Lady Grooms
Lady Grooms (born September 12, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player, who was one of the 16 original WNBA players allocated to the teams in the new league's Initial Player Allocation draft (as Lady Hardmon). After a college career at the University of Georgia, she played 8 WNBA seasons and had career averages of 4.6 points and 2.1 rebounds per game, scoring over 1,000 career points and 500 career rebounds.[1]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 12, 1970 Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Listed height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) |
| Listed weight | 160 lb (73 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Georgia (1989–1992) |
| WNBA draft | 1997: Initial allocation round |
| Selected by the Utah Starzz | |
| Playing career | 1997–2004 |
| Position | Guard |
| Number | 27 |
| Career history | |
| 1997 | Utah Starzz |
| 1998–2004 | Sacramento Monarchs |
Georgia statistics
Source[2]
| 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 |
| Year | Team | GP | Points | FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 89 | Georgia | 30 | 214 | 48.5% | 63.4% | 4.0 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 7.1 |
| 90 | Georgia | 29 | 410 | 49.8% | 69.7% | 5.7 | 3.9 | 2.0 | 0.1 | 14.1 |
| 91 | Georgia | 32 | 413 | 46.8% | 64.7% | 4.4 | 3.0 | 1.9 | 0.0 | 12.9 |
| 92 | Georgia | 30 | 361 | 43.1% | 63.6% | 3.8 | 6.0 | 2.0 | 0.2 | 12.0 |
| Career | Georgia | 121 | 1397 | 46.9% | 65.6% | 4.4 | 3.6 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 11.5 |
WNBA career
Grooms was selected in the initial player allocation of the 1997 WNBA draft by the Utah Starzz on January 22, 1997. Her debut game was played on June 21, 1997, in a 61–73 loss to the Sacramento Monarchs where she recorded 6 points, 6 assists and 4 rebounds. Grooms would only play for the Starzz for one season, playing in 28 games and averaging 5.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists.
On May 5, 1998, was Grooms was traded to the Monarchs for Chantel Tremitiere and she would play for the Monarchs for the remainder of her career. For the Monarchs, Grooms played 217 games and averaged 4.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists.
Her final WNBA game ever was Game 1 of the 2004 Western Conference First Round on September 24, 2004, in a 72–52 win over the Los Angeles Sparks. Grooms played for 3 minutes and recorded no stats in that game.[3] She would also not play for the remainder of the playoffs, and the Monarchs would get eliminated in the Western Conference Finals 2 - 1 by the Seattle Storm.
Grooms currently is the director of basketball operations and the head girls basketball coach at Landmark Christian School in Fairburn, Georgia. Grooms was formerly the head coach of the girls basketball team at Greater Atlanta Christian in Norcross, Ga. Grooms previously coached the varsity girls basketball team at Arlington Christian School in Fairburn, Georgia. In her first two seasons coaching the team, it won the state title each year in the GISA. Grooms has won awards as state and regional coach of the year.
References
- "Lady Grooms - WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved 2017-09-07.
- "Georgia Media Guide". Retrieved 2017-09-07.
- https://www.basketball-reference.com/wnba/boxscores/200409240SAC.html