Elena Donne

Elena Delle Donne is a professional basketball player for the WNBA, who is currently playing for the Washington Mystics. Donne was well-known for winning WNBA Most Valuable Player in 2015 and 2019. As a high school basketball player, she was recognized by her school as a basketball star for ranking number one on Scout.com.

Player's Profile

Growing up, Elena Delle Donne had insecurities about her unusual height, and she desired to medically inject herself to stop herself from growing. However, her mother refused to do so. Her mother told her that Donne's body could do many splendid things that her sister can't, who had autism and cerebral palsy. In a story she published with ESPN, she thanked her mother for helping her accept her height.

Aside from basketball, she was also a great volleyball player and joined the DIAA state championship.

Career

When she was in high school at Ursuline Academy, she led her team to Delaware State Championship for 3 consecutive years. She is the only student in Ursuline to have ever recorded more than 2,000 points throughout her high school career. As a result, she was included on the WBCA All-American team.

Because of her stellar performance in high school, she received an athletic scholarship at the University of Connecticut. Unfortunately, she dropped out of the scholarship because she couldn't take being separated from her sister Lizzie. In 2008, she decided not to accept the scholarship at UConn and enrolled at the University of Delaware instead.

Her 1st season was productive for a freshman, as she recorded an average of 26.7 points per game and was hailed the CAA Rookie of the Year. By the following season, she was diagnosed with Lyme disease, making her struggle for the rest of the season, but came back stronger during her junior season.

After the success of her collegiate career, she was invited to join the 2013 WNBA Draft and got selected by the Chicago Sky. During her debut as a rookie player, she scored 22 points in a match against Phoenix Mercury. In 2015, she successfully won the WNBA Most Valuable Player award, as she scored 23.4 points per game. She also joined the NBA All-Star Celebrity Games in 2014 and 2016.

In 2017, she signed with the Washington Mystics and debuted with 26 points in a victorious game against San Antonio Stars. She also replaced Emma Meesseman's power forward position while Meesseman was absent. In 2018, she was chosen to play in the FIBA World Tournament as a power forward.

Aside from WNBA, she was one of the players who played at the 2016 Summer Olympics, where they won a gold medal.

Achievements:

• 2013 Honda Sports Award
• 2013 WNBA Rookie of the Year
• 2013 WNBA All-Rookie Team
• 2015 WNBA Scoring Champion
• 2015 WNBA Peak Performer
• 2015, 2019 WNBA Most Valuable Player
• 2019 WNBA Champion