Yolanda Evette Griffith (born March 1, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player who played in both the ABL and WNBA. An eight time WNBA All-Star, she was named the 1999 WNBA MVP and the WNBA Finals MVP in 2005 when she won the WNBA championship with the Sacramento Monarchs. 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's class on her first year of eligibility. In 2021, she was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.
Early life
Born in Chicago, Illinois, Griffith attended George Washington Carver High School in the Chicago area. as well as first team All-America in softball.
Afterward, she attended Palm Beach Junior College in Lake Worth, Florida, where she earned Junior College All-America honors in 1990–91.
American Basketball League
After four seasons in Germany, Griffith joined the American Basketball League (ABL). 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, three games to one in a best-of-five series. Griffith was named Finals MVP.
On April 8, 2008, after nine seasons with the Sacramento Monarchs, Griffith signed with the Seattle Storm.
On February 20, 2009, Griffith signed with the Indiana Fever, after a one-year stint with the Storm.
On June 9, 2009, Griffith tore her achilles tendon in a game against the Seattle Storm, her former team. In August the same year, she announced her retirement from professional basketball. In 2016, Griffith was once again honoured by the WNBA in the WNBA Top 20@20 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.
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. In 2018, she became an assistant coach with the Boston College Eagles.
Statistics
WNBA career statistics
Regular season
|-
| align="left" | 1999
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 29 || 29 || 33.8 || .541 || .000 || .617 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|11.3° || 1.6 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|2.5° || 1.9 || 2.28 || 18.8
|-
| align="left" | 2000
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 32 || 32 || 32.1 || .535 || .000 || .706 || 10.3 || 1.5 || 2.6 || 1.9 || 2.56 || 16.3
|-
| align="left" | 2001
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 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
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 17 || 17 || 33.9 || .520 || .000 || .803 || 8.7 || 1.1 || 0.9 || 0.8 || 2.65 || 16.9
|-
| align="left" | 2003
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 34 || 34 || 29.9 || .485 || .000 || .774 || 7.3 || 1.4 || 1.7 || 1.1 || 2.21 || 13.8
|-
| align="left" | 2004
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 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<sup>†</sup>
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 34 || 33 || 28.3 || .485 || .000 || .707 || 6.6 || 1.5 || 1.2 || 0.9 || 2.00 || 13.8
|-
| align="left" | 2006
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 34 || 34 || 25.1 || .457 || .000 || .751 || 6.4 || 1.6 || 1.3 || 0.5 || 1.94 || 12.0
|-
| align="left" | 2007
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 32 || 32 || 23.1 || .502 || .000 || .658 || 4.6 || 1.5 || 1.0 || 0.4 || 2.03 || 9.0
|-
| align="left" | 2008
| align="left" | Seattle
| 30 || 30 || 21.9 || .462 || .000 || .648 || 6.3 || 1.5 || 1.4 || 0.6 || 1.70 || 7.2
|-
| align="left" | 2009
| align="left" | Indiana
| 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
|-
| align="left" | 2000
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 2 || 2 || 39.0 || .522 || .000 || .625 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|12.0° || 1.0 || 0.5 || 0.5 || 2.00 || 14.5
|-
| align="left" | 2001
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 5 || 5 || 36.2 || .478 || .000 || .764 || 8.8 || 1.4 || 1.6 || 1.2 || 2.20 || 21.2
|-
| align="left" | 2003
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 6 || 6 || 33.3 || .537 || .000 || .912 || 8.8 || 1.2 || 1.2 || 1.0 || 2.00 || 17.2
|-
| align="left" | 2004
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 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;"| 2005<sup>†</sup>
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 8 || 8 || 30.8 || .491 || .000 || .711 || 8.3 || 1.4 || 1.2 || 0.5 || 1.25 || 17.3
|-
| align="left" | 2006
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 9 || 9 || 26.3 || .485 || .000 || .765 || 7.1 || 1.8 || 1.1 || 0.6 || 1.11 || 14.8
|-
| align="left" | 2007
| align="left" | Sacramento
| 3 || 3 || 23.7 || .409 || .000 || .889 || 6.0 || 0.3 || 0.7 || 0.3 || 2.33 || 8.7
|-
| align="left" | 2008
| align="left" | Seattle
| 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 Medals at the Summer Olympics in both 2000 and 2004.
Coaching career
thumb|Yolanda Griffith coaching from the sidelines
In 2011, Griffith accepted an assistant coach position with Ivy League university, Dartmouth, located in Hanover, NH.
In 2013, Griffith was named the First Assistant Coach for Lafayette College a member of the Patriot League. 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
- 2004 WNBA article: "Ambassadors Of The Game"
- October 14, 2005 Sacramento Bee article: "Monarchs' Griffith finally has a legacy"
- Griffith signs with the Storm