los Angeles Sparks. She played college basketball for the Baylor Lady Bears, South Carolina Gamecocks, and the Tennessee Volunteers.
Aliyah Boston is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Fever of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). She plays the power forward and center positions. She was named 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year in a unanimous vote and the AP Rookie of the Year. She played college basketball at the University of South Carolina.
The 2021 WNBA draft was the WNBA's draft for the 2021 WNBA season. A draft lottery was held on December 4, 2020, and the New York Liberty were awarded the first overall pick once again in the draft. The draft was held on April 15, and televised on ESPN in the United States and on TSN2 in Canada at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
Zia Cooke is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA. She played in college for South Carolina Gamecocks of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). At Rogers High School in Toledo, Ohio, she was rated a five-star recruit by ESPN and earned McDonald's All-American honors. A two-time All-SEC selection in college, Cooke helped South Carolina reach the Final Four of the NCAA tournaments in 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Destanni Mone Henderson is an American professional basketball player. She previously played for the Indiana Fever, Los Angeles Sparks, and Phoenix Mercury. Henderson played college basketball for the South Carolina Gamecocks, helping her team win the national championship and earning first-team All-Southeastern Conference honors as a senior. At Fort Myers Senior High School, she won three straight state titles, was a McDonald's All-American selection and was rated as the number one point guard in her class by ESPN. Henderson competes for the United States national team and won a gold medal at the 2021 FIBA AmeriCup.
Veronica Grace Burton is an American professional basketball player for the Dallas Wings of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the Northwestern Wildcats. She also represented the United States at the 2021 FIBA Women's AmeriCup and won a gold medal.
The 2023 WNBA Draft, the WNBA's draft for the 2023 WNBA season and 28th draft in WNBA history, was held following the 2022–23 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The 2023 draft took place at Spring Studios New York on April 10, 2023. It was exclusively televised on ESPN in the United States and on TSN3/5 in Canada at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
The Freshies were the 2019 recruiting class of the South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball program. They were the number one recruiting class of the 2019–20 NCAA Division I season and played together until 2023. Developed under head coach Dawn Staley, they helped South Carolina win the 2022 national championship and reach the Final Four in all three NCAA tournaments they competed in. The class also won four Southeastern Conference (SEC) regular season titles and three SEC tournament titles, finishing with a 129–9 record over four years.
Victaria Saxton is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Indiana Fever of the WNBA. She was drafted in the Third Round of the 2023 WNBA Draft by the Fever. She played college basketball at South Carolina, where she won a National Championship during the 2021–22 season.
