Michele Timms

Michele Timms in 2016, as the assistant coach of the China women's national basketball team
Personal information
Born	(1965-06-28) 28 June 1965 Melbourne, Australia
Listed height	5 ft 4.5 in (1.64 m)
Listed weight	132 lb (60 kg)
Career information
Playing career	1984–2001
Position	Point guard
Career history
1997–2001	Phoenix Mercury
Career highlights and awards
WNBA All-Star (1999) No. 7 retired by retired by Phoenix Mercury
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
FIBA Hall of Fame as player
Medals Women's Basketball Representing  Australia Olympic Games 1996 Atlanta National team 2000 Sydney National team World Championships 1998 Germany Team Competition

Michele Margaret Timms AM (born 28 June 1965) is an Australian basketball coach and retired professional basketball player who played for the Phoenix Mercury in the Women's National Basketball Association(WNBA). Many people consider the Melbourne native to be one of Australia's greatest basketball players of all time. She has one daughter, Kalsie Timms. Timms was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008. She was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016.

Timms played a very influential role for many of the future international women's players, especially Australian women basketball stars.

WNBL career

Timms played for four clubs in her WNBL career: Bulleen, Nunawading, Perth and Sydney. In 2005, Timms was honoured by the WNBL with the creation of the Michele Timms Cup. The cup is presented to the winner of the Bulleen Boomers-Dandenong Rangers derbies.

WNBA career

At the onset of the WNBA in 1997, Timms was assigned to the Phoenix Mercury in the initial player allocation. Her debut game was played on June 22, 1997 in a 76 - 59 win over the Charlotte Sting where she recorded 8 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals.^[1] Timms had a very dominant rookie season with averages of 12.1 points, 3.7 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 2.6 steals per game. The Mercury finished with a 16 - 12 record and made the playoffs but were eliminated in the semi-finals by the New York Liberty.

For the 1998 season, Timms had a drop in all of her season averages except for assists. Recording a lower average in minutes played, points, rebounds and steals than her previous season. The Mercury was still able to complete the season with a 19 - 11 record and reach the finals but lost to the Houston Comets. Timms came within inches of giving the Mercury their first title; with the Mercury up 1-0 and needing only one more win for the championship, and Game Two tied at 66 with three seconds to go, Timms took a three-point shot that bounced off the rim's back. Ultimately, the Comets won that game 74–69 in overtime, and then the championship in Game Three.

The 1998 season was 2nd and final time that Timms played in the playoffs with the Mercury. The Mercury had a losing season of 15 - 17 and missed the playoffs in 1999. In 2000, the Mercury did reach the playoffs with a 20 - 12 record, but Timms only played 8 games that season and sat out of the playoffs as the Mercury lost in the semi-finals to the Los Angeles Sparks.

Timms bounced back and played more games in the 2001 season, playing in 21 games and averaging more points and assists than the previous season. But 2001 saw the Mercury have their worst record so far of 13 - 19. Timms' final WNBA game was played on August 14, 2001 in a 56 - 38 win over the Houston Comets where she recorded 10 points, 4 assists and 2 rebounds.^[2] That very same day (as it was the final game of the season and the Mercury were officially not making the playoffs), Timms announced her retirement and almost immediately joined the Mercury's television broadcasting crew, a job which she held only for that season.^[3]

On 7 August 2002, her number 7 jersey became the first to be retired by the Phoenix Mercury, and only the second jersey ever retired by the WNBA (the first being Kim Perrot). Upon her retirement, she was the Mercury's career leader in assists.

In February 2005, the Phoenix Mercury announced that she had been signed as an assistant coach under fellow Australian and Mercury head coach Carrie Graf.

International career

Timms began her professional basketball career in 1984 in Australia. In 1989, she became the first Australian (male or female) to play professional basketball internationally when she went to Germany to play with the Lotus München team. While there, she got a chance to play alongside Marlies Askamp, who would later also play with her on the Mercury. While there, she was named the Women's International Player of The Year in 1994 and 1996. She was selected to the WNBL All team 7 times (1988–92, 1994, 1996)

Also in 1996, at her second Summer Olympics, she helped the Australian national women's basketball team earn their first Olympic medal, a bronze at the Atlanta competition. Four years later Timms was on the squad that captured the silver medal in front of their own crowd.

Coaching career

She worked as the basketball development officer/ assistant coach for the South Dragons in the Australian National Basketball League. During her time with the Dragons, she impressed many of the club's staff and players with her sound knowledge of the game and excellent coaching skills. She left the club on 9 January 2008 and during the middle of the Dragons' season, to fulfill her career ambitions by moving to the United States.^[4]

She was an assistant coach with China women's national basketball team, reuniting her with her former Opals coach Tom Maher.^[5]

In 2009 Timms was appointed as an assistant coach of the Jayco Australian Opals, the Australia women's national basketball team. She was also appointed an assistant coach of the Global Metals Bulleen Boomers in the Women's National Basketball League. After the 2012 Olympics where Timms was Assistant Coach to the Australian Women's Team, Timms took the Assistant Coaching roll of the next Olympic Cycle with China 2013–2016. After the 2016 Olympics Timms stayed on with the Chinese Women's Basketball Team unit 2018.

Timms worked with Beijing WCBA Team in 2017-2018 Season as Assistant Coach with Sylvia Fowles as their Import. The team won the WCBA Championship.

April 2018 Timms heads back to Australia to establish her own Company "Michele Timms Elite Sports Coaching" and under this umbrella starts the Michele Timms Basketball Academy.^[6]

Honours

Timms was named the Women's International Player of The Year in 1994 and 1996. She received an Australian Sports Medal in 2000 and was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2003.^[7][8] In 2008 Timms was elected to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee.^[9]

On 17 August 2016 Timms was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.^[10][11]

Timms was made a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2018 Australia Day Honours "For significant service to basketball as a competitor at the national and international level, as an Olympic athlete, and as a mentor for women in sport."^[12]

Career statistics

See also

• List of Australian WNBA players

References