Chamique Shaunta Holdsclaw (born August 9, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player in the

Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is an American professional basketball league. It is composed of twelve teams, all based in the United States. The league was founded on April 22, 1996, as the women's counterpart to the Nati ...

(WNBA) most recently under a contract with the San Antonio Silver Stars. She announced her retirement from the Los Angeles Sparks on June 11, 2007, though she eventually came out of retirement to play with the

Atlanta Dream The Atlanta Dream are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, playing in the Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded for the 2008 WNBA season. The team is owned by real ...

for the 2009 WNBA Season. Holdsclaw was inducted into the

Women's Basketball Hall of Fame The Women's Basketball Hall of Fame honors those who have contributed to the sport of women's basketball. The Hall of Fame opened in 1999 in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. It is the only facility of its kind dedicated to all levels of women's ba ...

in 2018.

High school years

Holdsclaw grew up playing basketball. While attending

Christ the King Regional High School Christ the King Regional High School is a co-educational, college preparatory, Catholic high school for grades 9-12 located in Middle Village, Queens, New York, United States and established in 1962. It is located within the Roman Catholic Dioces ...

Queens Queens is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located on Long Island, it is the largest New York City borough by area. It is bordered by the borough of Brooklyn at the western tip of Long ...

, New York, she played for the school's women's basketball team, and led them to four straight New York State Championships in basketball. Holdsclaw was named a High School All-American by the

Women's Basketball Coaches Association The Women's Basketball Coaches Association is an association of coaches of women's basketball teams at all levels. The organization was formed in 1981, with the goal of addressing the needs of women's basketball coaches. The mission of the WBCA ...

(WBCA). She participated in the WBCA High School All-America Game in 1995, scoring eight points.

College years

Holdsclaw went to the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th sta ...

from 1995 to 1999, where she played under coach Pat Summitt and helped to lead the Lady Vols to the women's NCAA's first ever three consecutive Women's Basketball Championships in 1996, 1997 and 1998. The 1998 championship was Tennessee's first ever undefeated season at 39–0 and also set an NCAA record for the most wins ever in a season. She also helped lead Tennessee to two SEC regular season titles in 1998 and 1999 and to three SEC tournament championships in 1996, 1998 and 1999. At Tennessee, Holdsclaw was a four-time Kodak All-America, one of only six women's basketball players to earn the honor (along with teammate Tamika Catchings, Cheryl Miller of

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses ** South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

Ann Meyers Ann Meyers Drysdale (born Ann Elizabeth Meyers; March 26, 1955) is an American former basketball player and sportscaster. She was a standout player in high school, college, the Olympic Games, international tournaments, and the professional level ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

, Lynette Woodard of

Kansas Kansas () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its Capital city, capital is Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita, Kansas, Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebras ...

and

LaToya Thomas LaToya Monique Thomas (born July 6, 1981) is a professional basketball player. College years Thomas was a standout four-year starter at Mississippi State University. Thomas was the eighth freshman in the 25-year history of Kodak All-America ho ...

of Mississippi State.) Holdsclaw finished her career with 3,025 points and 1,295 rebounds, making her the all-time leading scoring and rebounder at Tennessee in men's or women's history, the all-time leading scorer and rebounder in SEC women's history, and the all-time leading scorer and rebounder in the NCAA tournament women's history with 470 points and 197 rebounds. She was also only the fifth women's basketball player in

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

history to have 3,000 points (a list including Jackie Stiles of Southwest Missouri State, Patricia Hoskins of Mississippi Valley State,

Lorri Bauman Lorri A. Bauman is a former United States, American basketball player for the Drake Bulldogs. She was the first woman in NCAA history to score 3,000 points and at one time held the record for NCAA Division 1 women's basketball points scored in a ...

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

, Cheryl Miller of USC, and Cindy Blodgett of

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and nor ...

). She is also one of five women's collegiate basketball players to ever accumulate over 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 300 assists and 300 steals (a list that includes teammate Tamika Catchings, Cheryl Miller of

, Sophia Young of Baylor, and Armintie Price of

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

.) In 1998, Holdsclaw received the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the United States. Holdsclaw also won the Naismith trophy for player of the year twice, in 1998 and 1999 and posted a 131–17 win–loss record during her remarkable career as a Lady Vol. In 2000, she was named Naismith's Player of the Century for the 1990s and was also part of an ESPY award given to the Lady Vols as Co-Team of the Decade for the 1990s. In 1996, 1997 and 1998, Holdsclaw was named to the Final Four All Tournament team. In 2006, Holdsclaw was named to a women's collegiate basketball silver anniversary team for being picked as one of the 25 greatest players of the past 25 years. She was also picked as one of the 5 greatest players in the SEC of the past 25 years. Holdsclaw is a member of

Alpha Kappa Alpha Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. () is the first intercollegiate historically African American sorority. The sorority was founded on January 15, 1908, at the historically black Howard University in Washington, D.C., by a group of sixteen s ...

sorority.

