Yolanda Evette Griffith (born March 1, 1970) is an American former 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 who played in both the ABL and WNBA. An eight time WNBA All-Star, she was named the 1999

WNBA MVP The Women's National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) award given since the league's inaugural season in 1997. MVP voting takes place immediately following the regular ...

and the

WNBA Finals MVP The Women's National Basketball Association Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) award given since the league's inaugural season. During the first four years of the league, the Houston Co ...

in 2005 when she won the WNBA championship with the

Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a professional 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 Aren ...

. One of the top defensive players in WNBA's history, she was the 1999 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year and led the league in rebounds and steals two times each. In 2011, she was voted in by fans as one of the top 15 players in WNBA history. She is sometimes called by her nicknames: "Yo" and "Yo-Yo". Griffith was inducted into the 2014

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 ...

's class on her first year of eligibility. In 2021, she was inducted into the

Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...

Early life

Born in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Illinois, Griffith attended George Washington Carver High School in the Chicago area. In her senior year (1988–1989), she was named First-team ''

Parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually some variety ...

'' All-American, as well as first team All-America in softball.

College career

Griffith was offered a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

to play for the women's basketball team at the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

, but had to cancel it after she gave birth to her daughter, Candace. Afterward, she attended

Palm Beach Junior College Palm Beach State College is a public college in Lake Worth, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System. Palm Beach State College enrolls nearly 25,000 students in over 100 programs of study including bachelor of applied science, associat ...

Lake Worth, Florida Lake Worth Beach, previously named Lake Worth, is a city in east-central Palm Beach County, Florida, United States, located about north of Miami. The city's name is derived from the body of water along its eastern border known as the Lake Wort ...

, where she earned Junior College All-America honors in 1990-91. She later transferred to

Florida Atlantic University Florida Atlantic University (Florida Atlantic or FAU) is a Public university, public research university with its main campus in Boca Raton, Florida, United States. The university is a member of the State University System of Florida and has s ...

, which was then a Division II school, where she graduated in 1993, earning Kodak Division II Player of the Year honors. While in school, she supported herself and her daughter by working for a car repossession company.

Professional career

Germany

Following her graduating from college, Griffith began her professional basketball playing career in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

with DJK Wildcats Aschaffenburg, where she played from 1993 to 1997. In 1997, she finished as the top scorer and rebounder in the Euroleague Women, averaging 24.7 points and 17.1 rebounds per game.

American Basketball League

After four seasons in Germany, Griffith joined the American Basketball League (ABL). She was selected by the Long Beach Stingrays as the number one pick overall in the ABL players draft. In their only season, Griffith led the Stingrays to the brink of the ABL title, only to lose to the defending champions, the

Columbus Quest The Columbus Quest was a professional women's basketball franchise located in Columbus, Ohio, in the now-defunct American Basketball League (ABL). They were one of the league's original eight teams that started play in 1996. In the league's b ...

. Griffith was named the 1997–1998 ABL Defensive Player of the Year and to the All-ABL first team. She finished second in the ABL's 1998 Most Valuable Player voting to her future

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, officially branded as Sydney 2000, and also known as the Games of the New Millennium, were an international multi-sport event held from 15 September to 1 October ...

teammate

Natalie Williams Natalie Jean Williams (born November 30, 1970) is an American basketball executive and former player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Williams was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016. She was also an acc ...

. When the Long Beach franchise folded after the end of the 1997–98 season, she was dealt to the expansion

Chicago Condors The Chicago Condors were a very short-lived member of the American Basketball League (ABL). Their hometown was much larger than usual for the ABL, which mainly targeted mid-market cities, and initial team merchandising was successful. The team a ...

, in her hometown. She played there only briefly, however, as the league folded on December 22, 1998. Prior to that, Griffith ranked fifth among league leaders in scoring (17.2 ppg), first in rebounding (12.3 rpg), 19th in assists (2.6 apg), second in steals (3.3 spg), and second in blocked shots (1.3 bpg).

WNBA

The

selected Griffith as the no. 2 overall draft pick in the 1999

WNBA draft The WNBA draft is an annual draft (sports), draft held by the Women's National Basketball Association, WNBA through which WNBA teams can select new players from a talent pool of college and List of WNBA players, professional women's basketball p ...

. She is a seven-time WNBA All-Star, and won the WNBA's

MVP MVP most commonly refers to: * Most valuable player, an award, typically for the best performing player in a sport or competition * Minimum viable product, a concept for feature estimating used in business and engineering MVP may also refer to: ...

