Allisha Gray (/æˈlʃə/ a-LEE-shə;[1] born January 12, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Atlanta Dream of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and Elitzur Ramla of Israel. She won a gold medal in women's 3x3 basketball at the 2020 Summer Olympics.[2][3]

Allisha Gray
Gray with the Dallas Wings in 2021
No. 15 – Atlanta Dream
PositionShooting guard
LeagueWNBA
Personal information
Born (1995-01-12) January 12, 1995 (age 29)
Greenwood, South Carolina, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight167 lb (76 kg)
Career information
High schoolWashington County
(Sandersville, Georgia)
College
WNBA draft2017: 1st round, 4th overall pick
Selected by the Dallas Wings
Playing career2017–present
Career history
20172022Dallas Wings
2018–2019Elitzur Ramla
2023–presentAtlanta Dream
2025–presentLunar Owls BC
Career highlights and awards
Stats at WNBA.com
Stats at Basketball Reference
Medals
Women's 3x3 basketball
Representing  United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2020 Tokyo Team

She played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels and South Carolina Gamecocks. After she was selected 4th overall by the Wings in the 2017 WNBA draft, Gray won the WNBA Rookie of the Year award.

Early life

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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

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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, Kentucky, South Carolina, etc., she eventually chose to attend North Carolina to play for Coach Sylvia Hatchell. 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. Gray eventually won a National Championship in her first season of eligibility.

Professional career

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WNBA

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After helping lead South Carolina to the NCAA Championship, Gray opted to enter the 2017 WNBA draft. By entering, she would forgo her final season of college eligibility.[4] She was drafted 4th overall by the Dallas Wings placing her in the city where she won a national title two weeks prior, and eventually pairing her with South Carolina teammate, Kaela Davis, 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.[5] 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. On September 19, 2017, it was announced by the WNBA that Gray won the 2017 Rookie of the Year Award.[6]

 
Gray with the Wings in 2019.

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

In January 2023, Gray was traded to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for draft picks.[7]

Overseas

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In June 2018, Gray signed with Elitzur Ramla of the Israeli League for the 2018-19 off-season.[8]

Unrivaled

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On August 22, 2024, it was announced that Gray would appear and play in the inaugural season of Unrivaled, a new women's 3x3 basketball league founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart.[9]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
* Denotes season(s) in which Gray won an NCAA Championship

WNBA

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Regular season

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Stats current through end of 2024 season

WNBA regular season statistics[10]
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2017 Dallas 34 34 27.2 .381 .299 .803 3.9 1.3 1.5 0.6 2.1 13.0
2018 Dallas 34 34 26.7 .403 .270 .863 3.4 2.4 1.3 0.2 1.4 9.2
2019 Dallas 34 29 30.4 .457 .384 .848 4.1 2.3 1.2 0.4 1.4 10.6
2020 Dallas 20 14 26.2 .464 .352 .831 4.2 1.3 1.1 0.3 1.1 13.1
2021 Dallas 25 16 27.8 .438 .366 .862 5.2 1.7 1.0 0.8 1.4 11.9
2022 Dallas 33 33 32.9 .423 .408 .798 4.8 2.5 1.1 0.7 1.3 13.3
2023 Atlanta 38 38 32.7 .465 .356 .824 4.9 3.1 1.1 0.4 1.9 17.1
2024 Atlanta 40 40 33.3 .403 .342 .769 4.4 2.7 1.1 0.7 1.7 15.6
Career 8 years, 2 teams 258 238 30.0 .426 .347 .817 4.4 2.3 1.2 0.5 1.4 13.1
All-Star 2 0 20.4 .389 .222 .909 2.5 2.0 3.0 0.0 1.0 13.0

Playoffs

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WNBA playoff statistics
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2017 Dallas 1 1 16.1 .000 .000 .750 3.0 0.0 1.0 0.0 1.0 3.0
2018 Dallas 1 1 37.0 .000 .000 1.000 4.0 1.0 1.0 0.0 0.0 3.0
2021 Dallas 1 1 34.0 .600 1.000 1.000 6.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 9.0
2022 Dallas 3 3 35.7 .484 .231 .600 3.7 4.7 1.7 0.3 0.7 13.0
2023 Atlanta 2 2 36.0 .424 .385 .700 7.0 4.0 1.5 0.5 3.5° 20.0
2024 Atlanta 2 2 33.5 .520 .455 .800 4.0 2.0 0.0 0.5 2.5 17.5
Career 6 years, 2 teams 10 10 33.3 .413 .311 .735 4.6 2.9 1.1 0.4 1.6 12.9

College

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NCAA statistics[11]
Year Team GP Points FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013–14 North Carolina 36 501 48.1% 41.8% 73.6% 5.5 1.3 1.4 0.4 13.9
2014–15 North Carolina 35 552 45.2% 30.9% 70.7% 7.6 2.2 1.3 0.6 15.8
2015–16 South Carolina Did not play due to injury
2016–17* South Carolina 37 487 51.0% 31.6% 73.5% 5.0 2.5 1.3 0.6 13.2
Career 108 1540 47.9% 34.8% 72.3% 6.0 2.0 1.4 0.6 14.3

References

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  1. ^ "Allisha Gray". herhoopstats.com. Retrieved July 20, 2024.
  2. ^ STONE, AUGUSTA. "Gamecock wins gold! Allisha Gray, Team USA on top in 3-on-3 basketball". The State. Archived from the original on July 28, 2021.
  3. ^ "USC's Allisha Gray wins gold medal at Olympics". wltx.com. Retrieved July 29, 2021.
  4. ^ Cloninger, David (April 4, 2017). "South Carolina's Kaela Davis, Allisha Gray declare for WNBA draft". Greenville News. Retrieved April 27, 2017.
  5. ^ "The Sun Stay Hot In Win Over Dallas". sun.wnba.com.
  6. ^ "Dallas' Allisha Gray Named 2017 WNBA Rookie Of The Year". wnba.com.
  7. ^ "Atlanta Dream Land Allisha Gray". dream.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
  8. ^ "Allisha Gray is a newcomer at Elitzur Ramla". eurobasket.com.
  9. ^ @Unrivaledwbb (August 22, 2024). "ALLISHA GRAY IS UNRIVALED👑 15/30✅" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  10. ^ "Allisha Gray WNBA Stats". Basketball Reference.
  11. ^ "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved August 28, 2017.
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