WNBA career

In the 1999 WNBA draft, Holdsclaw was selected by the

Washington Mystics The Washington Mystics are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Mystics compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Eastern Conference. The team was founded pri ...

1st overall. After this selection, Holdsclaw gained the distinction of being the first, and only, female athlete to appear on the cover of '' SLAM'' magazine. Furthermore, Holdsclaw was pictured in a

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

jersey, implying that perhaps she was good enough to play in the NBA. In her first season, she was named the Rookie of the Year, the first number one draft pick to win that honor. She was also a starter in the inaugural

WNBA All-Star Game The Women's National Basketball Association All-Star Game, commonly referred to as the WNBA All-Star Game, is an annual exhibition basketball game played in the United States between the best players of the Western and Eastern Conference of ...

that same year. She averaged 16.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per game in her first season. The next year, Holdsclaw was named to the

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece bet ...

team, helping to lead them to a

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have be ...

. 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 Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

, played one more game in reserve and then did not play the rest of the season including the entire playoffs. On March 21, 2005, Holdsclaw was traded to the

Los Angeles Sparks The Los Angeles Sparks (LA 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 fou ...

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. On June 11, 2007, only a few weeks into the 2007 WNBA season, she surprisingly announced she was retiring and did not immediately provide any explanation as to her sudden departure. On December 17, 2008, the

traded the 13th pick in the 2009 WNBA draft to the

in exchange for the rights to Holdsclaw. Holdsclaw stated she definitely considered a return to the WNBA if healthy, and did. Holdsclaw was a constant part of the team's offense and a starter that season, despite an injury that kept her out several games toward the end of the season. However, she returned just in time for one game in the

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eit ...

. The Dream lost to the

Detroit Shock The Detroit Shock were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. They were the 2003, 2006, and 2008 WNBA champions. Debuting in 1998, the Shock were one of the league's first expansion franchises. Th ...

. On May 19, 2010, she was released from the Dream after requesting a trade and did not report to the team. Two days later, she signed with the San Antonio Silver Stars.

WNBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;",

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

, style="text-align:left;",

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, 31 , , 30 , , 34.2 , , .437 , , .172 , , .773 , , 7.9 , , 2.4 , , 1.2 , , 0.9 , , 16.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2000 , style="text-align:left;",

, 32 , , 32 , , 35.3 , , .465 , , .256 , , .680 , , 7.5 , , 2.5 , , 1.5 , , 0.6 , , 17.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 29 , , 29 , , 33.6 , , .400 , , .239 , , .682 , , 8.8 , , 2.3 , , 1.5 , , 0.5 , , 16.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 20 , , 20 , , 31.7 , , .452 , , .393 , , .830 , , style="background:#D3D3D3", 11.6° , , 2.3 , , 1.0 , , 0.3 , , style="background:#D3D3D3", 19.9° , - , style="text-align:left;",

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A ...

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, 27 , , 27, , 35.1 , , .425 , , .171 , , .903 , , style="background:#D3D3D3", 10.9° , , 3.3 , , 1.3 , , 0.6 , , 20.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 23 , , 22 , , 34.8 , , .402 , , .412 , , .803 , , 8.3 , , 2.4 , , 1.7 , , 0.8 , , 19.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; " Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discover ...

, style="text-align:left;",

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

, 33 , , 33 , , 35.8 , , .480 , , .231 , , .788 , , 6.8 , , 3.2 , , 1.2 , , 0.5 , , 17.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro votes to declare independence from Serbia; The 2006 ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 25 , , 0 , , 29.5 , , .470 , , .200 , , .884 , , 6.1 , , 2.2 , , 1.4 , , 0.4 , , 15.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 5 , , 5 , , 30.0 , , .492 , , .667 , , .833 , , 5.6 , , 3.0 , , 1.2 , , 0.6 , , 15.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; Protests ...

, style="text-align:left;",

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

, 25 , , 25 , , 28.3 , , .414 , , .200 , , .839 , , 4.4 , , 2.2 , , 1.4 , , 0.3 , , 13.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, style="text-align:left;",

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...

, 29 , , 29 , , 29.0 , , .494 , , .355 , , .806 , , 5.3 , , 2.0 , , 1.5 , , 0.3 , , 13.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 11 years, 4 teams , 279 , , 252 , , 32.9 , , .443 , , .262 , , .794 , , 7.6 , , 2.5 , , 1.3 , , 0.5 , , 16.9

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2000 , style="text-align:left;",

, 2 , , 2 , , 37.5 , , .448 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 5.5 , , 0.5 , , 1.5 , , 0.5 , , 15.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;",

, 5 , , 5 , , 34.6 , , .449 , , .182 , , .733 , , 8.6 , , 3.2 , , 2.0 , , 0.6 , , 18.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;",

, 2 , , 2 , , 39.0 , , .519 , , 1.000 , , .400 , , 5.0 , , 1.0 , , 2.0 , , 0.0 , , 15.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;",

