Allisha Gray ( ; born January 12, 1995) is an American professional

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 (appro ...

player for the

Atlanta Dream The Atlanta Dream are an American professional basketball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Dream compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded for the ...

of the

Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. The league comprises 13 teams (scheduled to expand to 15 in 2026). The WNBA is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan. The WNBA w ...

(WNBA). She won a gold medal in women's 3x3 basketball at the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

. She played college basketball for the

North Carolina Tar Heels The North Carolina Tar Heels (also Carolina Tar Heels) are the college sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to ...

and

South Carolina Gamecocks The South Carolina Gamecocks represent the University of South Carolina in the NCAA Division I. The University of South Carolina uses "Gamecocks" as its official nickname and mascot. While the men's teams were traditionally known as the Fight ...

. After she was selected 4th overall by the Wings in the 2017 WNBA draft, Gray won the

WNBA Rookie of the Year The Women's National Basketball Association's Rookie of the Year Award is an annual Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) award given since the 1998 WNBA season, to the top rookie of the regular season. The winner is selected by a panel o ...

award.

Early life

She was a member of the U18 USA Basketball National Team as well as the 3-on-3 National Team. Named 3A state player of the year three times. She led Washington County to a three-year record of 88–4 that included a perfect 32–0 record and a 3A state championship in 2010–11. As a junior, Gray averaged 32.0 points and 8.5 rebounds en route to a state runner-up finish. She then missed most of her senior season with a knee injury

College career

Heavily recruited by power programs, she was ranked the 7th overall player as part of a high-profile 2013 recruiting class. After receiving offers from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

, etc., she eventually chose to attend

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

to play for Coach

Sylvia Hatchell Sylvia Rhyne Hatchell (born February 28, 1952) is a former American women's basketball coach, who last coached for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) and was the fifth with the most career wins in NCAA women's basketball histo ...

. After two years in Chapel Hill, Gray shockingly announced that she would be transferring. It was then reported that her reason for transferring was due to UNC's athletic-academic scandal. In May 2015, it was announced that Gray had transferred to South Carolina to play for

Dawn Staley Dawn Michelle Staley (born May 4, 1970) is an American basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team. A point guard, she played college basketball for the Virginia Cavaliers an ...

. Gray eventually won a

National Championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

in her first season of eligibility.

Professional career

WNBA

After helping lead

to the NCAA Championship, Gray opted to enter the 2017 WNBA draft. By entering, she would forgo her final season of college eligibility. She was drafted 4th overall by the

Dallas Wings The Dallas Wings are an American professional basketball team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Wings compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference. The team is owned by a group ...

placing her in the city where she won a national title two weeks prior, and eventually pairing her with South Carolina teammate,

Kaela Davis Kaela Davis (born March 15, 1995) is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. She previously played for the Chicago Sky, Dallas Wings, Atlanta Dream, Seattle Storm and the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Ba ...

, who was selected 10th. In her rookie season, Gray immediately entered the Wings' starting lineup at the shooting guard. She started in all 34 games and averaged 13.1 ppg. On August 12, 2017, Gray scored a career-high 21 points in a 96–88 loss to the

Connecticut Sun The Connecticut Sun are an American professional basketball team based in Uncasville, Connecticut. The Sun compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team i ...

. The Wings finished as the number 7 seed in the league with a 16–18 record. The Wings were defeated in the first round elimination game 86–76 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 of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team was ...

. On September 19, 2017, it was announced by the WNBA that Gray won the 2017

Rookie of the Year Award A Rookie of the Year award or ROY is given by a number of sports leagues to the top-performing athlete in his or her first season within the league. Athletes competing for the first time in any given league are also known as "rookies". Principal ...

2021-09-19 WNBA Dallas Wings - 15 Allisha Gray - 003

In her second season, Gray continued her starting role with the Wings. With the arrival of all-star center

Liz Cambage Elizabeth Folake "Liz" Cambage ( ; born 18 August 1991) is a British-born Australian professional basketball player for the Sichuan Yuanda of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association. She won the Women's National Basketball League in 2011 and ...

, Gray would have a reduced offensive load on the team. Gray averaged 9.2 ppg in her second season, helping the Wings to the number 8 seed with a 15–19 record. In the first round elimination game, the Wings lost 101–83 to the

Phoenix Mercury The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Mercury compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference. One of eight original franchises, it wa ...

. In January 2023, Gray was traded to the

in exchange for draft picks.

Overseas

In June 2018, Gray signed with Elitzur Ramla of the Israeli League for the 2018-19 off-season.

