Jennifer "Grandmama" Gillom (born June 13, 1964) is an American former

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 Natio ...

(WNBA)

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player who played for the

Phoenix Mercury The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, playing in the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded before the league ...

from

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

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 ...

, before finishing her playing career with 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 foun ...

in 2003. Gillom is also a former Sparks head coach, also coached the

Minnesota Lynx The Minnesota Lynx are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team won the WNBA title in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017. Founded pr ...

, and was, until 2015, an assistant coach of the

Connecticut Sun The Connecticut Sun are an American professional basketball team based in Uncasville, Connecticut that competes in the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was established ...

. Born in

Abbeville, Mississippi Abbeville is a town in Lafayette County, Mississippi. The population was 419 at the 2010 census. History Abbeville was originally settled by pioneers from Abbeville, South Carolina in the 1830s. They lived in apparent peace with the local Chic ...

, Gillom played college basketball at the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment. ...

and helped the United States Basketball Team to a gold medal in women's basketball in the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

. Gillom signed with the Mercury in

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

where she was All-WNBA in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

and won the

Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award The Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award is an annual Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) award given since the league's inaugural season, to the player who most "exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court—ethical behavior, fair p ...

in her final season. Gillom is the head coach of the

Xavier College Preparatory Xavier College Preparatory is a Catholic, all-female private high school in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, drawing students from 120 local schools. History Xavier High School was founded ...

High School basketball team in

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

in 2004. Starting in the 2008 season, Gillom served as an assistant coach for the

. In June 2009, she was named head coach of the team. She succeeded

Don Zierden Donald Casper Zierden, Jr. is an American basketball coach. From 2007 to 2009, Zierden served as the head coach of the Minnesota Lynx in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Early life and education Zierden, a Minneapolis native, g ...

, who resigned to accept an assistant coaching job under the late

Flip Saunders Philip Daniel "Flip" Saunders (February 23, 1955 – October 25, 2015) was an American basketball player and coach. During his career, he coached the La Crosse Catbirds, Minnesota Timberwolves, Detroit Pistons, and Washington Wizards. High schoo ...

of the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast D ...

. In 2009, Gillom 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 bask ...

, located in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Tennessee, Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Di ...

Ole Miss

Source

USA Basketball

Player

Gillom played for the USA World University Games team in Kobe, Japan in 1985. The team brought home a silver medal, after falling to the USSR. The team trailed by 18 points at one time, mounted a comeback attempt but fell short, losing 87–81. Gillom was the second leading scorer for the USA team, with 12.8 points per game. The following year, Gillom played for the USA team at the World Championships, in Moscow. This time, the USA team would meet the USSR in the title game and emerge victorious, winning the gold medal with a score of 108–88. Gillom averaged 2.8 points per game. Gillom was named to the team representing the US at the 1987

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...

, held in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

in August. The USA team won all four of their games winning the gold medal for the event. She averaged 9.5 points per game. Gillom continued with the national team at the 1988 Olympics in

Seoul, South Korea Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

, held in September. The team won all five games which resulted in the gold medal. Gillom averaged 2.8 points per game.

Coach

Gillom was named assistant coach of the USA National team in preparation for competition in the 2010 World Championships and 2012 Olympics. Because many team members were still playing in the WNBA until just prior to the event, the team had only one day of practice with the entire team before leaving for

Ostrava Ostrava (; pl, Ostrawa; german: Ostrau ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic, and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 280,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rive ...

and

Karlovy Vary Karlovy Vary (; german: Karlsbad, formerly also spelled ''Carlsbad'' in English) is a spa town, spa city in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 46,000 inhabitants. It lies on the confluence of the rivers Ohře and Teplá. ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

. Even with limited practice, the team managed to win their first game against Greece by 26 points. The team continued to dominate with victory margins exceeding 20 points in the first five games. Several players shared scoring honors, with

Swin Cash Swintayla Marie "Swin" Cash Canal (born September 22, 1979) is an American former professional basketball player who played professionally for 15 seasons in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She currently serves as vice preside ...

Angel McCoughtry Angel Lajuane McCoughtry (born September 10, 1986) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Minnesota Lynx of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and a two-time Olympic gold medalist. McCoughtry comple ...

Maya Moore Maya April Moore (born June 11, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Lynx, who is currently on sabbatical. Naming her their inaugural Performer of the Year in 2017, ''Sports Illustrated'' called Moore the greates ...

