Michelle Snow
Michelle Snow is a professional basketball player currently playing for the San Antonio Silver Stars in the Womens National Basketball Association (WNBA). Michelle, in her 8th pro season, is a three-time WNBA All-Star with a 9.4 career points-per-game (PPG) average.
High School
Michelle, a true center, led Pensacola High School to the state girls basketball championship in 1998 and was named "Miss Basketball."
College
A psychology major at the University of Tennessee, Michelle played alongside Tennessee graduates like Kara Lawson. On November 30, 2000, she became just the third woman in NCAA college basketball history to dunk during a game. She did so against the University of Illinois, University of South Carolina, and Vanderbilt University. Michelle competed with USA Basketball as a member of the 2000 Jones Cup Team that won the Gold in Taipei. Averaged 10.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game during her career at Tennessee.
Professional
Michelle was drafted 9th overall by the Houston Comets in the 1st round of the 2002 WNBA Draft. Michelle, playing center, has a 7'10" reach which helped her to become one of the best shot blockers in the WNBA. In 2003, she was named WNBA most improved player of the year.
In the 2006 WNBA All-Star game, Michelle became the second WNBA player to dunk. Michelle would play for the Houston Stealth in the National Women's Basketball League (NWBL) in the 2003 off-season. The NWBL was was founded in 1997 and began play in the fall of that year. During the off-season, some WNBA players would play in the NWBL for developmental. Michelle played overseas for Ramla in Israel during the 2007-08 WNBA off-season and Salamanca (Spain) during the 2008-09 off-season.
Michelle's best season was in 2006 when she averaged 13 PPG and 7.9 rebounds per game and made the All-Star team. In the playoffs, she averaged 15.5 PPG for the Comets. Michelle has scored 24 points in a game three times and had a career best eight blocked shots against San Antonio on June 20, 2003. Currently, she ranks number one in the WNBA in defensive rebounds per 40 minutes played with nine, and fourth in total rebounds per 40 minute game with 11.3.
The Houston Comets was a WNBA team based in Houston, Texas. Formed in 1997, the team is one of the original eight WNBA teams and won all four championships in the first four years of the league's existence. The Comets were the first dynasty of the WNBA and they have won more championships than any other team in the WNBA. They began as the sister team of the Houston Rockets. The team was folded and disbanded by the league in 2008 because new ownership was not found.
The Comets were also known for courting great women's basketball stars. The team had among its members Cynthia Cooper (the WNBA's first MVP), college and national team standout Sheryl Swoopes, Kim Perrot, who succumbed to cancer in 1999, and college star Tina Thompson.
In 2008, owner Hilton Koch put the team up for sale, asking $10 million USD. No investors stepped up. The WNBA took over management of the Comets and disbanded the team in December 2008. They stated that they would only be suspending operations in 2009, which some people saw as a sign that the franchise could be revived if an investor came in. Comets players were sent off to other teams in a dispersal draft.
Michelle was signed by the Atlanta Dream as a free agent on February 18, 2009.
2009: Played in 34 games for Atlanta…Averaged 5.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game in 34 games…Helped Atlanta reach the playoffs for the first time in franchise history following the team’s 4-30 finish in their inaugural season in 2008…Scored a season-high 17 points on 8-of-13 made field goal attempts on Sept. 5 at Phoenix…At Detroit on July 22, recorded season highs in rebounds (12), blocks (3) and minutes (31)…Playoffs: Played in two games for the Dream, averaging 4.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game.
2010: In the offseason, Michelle was traded to the San Antonio Silver Stars. She is averaging 11.1 points a game, 6.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists. Her efforts landed her on the WNBA All-Star team against the USA Basketball women's national team. She received 67,906 fan votes, placing her in the top 10 of WNBA fan favorites and earning her a spot on the all-star roster.
Personal
Born Donnette Jé-Michelle Snow on March 20, 1980 in Pensacola. Height: 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m), 158 lbs. Oldest of five siblings. Nickname is “Shell.” Credits high school coach, Alison Davis, as being her biggest sports influence. Hobbies include reading, writing poetry and traveling.