Unrivaled

On August 22, 2024, it was announced that Gray would appear and play in the inaugural season of

Unrivaled Unrivaled may refer to: * Unrivaled (basketball) Unrivaled is a women's professional three-on-three basketball league in the United States. History The league was founded in 2023 by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart, in part to allow WN ...

, a new women's 3-on-3 basketball league founded by

Napheesa Collier Napheesa Collier ( ; born September 23, 1996), nicknamed "Phee", is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Lynx of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Collier is also a founder of the Unrivaled (basketball le ...

and

Breanna Stewart Breanna Mackenzie Stewart ( ; Born, August 27, 1994), nicknamed "Stewie", is an American professional basketball player for the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is one of the most accomplished women in ...

. She plays for Lunar Owls.

Career statistics

WNBA

Regular season

''Stats current through end of 2024 season'' , - , style="text-align:left;",

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

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

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 34 , , 34 , , 27.2 , , .381 , , .299 , , .803 , , 3.9 , , 1.3 , , 1.5 , , 0.6 , , 2.1 , , 13.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

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

, 34 , , 34 , , 26.7 , , .403 , , .270 , , .863 , , 3.4 , , 2.4 , , 1.3 , , 0.2 , , 1.4 , , 9.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

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

, 34 , , 29 , , 30.4 , , .457 , , .384 , , .848 , , 4.1 , , 2.3 , , 1.2 , , 0.4 , , 1.4 , , 10.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

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

, 20 , , 14 , , 26.2 , , .464 , , .352 , , .831 , , 4.2 , , 1.3 , , 1.1 , , 0.3 , , 1.1 , , 13.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

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

, 25 , , 16 , , 27.8 , , .438 , , .366 , , .862 , , 5.2 , , 1.7 , , 1.0 , , 0.8 , , 1.4 , , 11.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

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

, 33 , , 33 , , 32.9 , , .423 , , .408 , , .798 , , 4.8 , , 2.5 , , 1.1 , , 0.7 , , 1.3 , , 13.3 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

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

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, 38, , 38, , 32.7 , , .465 , , .356 , , .824 , , 4.9 , , 3.1 , , 1.1 , , 0.4 , , 1.9 , , 17.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

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

, 40, , 40, , 33.3, , .403, , .342, , .769, , 4.4, , 2.7, , 1.1, , 0.7, , 1.7, , 15.6 , - class="sortbottom" , rowspan=2 style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 8 years, 2 teams , 258 , , 238 , , 30.0 , , .426 , , .347 , , .817 , , 4.4 , , 2.3 , , 1.2 , , 0.5 , , 1.4 , , 13.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;", All-Star , 2 , , 0 , , 20.4 , , .389 , , .222 , , .909 , , 2.5 , , 2.0 , , 3.0 , , 0.0 , , 1.0 , , 13.0

Playoffs

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

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

, 1 , , 1 , , 16.1 , , .000 , , .000 , , .750 , , 3.0 , , 0.0 , , 1.0 , , 0.0 , , 1.0 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 1 , , 1 , , 37.0 , , .000 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 4.0 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 1 , , 1 , , 34.0 , , .600 , , 1.000 , , 1.000 , , 6.0 , , 2.0 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 9.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 3 , , 3 , , 35.7 , , .484 , , .231 , , .600 , , 3.7 , , 4.7 , , 1.7 , , 0.3 , , 0.7 , , 13.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 2 , , 2 , , 36.0 , , .424 , , .385 , , .700 , , 7.0 , , 4.0 , , 1.5 , , 0.5 , , style="background:#d3d3d3;", 3.5° , , 20.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 2 , , 2 , , 33.5 , , .520 , , .455 , , .800 , , 4.0 , , 2.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.5 , , 2.5 , , 17.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", 6 years, 2 teams , 10 , , 10 , , 33.3 , , .413 , , .311 , , .735 , , 4.6 , , 2.9 , , 1.1 , , 0.4 , , 1.6 , , 12.9

College

References

External links

* * * * *
Allisha Gray
at

USA Basketball USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States in FIBA, and the men's and women's national basketball teams in the United States ...

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gray, Allisha 1995 births Living people 3x3 basketball players at the 2020 Summer Olympics American women's 3x3 basketball players American women's basketball players Atlanta Dream players Basketball players from South Carolina Dallas Wings draft picks Dallas Wings players North Carolina Tar Heels women's basketball players Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in 3x3 basketball Sportspeople from Greenwood, South Carolina Shooting guards South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball players Unrivaled basketball players WNBA All-Stars 21st-century American sportswomen Athletes Unlimited basketball players