Renee Danielle Montgomery (born December 2, 1986) is an American former professional basketball player, sports broadcaster and activist who is currently vice president, part-owner, and investor of 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 ...

, and one of three owners of the

FCF Beasts The FCF Beasts are a professional Indoor American football, Indoor Football team founded in 2020. They are a member of the Fan Controlled Football, Fan Controlled Football League and are currently owned by Marshawn Lynch, Miro (wrestler), Miro, Todd ...

Indoor Football Team; making her the first player in the WNBA to become an owner and executive of a team and first female owner in the FCF. During her 11-year playing career 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 Natio ...

, she won two championships with 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 ...

in 2015 and 2017. During her college playing career, she won a national championship with the

UConn Huskies The UConn Huskies (or Connecticut Huskies) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Connecticut, located in Storrs. The school is a member of the NCAA's Division I and the Big East Conference. The university's fo ...

in 2009. In 2020, Montgomery opted-out of the WNBA season in protest of police brutality, bringing forth awareness throughout the league and leading to multiple campaigns dedicated to human rights.

High school

Montgomery was a high school teammate of fellow future WNBA player

Alexis Hornbuckle Alexis Kay'ree Hornbuckle (born October 16, 1985) is an American professional basketball player who played several seasons in the Women's National Basketball Association. She is the only player to win an NCAA title and WNBA title in the same year ...

South Charleston High School South Charleston High School is a public high school in West Virginia serving grades 9 through 12. It is located south of the Kanawha River, west of the city of Charleston, in the city of South Charleston's Spring Hill neighborhood. The school ...

, where she was a captain each year of her high school career. She led the school to the West Virginia state Championships three times, averaging 22.5 points, six assists, five rebounds and five steals while leading the school to the West Virginia Class AAA Final as a senior. She also played on the varsity soccer team.

College career

She attended the

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from Hart ...

Freshman year

She started 35 of the

Huskies Husky is a general term for a dog used in the polar regions, primarily and specifically for work as sled dogs. It refers to a traditional northern type, notable for its cold-weather tolerance and overall hardiness. Modern racing huskies that mai ...

' 37 games at point guard and was named 2006 Big East Freshman of the Year.

Sophomore year

Montgomery started in all 36 games as the Huskies' point guard. She tallied double-figure points in 29 games, including four 20-point plus scoring efforts. Montgomery led the team with a 13.3 scoring average and 163 assists. She was named first team All-Big East. In addition, Montgomery led the USA U-20 National Team to a gold medal during the summer prior to the start of the season at the

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its na ...

U-20 Championship for Women in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

Junior year

Montgomery was selected as an All-Big East First Team choice for the second consecutive season. She was also selected to the All-Big East Tournament Team for the third consecutive season. Montgomery moved to the

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...

slot on January 19, following a season-ending injury to

Mel Thomas Melanie Eileen Thomas (born August 26, 1985 in Cincinnati, Ohio) is an American basketball player who played for the University of Connecticut Huskies from 2004–2008. High school Thomas won many awards during her high school basketball ...

, after playing the majority of her career at

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...

. She passed the 1,000 point mark in an 82–71 UConn win over North Carolina on January 21, 2008, at

Gampel Pavilion Harry A. Gampel Pavilion is a 10,167-seat multi-purpose arena in Storrs, Connecticut, United States, on the campus of the University of Connecticut (UConn). The arena opened on January 21, 1990, and is the largest on-campus arena in New England. ...

. The Huskies lost in the Final Four to

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is considere ...

and finished the season at 36–2.

Senior year

Montgomery reached double figure points in all but four games this season, and led the Huskies to a 39–0 season and her first and only National Championship. She finished her career in the Top Ten of many categories in the UConn women's basketball recordbooks including No. 1 in games played (150), No. 6 in career points (1,990), No. 6 in FG's (703), No. 4 in 3pt FG's (254), No. 9 in FT's (330), No. 3 in Assists (632), and No. 5 in Steals (266). She was the first Husky to be recognized in the "Huskies of Honor" while still playing in a Husky uniform. ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twic ...

