Kelsey Mitchell (basketball)

Last updated

Kelsey Mitchell
Kelsey Mitchell 2024 (cropped).jpg
Mitchell with the Indiana Fever in 2024
No. 0Shanxi Flame
Position Point guard/Shooting guard
League WCBA
Personal information
Born (1995-11-12) November 12, 1995 (age 29)
Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Listed height5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Listed weight160 lb (73 kg)
Career information
High school Princeton (Sharonville, Ohio)
College Ohio State (2014–2018)
WNBA draft 2018: 1st round, 2nd overall pick
Selected by the Indiana Fever
Playing career2018–present
Career history
2018–present Indiana Fever
2019 Al Ahly
2021–2022 Elitzur Ramla
2023 Spar Citylift Girona
2022–2024 Athletes Unlimited League
2024–present Shanxi Flame
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Basketball Reference  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Kelsey Mitchell (born November 12, 1995[ citation needed ]) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Fever of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for the Shanxi Flame of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association (WCBA).

Contents

College career

Mitchell completed her college career with the Ohio State Buckeyes in 2018. In February 2018, she was named the Big Ten women's basketball player of the year by the conference's coaches. She was a second-team All-American in 2015, 2017, and 2018, while notching first-team All-American in 2016. [1]

As a college freshman in 2014–15, Mitchell finished the season with 873 total points, which were the second-most by a freshman in NCAA Division I history, behind Tina Hutchinson's 898 with San Diego State in 1983–84. [2] During her senior season, Mitchell averaged 24.4 points per game on 46.1 percent shooting and 40.3 percent shooting from three. She also managed 4.1 assists per game and 3.2 rebounds per game. She finished the regular season of her final season with the third-most points in NCAA Division I history, [3] and ultimately finished her career with 3,402 points, trailing only Kelsey Plum of Washington. [4] In 2018, after her senior year, she won the Dawn Staley Award.

Professional career

WNBA

Indiana Fever (2018–present)

Mitchell was the second overall pick in the 2018 WNBA draft by the Indiana Fever, and was selected to the 2018 WNBA All-Rookie Team alongside A'ja Wilson, Ariel Atkins, and Diamond DeShields. Mitchell participated in the WNBA Three-Point Contest in 2018 and 2023. For her leadership on and off the court, Mitchell was awarded the 2023 Dawn Staley Community Leadership Award, becoming the 4th Fever player to win the recognition after Tamika Catchings (2008 & 2016) and Natalie Achonwa (2020). Mitchell participated in the 2024 Skills Challenge at 2024 WNBA All-Star Weekend after Fever teammate, Erica Wheeler, was unable to attend due to the global computer outages delaying her travel. [5] She would earn back-to-back WNBA All-Star appearances in 2023 and 2024, alongside Fever teammates Aliyah Boston and Caitlin Clark.

Overseas

In 2019, Mitchell played for Egyptian club Al Ahly in the 2019 FIBA Africa Women's Clubs Champions Cup. [6]

Mitchell signed with the Shanxi Flame of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association for the 2024–2025 season. [7]

Personal life

Mitchell is from Cincinnati, Ohio, and graduated from Princeton High School in Sharonville, Ohio. She has a twin sister. [8]

Career statistics

Legend
  GPGames played  GS Games started MPG Minutes per game FG%  Field goal percentage
 3P%  3-point field goal percentage FT%  Free throw percentage RPG  Rebounds per game APG  Assists per game
 SPG  Steals per game BPG  Blocks per game TO  Turnovers per game PPG Points per game
 Bold Career high * Led Division I ° Led the league  WNBA record

WNBA

Regular season

Stats current through end of 2024 season

WNBA regular season statistics [9]
YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGTOPPG
2018 Indiana 341724.4.346.335.8041.82.70.70.11.912.7
2019 Indiana 342025.1.387.374.8361.62.60.40.11.713.6
2020 Indiana 222232.1.448.389.8492.22.80.60.12.517.9
2021 Indiana 323233.1.431.335.8822.62.51.10.22.017.8
2022 Indiana 313132.6.438.409.8611.94.20.90.22.418.4
2023 Indiana 40°40°33.7.441.398.8241.63.10.90.12.318.2
2024 Indiana 40°3832.0.468.402.8322.51.80.70.21.619.2
Career7 years, 1 team23320030.4.426.378.8392.02.80.80.12.016.8
All-Star2013.0.467.1251.51.51.00.00.07.5

Playoffs

WNBA playoff statistics
YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGTOPPG
2024 Indiana 2238.5.421.263.5003.04.00.00.04.519.0
Career1 year, 1 team2238.5.421.263.5003.04.00.00.04.519.0

College

NCAA statistics [10]
YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGTOPPG
2014–15 Ohio State 353537.1.415.378.8354.24.21.70.24.124.9*
2015–16 Ohio State 343436.6.452.397.8523.23.41.70.23.126.1
2016–17 Ohio State 353534.2.437.369.8182.83.91.20.22.422.6
2017–18 Ohio State 353535.9.448.402.8323.24.21.50.12.224.3
Career13913935.9.438.386.8353.33.91.50.23.024.5

See also

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References

  1. "Kelsey Mitchell Bio :: The Ohio State University :: official athletic site" . Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  2. "Buckeyes Fall at Buzzer in NCAA Second Round at UNC – Ohio State Buckeyes". ohiostatebuckeyes.com. AP. March 23, 2015. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  3. Hass-Hill, Colin. "Women's Basketball: Ohio State guard Kelsey Mitchell named Big Ten Player of the Year by conference's coaches". The Lantern . Retrieved March 1, 2018.
  4. "Central Michigan stuns Ohio State in NCAA regional". ESPN.com . Associated Press. March 19, 2018. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
  5. Peterson, Chloe (July 19, 2024). "CrowdStrike outage grounds Erica Wheeler; Kelsey Mitchell to step in WNBA Skills Challenge". Indianapolis Star .
  6. "Kelsey MITCHELL at the FIBA Africa Champions Cup Women – Final Round 2019". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  7. Dalzell, Noa (November 6, 2024). "Kelsey Mitchell and 5 WNBA stars to watch overseas this offseason". SBNation.com. Retrieved November 12, 2024.
  8. "Whoa! Three Fever Players Have Twin Siblings – Indiana Fever". fever.wnba.com. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
  9. "Kelsey Mitchell WNBA Stats". Basketball Reference.
  10. "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved April 7, 2018.