, Newcomer of the Year and Defensive Player awards in 1999. In 2001, Griffith set the WNBA single-season record for most offensive rebounds with 162. In 2005, the Monarchs won their first WNBA title over 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 ...

, three games to one in a best-of-five series. Griffith was named Finals MVP. On April 8, 2008, after nine seasons with the

, Griffith signed with the

Seattle Storm The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The Storm compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference. The team was founded by Gi ...

. On February 20, 2009, Griffith signed with the

Indiana Fever The Indiana Fever are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Fever compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) a member of the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference. The team was founded for ...

, after a one-year stint with the Storm. On June 9, 2009, Griffith tore her

achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...

in a game against the

, her former team. In August the same year, she announced her retirement from professional basketball. In 2011, she was voted in by fans as one of the top 15 players in the fifteen-year history of the WNBA. In 2016, Griffith was once again honoured by the WNBA in the

WNBA Top 20@20 WNBA Top 20@20 are the Women's National Basketball Association's Top 20 Players of All Time, chosen in 2016 on the occasion of the twentieth season of the WNBA from amongst 60 nominees compiled by the league. The group was to comprise the 20 best a ...

in celebration of the league's 20th season.

Europe

As the WNBA and the seasons in Europe did not overlap, Griffith, like many other WNBA players played in Europe during the winter. She played two seasons for Lavezzini Basket Parma in Italy from 2000 to 2002. In 2003–2004 and 2005–2006, she played for Russian club

UMMC Ekaterinburg BC Ekaterinburg () is a Russian professional women's basketball team based in Yekaterinburg competing in the Russian Premier League, and until February 2022 in FIBA Europe's EuroLeague Women. Founded in 1938 as Zenit Sverdlovsk, the club had its ...

Coaching career

Griffith began her coaching career in 2009 as an assistant coach with the Indiana Fever. She was later an assistant coach at the college level with Dartmouth, Lafayette, Albany and the

University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...

. In 2018, she became an assistant coach with the Boston College Eagles.

Statistics

WNBA career statistics

Regular season

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1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

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Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

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2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

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, 32 , , 32 , , 32.1 , , .535 , , .000 , , .706 , , 10.3 , , 1.5 , , 2.6 , , 1.9 , , 2.56 , , 16.3 , - , align="left" ,

2001 The year's most prominent event was 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. The United States led a Participan ...

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, 32 , , 31 , , 33.7 , , .522 , , .000 , , .720 , , style="background:#D3D3D3", 11.2° , , 1.7 , , 2.0 , , 1.2 , , 2.34 , , 16.2 , - , align="left" ,

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

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, 17 , , 17 , , 33.9 , , .520 , , .000 , , .803 , , 8.7 , , 1.1 , , 0.9 , , 0.8 , , 2.65 , , 16.9 , - , align="left" ,

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

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, 34 , , 34 , , 29.9 , , .485 , , .000 , , .774 , , 7.3 , , 1.4 , , 1.7 , , 1.1 , , 2.21 , , 13.8 , - , 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 60 ...

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, 34 , , 34 , , 30.3 , , .519 , , .000 , , .853 , , 7.2 , , 1.2 , , style="background:#D3D3D3", 2.2° , , 1.2 , , 1.74 , , 14.5 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

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, 34 , , 33 , , 28.3 , , .485 , , .000 , , .707 , , 6.6 , , 1.5 , , 1.2 , , 0.9 , , 2.00 , , 13.8 , - , align="left" ,

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

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, 34 , , 34 , , 25.1 , , .457 , , .000 , , .751 , , 6.4 , , 1.6 , , 1.3 , , 0.5 , , 1.94 , , 12.0 , - , align="left" ,

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

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, 32 , , 32 , , 23.1 , , .502 , , .000 , , .658 , , 4.6 , , 1.5 , , 1.0 , , 0.4 , , 2.03 , , 9.0 , - , align="left" ,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

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Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

, 30 , , 30 , , 21.9 , , .462 , , .000 , , .648 , , 6.3 , , 1.5 , , 1.4 , , 0.6 , , 1.70 , , 7.2 , - , align="left" ,

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

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Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, 3 , , 0 , , 13.7 , , .500 , , .000 , , .778 , , 2.3 , , 0.0 , , 0.0 , , 0.7 , , 1.00 , , 6.3 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , 11 years, 3 teams , 311 , , 306 , , 28.8 , , .506 , , .000 , , .713 , , 7.9 , , 1.5 , , 1.7 , , 1.0 , , 2.11 , , 13.6