'' did a series of thirteen photographs featuring teams chasing or achieving perfect seasons—an entire season without a loss. The photograph of Coach

Geno Auriemma Luigi "Geno" Auriemma (born March 23, 1954) is an Italian-born American college basketball coach and, since 1985, the head coach of the University of Connecticut Huskies women's basketball team. , he has led UConn to 17 undefeated conference sea ...

embracing Renee Montgomery during the 2008–09 season is included in the collection.

Professional career

WNBA

Montgomery was selected fourth overall in the 2009 WNBA draft by the

. In 2010, Montgomery was traded to 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 ...

, as part of a trade involving Minnesota native

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 the first pick in the 2010 draft, with which the Sun selected Tina Charles, Montgomery's former college teammate. In college, Montgomery wore 20 as a uniform number. Players often become attached to their numbers, some more than others. Renee liked her number so much that her personal website is reneemontgomery20.com. The Sun also added veteran

Kara Lawson Kara Marie Lawson (born February 14, 1981) is the head coach of the Duke Blue Devils women's basketball team. She is a former American professional women's basketball player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and a basketball t ...

to the team, who had worn No. 20 in college and with the

Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a basketball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 until folding on November 20, 2009. They played their home games at ARCO Arena. The Mona ...

, so Montgomery wore No. 21 for the Sun. During the 2009–10 collegiate basketball season, Montgomery occasionally worked as a color commentator for women's college games broadcast on the ESPN family of networks. During the 2011 WNBA season, Montgomery had the best season of her career once she became the starting point guard for the Sun. She averaged 14.6 ppg and was voted as an all-star for the first time in her career. In 2012, Montgomery came off the bench for the Sun, but was still effective, averaging 11.6 ppg and winning WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year. The Sun made it to the playoffs that year and were one win away from advancing to the Finals, but were eliminated by the eventual champions

Indiana Fever The Indiana Fever are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis, playing in the Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded before the 2000 season began. The team is owned ...

in game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals. On January 28, 2015, the Connecticut Sun traded Montgomery along with their third and fifteen overall picks in the

2015 WNBA draft The 2015 WNBA draft was the league's draft for the 2015 WNBA season. The Seattle Storm picked first. This year's draft was unusual in that two players with remaining college eligibility declared for the draft—Jewell Loyd of Notre Dame, who h ...

to the

Seattle Storm The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The Storm competes in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded by Ginger Ackerl ...

in exchange for

Camille Little Camille Little (born January 18, 1985) is a former American professional basketball player for the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She began her WNBA career with the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2007. She played college basketball ...

and

Shekinna Stricklen Shekinna Stricklen (born July 30, 1990) is an American basketball forward who is currently a free agent in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Born in Conway, Arkansas, she went to Morrilton High School, which she helped lead t ...

. On July 20, 2015, Montgomery was reacquired by the Minnesota Lynx in a trade for

Monica Wright Monica Ashante Wright (born July 15, 1988) is an American basketball coach and former player. She played college basketball for Virginia and was selected second overall by the Minnesota Lynx in the 2010 WNBA draft. Outside of the WNBA, she played ...

. Montgomery ended up winning her first WNBA championship with the Lynx after they defeated the

in the Finals. In 2016, Montgomery played a full season for the Lynx for the first time since her rookie season. She averaged 7.5 ppg off the bench and the Lynx were in the hunt to win back-to-back championships, but lost 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 foun ...

in the Finals. In 2017, Montgomery averaged 8.0 ppg and achieved a new career-high in field goal shooting percentage. Montgomery also started in 12 of 34 games played while Whalen was sidelined with a hand injury. The Lynx continued to be a championship contender in the league after making it to the Finals for the sixth time in seven seasons, setting up a rematch with the Sparks. This time the Lynx would win in 5 games, winning their fourth championship in seven seasons, tying the now-defunct

Houston Comets The Houston Comets were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Houston. Formed in 1997, the team was one of the original eight WNBA teams and won the first four championships of the league's existence. They are one of two ...

for most championship titles. On February 1, 2018, Montgomery signed a multi-year contract with the

. She would be the starting point guard for the team. On August 12, 2018, Montgomery scored a season-high 30 points along with a career-high 8 three-pointers in an 86–77 victory over the

New York Liberty The New York Liberty are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Liberty compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as part of the league's Eastern Conference. The team was f ...