, 3 , , 1 , , 14.7 , , .333 , , .500 , , .000 , , 3.7 , , 1.3 , , 0.3 , , 0.7 , , 4.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;",

, 1 , , 0 , , 13.0 , , .250 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 3.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 5 years, 3 teams , 13 , , 10 , , 29.5 , , .442 , , .250 , , .725 , , 6.0 , , 1.8 , , 1.4 , , 0.5 , , 13.2

USA Basketball

Holdsclaw was a member of the National team who traveled to

Berlin, Germany Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

in July and August 1998 for the FIBA World Championships. The USA team won a close opening game against Japan 95–89, then won their next six games easily. In the quarterfinals, Holdsclaw scored 20 points to help team advance. After trailing late in the final game, the USA held on to win the gold medal 71–65. Holdsclaw averaged 10.9 points per game, third highest on the team. Holdsclaw continued with the National team to the 2000 Olympics in

Sydney, Australia Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and List of cities in Oceania by population, Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metro ...

. The USA won all eight games, including the gold medal game against host Australia to win the gold medal, although Holdsclaw had a stress fracture in her right foot and was unable to compete.

Awards and honors

* 1997— Naismith College Player of the Year * 1997— Associated Press Women's College Basketball Player of the Year * 1997— USBWA Women's National Player of the Year * 1997—Winner of the

Honda Sports Award The Honda Sports Award is an annual award in the United States, given to the best collegiate female athlete in each of twelve sports. There are four nominees for each sport, and the twelve winners of the Honda Sports Award are automatically in th ...

for basketball * 1997— WBCA Player of the Year * 1998—Naismith College Player of the Year award * 1998—Associated Press Women's College Basketball Player of the Year * 1998—USBWA Women's National Player of the Year * 1998—Winner of the Honda Sports Award for basketball * 1998—WBCA Player of the Year * 1998—The

Honda-Broderick Cup The Honda-Broderick Cup is a sports award for college-level female athletes. The awards are voted on by a national panel of more than 1000 collegiate athletic directors. It was first presented by Tom Broderick, an American owner of a women's sports ...

winner for all sports.

International career

Europe

* 2004–2005: Ros Casares Valencia * 2006–2007: TS Wisla Can-Pack Kraków, championship, MVP of the finals; season's average: 17.9 points per game * 2007–2008: Lotos PKO BP Gdynia * 2008–2009: TS Wisla Can-Pack Kraków

Chamique Holdsclaw Foundation

Today, Holdsclaw works as a mental health advocate.

Personal life

Holdsclaw wrote in her autobiography ''Breaking Through: Beating the Odds Shot after Shot'' (2012, ) that she had suffered depression during her professional basketball career, and attempted suicide on one occasion. Atlanta police issued an arrest warrant for Holdsclaw on November 15, 2012 after Holdsclaw allegedly attacked her ex-girlfriend's car with a baseball bat and shot at the car. The owner of the car, fellow WNBA player

Jennifer Lacy Jennifer or Jenifer may refer to: People *Jennifer (given name) * Jenifer (singer), French pop singer * Jennifer Warnes, American singer who formerly used the stage name Jennifer * Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer * Daniel Jenifer Film and telev ...

, was uninjured. It was announced on February 27, 2013, that Holdsclaw was being indicted for the November shooting in Atlanta. It is a six-count indictment charging her with

aggravated assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in cri ...

, criminal damage and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Holdsclaw was released from jail after posting a $100,000 bond and a court date was not set. Holdsclaw pleaded guilty June 14, 2013 to aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and other charges. She was sentenced to three years' probation and ordered to perform 120 hours of community service and pay a $3,000 fine under the plea agreement. Holdsclaw's attorney Ed Garland said his client "felt that to honestly accept what her actions were was best for everyone concerned". Documentary filmmaker Rick Goldsmith produced a film on Holdclaw's life and battle with mental illness called ''Mind/Game: The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw'' which aired on Logo TV on May 3, 2016.Kovno Communications website

Notes

External links

* *
Associated Press article about Holdsclaw's depressionSouthern lady generalsMind/Game: The Unquiet Journey of Chamique Holdsclaw
at kovnocommunications.org. {{DEFAULTSORT:Holdsclaw, Chamique 1977 births Living people All-American college women's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Poland American expatriate basketball people in Spain American women's basketball players James E. Sullivan Award recipients Lesbian sportswomen LGBT basketball players LGBT people from New York (state) American LGBT sportspeople Los Angeles Sparks players Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball Parade High School All-Americans (girls' basketball) People from Astoria, Queens Power forwards (basketball) Sportspeople from Queens, New York Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball players Washington Mystics draft picks Washington Mystics players Women's National Basketball Association All-Stars Women's National Basketball Association first-overall draft picks Basketball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Basketball players from New York City Atlanta Dream players Ros Casares Valencia players 21st-century LGBT people United States women's national basketball team players

High school years

College years

WNBA career

WNBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

USA Basketball

Awards and honors

International career

Europe

Chamique Holdsclaw Foundation

Personal life

See also

Notes

External links