Diana Taurasi Diana Lorena Taurasi (born June 11, 1982) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was drafted by Phoenix first overall in the 2004 WNBA draft. Taurasi has w ...

Lindsay Whalen Lindsay Marie Whalen (born May 9, 1982) is the head coach of the University of Minnesota's women's basketball team. She began her professional career as a point guard for the Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) ...

, and

Sylvia Fowles Sylvia Shaqueria Fowles (born October 6, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. Fowles played for the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx during her career in the WNBA. She won the WNBA MVP Award in 2017 and the WNBA Defensive Pl ...

all ending as high scorer in the first few games. The sixth game was against undefeated Australia—the USA jumped out to a 24-point lead, but the Australian team cut the lead back to single digits late in the game. The USA prevailed 83–75. The USA won their next two games by over thirty points, then faced the host team, the Czech Republic, in the championship game. The USA team had only a five-point lead at halftime, which was cut to three points, but the Czechs never got closer, and went on to win the championship and gold medal. She continued as an assistant at the

2012 Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Career statistics

Regular season

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

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, 28 , , 28 , , 31.2 , , .434 , , .308 , , .777 , , 5.4 , , 0.8 , , 1.3 , , 0.5 , , 2.0 , , 15.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 30 , , 30 , , 32.1 , , .463 , , .378 , , .703 , , 7.3 , , 1.4 , , 1.7 , , 0.3 , , 3.0 , , 20.8 , - , 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 shootin ...

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

, 32 , , 32 , , 34.2 , , .381 , , .250 , , .797 , , 5.8 , , 1.7 , , 1.2 , , 0.2 , , 2.7 , , 15.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

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

, 30 , , 30 , , 27.5 , , .440 , , .275 , , .745 , , 3.9 , , 1.5 , , 0.7 , , 1.0 , , 2.0 , , 12.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

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

, 32 , , 32 , , 26.8 , , .423 , , .343 , , .740 , , 4.0 , , 1.1 , , 1.0 , , 0.6 , , 2.2 , , 12.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 31 , , 31 , , 28.2 , , .415 , , .387 , , .802 , , 3.7 , , 1.2 , , 0.9 , , 0.7 , , 2.0 , , 15.3 , - , 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 des ...

, 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 , , 10 , , 12.0 , , .412 , , .269 , , .762 , , 1.7 , , 0.6 , , 0.5 , , 0.1 , , 0.3 , , 3.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 7 years, 2 teams , 216 , , 93 , , 27.3 , , .426 , , .325 , , .759 , , 4.5 , , 1.2 , , 1.0 , , 0.5 , , 2.0 , , 13.4

Playoffs

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

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

, 1 , , 1 , , 31.0 , , .364 , , .333 , , .000 , , 7.0 , , 1.0 , , 2.0 , , 0.0 , , 2.0 , , 9.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 6 , , 6 , , 35.7 , , .379 , , .500 , , .846 , , 7.8 , , 0.3 , , 1.3 , , 1.2 , , 2.8 , , 17.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 2 , , 2 , , 32.0 , , .500 , , .200 , , .500 , , 2.0 , , 1.0 , , 0.5 , , 2.5 , , 2.0 , , 13.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 6 , , 0 , , 3.7 , , .000 , , .000 , , .000 , , 0.2 , , 0.0 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 4 years, 2 teams , 15 , , 9 , , 22.1 , , .382 , , .417 , , .750 , , 3.9 , , 0.3 , , 0.8 , , 0.9 , , 1.5 , , 9.1

Notes

External links

* *
Jennifer Gillom bio
at USA Basketball

at WNBA

at WNBA {{DEFAULTSORT:Gillom, Jennifer 1964 births Living people African-American basketball coaches African-American basketball players All-American college women's basketball players American women's basketball coaches American women's basketball players Basketball coaches from Mississippi Basketball players at the 1987 Pan American Games Basketball players at the 1988 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Mississippi Los Angeles Sparks head coaches Los Angeles Sparks players Medalists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Minnesota Lynx head coaches Ole Miss Rebels women's basketball players Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States Pan American Games medalists in basketball Parade High School All-Americans (girls' basketball) People from Abbeville, Mississippi Power forwards (basketball) Phoenix Mercury players Universiade gold medalists for the United States Universiade medalists in basketball Women's National Basketball Association All-Stars Medalists at the 1985 Summer Universiade Medalists at the 1987 Pan American Games 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women 20th-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American women United States women's national basketball team players