, tying the regular season record for most three-pointers in a game. She also hit 7 of her 8 three-pointers in the second half, breaking the WNBA record for most three-pointers in a half. By the end of the season, Montgomery set the franchise record for most three-pointers made in a season. The Dream finished 23–11 with the number 2 seed in the league, receiving a double-bye to the semi-finals. Without the team's leading scorer

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 ...

, who was sidelined with a knee injury, the Dream were short-handed in the playoffs and lost in five games to 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 ...

. In June 2020, Montgomery announced that she would forgo the 2020 WNBA season due to concerns of racism and the

coronavirus Coronaviruses are a group of related RNA viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans and birds, they cause respiratory tract infections that can range from mild to lethal. Mild illnesses in humans include some cases of the com ...

. In February 2021, she announced her retirement from the WNBA.

Overseas

In the 2009-10 off-season, Montgomery played in

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

for BC VIČI-Aistės Kaunas. In the 2010-11 off-season, she played in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

for

Maccabi Bnot Ashdod Maccabi Bnot Ashdod ( he, מכבי בנות אשדוד) is a professional women's basketball team based in Ashdod, playing in the Ligat Ha'al in Israel since 2003. It is the women's basketball division of the Maccabi Ashdod sports club. During 20 ...

. In the 2012-13 off-season, she played in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

for

Nadezhda Orenburg PBK Nadezhda Orenburg (russian: ПБК «Надежда») is a Russian women's basketball club from Orenburg founded in 1994. Nadezhda has been 3rd in the Russian Premier League in 2010 and 2011, and reached the Russian Cup's final from 2011� ...

. In the 2013–14 off-season, she played for Tarsus in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

and for Vologda-Chevakata in Russia; in the 2014-15 off-season, she again played for Vologda-Chevakata. In the 2015-16 off-season, she played in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

for the

Canberra Capitals The University of Canberra Capitals are an Australian professional women's basketball team competing in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL). The team is based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. In 2014 the University of Canberr ...

. She signed with Basket 90 Gdynia in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

for the 2016-17 off-season. In 2017, Montgomery signed with Maccabi Ramat Hen of the Israeli League for the 2017-18 off-season.

USA Basketball

Montgomery was invited to the USA Basketball Women's National Team training camp in the fall of 2009. The team selected to play for the FIBA World Championship and the Summer Olympics is usually chosen from these participants. At the conclusion of the training camp, the team traveled to Ekaterinburg, Russia, where they competed in the 2009 UMMC Ekaterinburg International Invitational. Montgomery was one of twenty players named to the national team pool, from which twelve players would be chosen to represent the US in the 2010 FIBA World Championships and the 2012 Olympics. Montgomery was named as one of the National team members to represent the USA Basketball team in the WNBA versus USA Basketball. This game replaced the normal WNBA All-Star game with WNBA All-Stars versus USA Basketball, as part of the preparation for the

FIBA World Championship for Women The FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, also known as the Basketball World Cup for Women or simply the FIBA Women's World Cup, is an international basketball tournament for women's national teams held quadrennially. It was created by the Internati ...

to be held in the

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 ...

during September and October 2010.

Career statistics

College

WNBA

Regular season

, - , 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; 2009 Iran ...

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

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, 34 , , 9 , , 22.5 , , .408 , , .347 , , .833 , , 1.9 , , 2.1 , , 0.7 , , 0.3 , , 1.9 , , 9.0 , - , 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;",

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, 34 , , 23 , , 27.6 , , .401 , , .349 , , .855 , , 2.2 , , 4.1 , , 1.3 , , 0.1 , , 2.2 , , 13.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

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

, 34 , , 34 , , 29.1 , , .400 , , .384 , , .829 , , 2.1 , , 4.9 , , 1.4 , , 0.1 , , 2.6 , , 14.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