Postseason

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, 2 , , 2 , , 39.0 , , .522 , , .000 , , .625 , , style="background:#D3D3D3", 12.0° , , 1.0 , , 0.5 , , 0.5 , , 2.00 , , 14.5 , - , align="left" ,

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, 5 , , 5 , , 36.2 , , .478 , , .000 , , .764 , , 8.8 , , 1.4 , , 1.6 , , 1.2 , , 2.20 , , 21.2 , - , align="left" ,

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, 6 , , 6 , , 33.3 , , .537 , , .000 , , .912 , , 8.8 , , 1.2 , , 1.2 , , 1.0 , , 2.00 , , 17.2 , - , align="left" ,

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, 6 , , 6 , , 34.0 , , .492 , , .000 , , .833 , , 8.2 , , 1.3 , , 2.0 , , 1.0 , , 2.00 , , 13.7 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;",

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, 8 , , 8 , , 30.8 , , .491 , , .000 , , .711 , , 8.3 , , 1.4 , , 1.2 , , 0.5 , , 1.25 , , 17.3 , - , align="left" ,

, align="left" ,

, 9 , , 9 , , 26.3 , , .485 , , .000 , , .765 , , 7.1 , , 1.8 , , 1.1 , , 0.6 , , 1.11 , , 14.8 , - , align="left" ,

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, 3 , , 3 , , 23.7 , , .409 , , .000 , , .889 , , 6.0 , , 0.3 , , 0.7 , , 0.3 , , 2.33 , , 8.7 , - , align="left" ,

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, 3 , , 3 , , 29.0 , , .214 , , .000 , , .875 , , 6.3 , , 1.7 , , 3.0 , , 1.3 , , 1.67 , , 4.3 , - , align="left" , Career , align="left" , 8 years, 2 teams , 42 , , 42 , , 31.1 , , .484 , , .000 , , .786 , , 8.0 , , 1.4 , , 1.4 , , 0.8 , , 1.69 , , 15.0

National team career

Griffith has twice been a member of the U.S. National Women's Basketball team. She won

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 b ...

s at the

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

in both

and

. Griffith will serve as a member of the USA Basketball Women's Development National Team Committee from 2013-2016. The Women's Developmental National Team committees will select coaches and athletes for USA Basketball teams competing in the 2013 and 2015 FIBA Americas U16 Championships; and the 2014 and 2016 FIBA U17 World Championships. The Men's Developmental National Team Committee also selects staff and players for the annual Nike Hoop Summit.

Coaching career

In 2011, Griffith accepted an assistant coach position with

Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...

university, Dartmouth, located in

Hanover, NH Hanover is a town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university Dartmouth College, the U.S. Army Corps of E ...

. In her first season with the Big Green the Dartmouth post players made great strides. Griffith was instrumental in the development of Arianne Hunter and Tia Dawson. Dawson, who was the Big Green's top rebounder and the top shot blocker in the

, was twice named

Rookie of the Week. In 2013, Griffith was named the First Assistant Coach for

Lafayette College Lafayette College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 18 ...

a member of the

Patriot League The Patriot League is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference comprising primarily leading Private university, private institutions of higher education and two United States service academies based in the Northeastern United ...

. She was an assistant coach for Joanna Bernabei-MacNamee at the University of Albany. When Bernabei-MacNamee was named as the new head coach at Boston College in 2018, she brought Griffith along as her assistant. Griffith has been instrumental in the development of post players at BC.

Notes

References

External links

*
USA Basketball Player Profile

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20080412022315/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/storm/2004333965_storm08.html Griffith signs with the Storm {{DEFAULTSORT:Griffith, Yolanda 1970 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Russia American women's basketball coaches American women's basketball players Basketball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Basketball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics Basketball players from Chicago Centers (basketball) Chicago Condors players Florida Atlantic Owls women's basketball players Henan Phoenix players Indiana Fever players Junior college women's basketball players in the United States Long Beach Stingrays players Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball Palm Beach State College alumni Parade High School All-Americans (girls' basketball) Sacramento Monarchs players Seattle Storm players WNBA All-Stars 21st-century African-American sportswomen 20th-century African-American sportswomen 20th-century American sportswomen United States women's national basketball team players 21st-century American sportswomen