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

, 34 , , 0 , , 24.0 , , .348 , , .364 , , .848 , , 1.9 , , 2.6 , , 1.0 , , 0.1 , , 2.2 , , 11.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

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

, 23 , , 18 , , 27.2 , , .365 , , .327 , , .897, , 1.8 , , 3.1 , , 0.7 , , 0.0 , , 2.4 , , 10.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

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

, 33 , , 0 , , 16.2 , , .373 , , .330 , , .775 , , 0.8 , , 2.4 , , 0.6 , , 0.1 , , 1.3 , , 6.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

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

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, 17 , , 2 , , 17.8 , , .377 , , .392 , , .870 , , 1.8 , , 3.0 , , 0.9 , , 0.2 , , 2.0 , , 7.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 17 , , 5 , , 17.9 , , .368 , , .232 , , .714 , , 1.2 , , 2.5 , , 0.6 , , 0.1 , , 1.0 , , 5.7 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

^† , style="text-align:left;", Total , 34 , , 7 , , 17.8 , , .372 , , .312 , , .759 , , 1.5 , , 2.7 , , 0.7 , , 0.1 , , 1.0 , , 6.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

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

, 34 , , 2 , , 19.3 , , .397 , , .321 , , .828 , , 0.9 , , 2.8 , , 0.9 , , 0.1 , , 1.7 , , 7.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

^† , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 12 , , 21.8 , , .424 , , .358 , , .842 , , 1.6 , , 3.4 , , 0.7 , , 0.1 , , 1.7 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, 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 498,715 ...

, 34 , , 34 , , 27.5 , , .389 , , .371 , , .881 , , 1.7 , , 3.7 , , 1.3 , , 0.1 , , 1.6 , , 10.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

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

, 34 , , 34 , , 27.9 , , .370 , , .324 , , .824 , , 2.2 , , 2.6 , , 0.9 , , 0.2 , , 1.9 , , 9.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 10 years, 5 teams , 364 , , 173 , , 23.6 , , .386 , , .347 , , .840 , , 1.7 , , 3.1 , , 1.0 , , 0.1 , , 1.9 , , 9.7

Postseason

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

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

, 2 , , 2 , , 28.5 , , .471 , , .333 , , .875 , , 1.5 , , 4.5 , , 0.5 , , 0.5 , , 3.5 , , 13.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 5 , , 0 , , 24.0 , , .393 , , .412 , , .833 , , 1.2 , , 3.4 , , 0.4 , , 0.0 , , 1.4 , , 6.8 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

^† , style="text-align:left;",

, 9 , , 0 , , 9.7 , , .478 , , .308 , , .875 , , 0.3 , , 0.9 , , 0.6 , , 0.1 , , 0.5 , , 3.7 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 8 , , 0 , , 12.6 , , .370 , , .444 , , .900 , , 0.4 , , 1.9 , , 0.5 , , 0.0 , , 1.0 , , 4.1 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

^† , style="text-align:left;",

, 8 , , 0 , , 17.1 , , .449 , , .393 , , .500 , , 1.3 , , 1.9 , , 0.5 , , 0.2 , , 1.2 , , 7.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 5 , , 5 , , 31.7 , , .293 , , .286 , , .846 , , 2.0 , , 4.2 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 1.8 , , 8.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 6 years, 3 teams , 37 , , 7 , , 17.9 , , .400 , , .356 , , .851 , , 0.9 , , 2.3 , , 0.5 , , 0.1 , , 1.2 , , 6.1

Post-playing career

Ownership of Atlanta Dream

In February 2021, Montgomery was part of a three-member investor group that was approved to purchase the

. The ownership change followed pressure on former owner

Kelly Loeffler Kelly Lynn Loeffler (, ; born November 27, 1970) is an American businesswoman and politician who served as a United States senator for Georgia from 2020 to 2021. Loeffler was chief executive officer (CEO) of Bakkt, a subsidiary of commodity and ...

, a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

former

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

who had angered WNBA players with her opposition to the league's racial justice initiatives, to sell her share of the Dream. Loeffler had previously refused a visit with Montgomery on social justice initiatives.

Ownership of FCF Beasts

On January 4, 2021, Montgomery joined Miro and

Marshawn Lynch Marshawn Terrell Lynch (born April 22, 1986) is an American former football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. Nicknamed "Beast Mode", he spent the majority of his career with the Seattle Seahawks. Lync ...

as a partial owner of the

Fan Controlled Football Fan Controlled Football (FCF) is a professional 7-on-7 Indoor football league created in 2017 as the first sports league controlled by fans. All games are played at the Pullman Yards in Atlanta, Georgia and broadcast on Twitch, NBCLX, DAZN, ...

Broadcasting

In 2020, Montgomery began working as a studio analyst for

Fox Sports Southeast Bally Sports Southeast (BSSE) (originally named SportSouth from its inception until October 4, 2015, and Fox Sports Southeast (FSSE) until March 31, 2021) is an American regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports Group, a joint venture betw ...

's broadcasts of

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...

games. She had previously appeared on the network as a guest analyst. In March 2021, Montgomery was announced as the co-host of a

Crooked Media Crooked Media is a progressive American political media company. It was founded in 2017 by Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett, and Tommy Vietor, all former top Barack Obama staffers and former co-hosts of the '' Keepin' it 1600'' podcast. Dan Pfeiffer, al ...

podcast titled ''Takeline'' with Jason Concepcion. Montgomery called 2021 NCAA women's basketball tournament games for ESPN alongside

Beth Mowins Elizabeth Mowins (born May 26, 1967) is an American play-by-play announcer and sports journalist for ESPN, CBS, and Marquee Sports Network. She typically calls women's college sports, and became the second woman to call nationally televised col ...

. In September 2021, Montgomery joined

Meadowlark Media Dan Le Batard is an American newspaper sportswriter, ex radio host, podcast host and television reporter based in Miami, Florida. He has also worked at ESPN, and for his hometown paper, the '' Miami Herald'', for which he wrote from 1990 to 2016 ...

, for which she makes the podcast ''Montgomery & Co.''.

Personal life

In April 2020, Montgomery married music artist Sirena Grace.

Awards and honors

* 2005

McDonald's All-America The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the conc ...

. * 2005 Gatorade West Virginia High School Player of the Year. * 2005 Street & Smith Third Team All-America. * 2005 Associated Press West Virginia Player of the Year. * 2005 WBCA Honorable Mention All-America. * 2004 Street & Smith Third Team All-America. * 2003 Street & Smith Honorable Mention All-America * 2009

Nancy Lieberman Award The Nancy Lieberman Award, named for Basketball Hall of Fame legend Nancy Lieberman, was given annually by the Rotary Club of Detroit in the Award's first 14 years to the nation's top collegiate point guard in women's Division I basketball. Sue Bi ...

– Top Point Guard * 2009

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 ...

, basketball * 2009 Finalist for

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 ...

* 2009

Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award The Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award was an annual college basketball award in the United States intended to honor shorter-than-average players who excelled on the court despite their size. The award, named in honor of James Naismith's daughter-in-la ...

* 2009 Gazette Sportsperson of the Year

References

External links

UConn Husky Bio

WNBA bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, Renee 1986 births Living people All-American college women's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Australia American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Lithuania American expatriate basketball people in Poland American expatriate basketball people in Russia American women's basketball players Atlanta Dream owners Basketball players from West Virginia Connecticut Sun players LGBT basketball players LGBT people from West Virginia Lesbian sportswomen McDonald's High School All-Americans Minnesota Lynx draft picks Minnesota Lynx players People from St. Albans, West Virginia People from South Charleston, West Virginia Point guards Seattle Storm players South Charleston High School alumni UConn Huskies women's basketball players Women's National Basketball Association All-Stars American LGBT sportspeople

High school

College career

Freshman year

Sophomore year

Junior year

Senior year

Professional career

WNBA

Overseas

USA Basketball

Career statistics

College

WNBA

Regular season

Postseason

Post-playing career

Ownership of Atlanta Dream

Ownership of FCF Beasts

Broadcasting

Personal life

Awards and honors

See also

References

External links