Dearica Hamby
Hamby in 2019
No. 5 – Los Angeles Sparks
PositionForward
LeagueWNBA
Personal information
Born (1993-11-06) November 6, 1993 (age 30)
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight189 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeWake Forest (2011–2015)
WNBA draft2015: 1st round, 6th overall pick
Selected by the San Antonio Stars
Playing career2015–present
Career history
2015–2022San Antonio Stars / Las Vegas Aces
2023–presentLos Angeles Sparks
Career highlights and awards

Dearica Marie Hamby (born November 6, 1993) is an American basketball player for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).

College

During her senior year, Hamby averaged 20.3 points, the highest scoring average in the Atlantic Coast Conference Women's and 10.7 rebounds, the second highest in the conference. During her junior season, she had one of the best single-seasons in school-history. In 31 games, Hamby led the nation's top conference in both scoring (22.0) and rebounding (11.0) She would become the first Demon Deacon to lead the ACC in both categories in the same season. Hamby finished as Wake Forest's all-time leading scorer and rebounder, with 1,801 points and 1,021 rebounds.[1]

Wake Forest statistics

Source[2]

Legend
  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% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2011-12 Wake Forest 34 128 39.7% 25.0% 44.7% 4.1 0.4 1.2 0.6 3.8
2012-13 Wake Forest 32 340 54.2% 25.0% 62.0% 6.2 0.9 1.8 1.1 10.6
2013-14 Wake Forest 31 683 55.2% 26.8% 67.6% 11.0 2.0 2.1 1.1 22.0
2014-15 Wake Forest 32 650 49.9% 25.6% 70.9% 10.7 2.3 1.7 0.6 20.3
Career 129 1801 51.6% 25.8% 66.5% 7.9 1.4 1.7 0.8 14.0

WNBA career

Drafted sixth overall in 2015, Hamby played for the San Antonio Stars, which became the Las Vegas Aces. She shot an average of 11 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 0.97 steals per game. She tied the WNBA record for the most double-doubles by a reserve off the bench with five.

Hamby was voted WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year in 2019, almost unanimously (41 of 43 votes).[3]

On the same day she received her award, in the second round, single-elimination 2019 WNBA Playoffs game against the Chicago Sky, with 6.5 seconds remaining and her team behind 92–90, Hamby made what the WNBA website termed "the shot of the year." Hamby stole a pass from Courtney Vandersloot intended for Diamond DeShields, dribbled once past half court, and threw in the game-winning basket, securing an Aces win.[4]

On September 20, 2020, Hamby was named Sixth Woman of the Year for the second year in a row.

Hamby signed a multi-year contract extension with the Aces on June 29, 2022.[5]

Hamby, and the Aces, won the 2022 WNBA Championship.

On January 21, 2023 Hamby was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks alongside a 2024 WNBA Draft first-round pick in exchange for the rights of Amanda Zahui B. and a 2024 WNBA Draft 2nd round pick.[6]

Federal discrimination complaint

In September 2023, Hamby filed a federal discrimination complaint against the WNBA and the Las Vegas Aces, claiming the Aces traded her because she was pregnant and that the league did not adequately investigate.[7]

USA Basketball

Hamby played for USA Basketball for the first time at the national team training camp in 2022.[8] She didn't get a chance to play in either high school or college. She played on the women's 2022 USA World Cup Qualifying Team.[8] In December 2023, she played on the 3x3 team for the first time, and they won the gold medal at the AmeriCup.[9] Hamby made the tie-breaking shot to win. She was the tournament MVP.[10]

Personal life

Hamby gave birth to her daughter, Amaya, in February 2017. In September 2022 at the Las Vegas Aces Championship parade Hamby announced she is expecting her second child, Legend.[11] Dearica Hamby announced the birth of her second child Legend Maree Scandrick on her Instagram account on March 15, 2023.[12]

WNBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 TO  Turnovers per game  FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 Bold  Career best ° League leader
† Denotes seasons in which Hamby won a WNBA championship

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2015 San Antonio 31 16 17.4 .354 .353 .642 4.1 0.7 0.4 0.2 1.3 6.1
2016 San Antonio 25 25 25.3 .422 .143 .723 5.1 1.0 0.5 0.5 1.6 9.0
2017 San Antonio 34 3 20.2 .457 .375 .608 4.2 1.0 0.9 0.3 1.4 7.8
2018 Las Vegas 33 0 14.4 .526 .289 .742 3.6 1.2 0.7 0.3 1.1 7.4
2019 Las Vegas 34 9 24.8 .488 .321 .718 7.6 1.9 1.0 0.4 1.8 11.0
2020 Las Vegas 22 0 28.3 .539 .474 .716 7.1 2.7 1.7 0.2 2.0 13.0
2021 Las Vegas 23 0 25.1 .531 .226 .673 7.0 1.8 1.0 0.1 1.5 11.3
2022† Las Vegas 34 32 26.5 .466 .219 .720 7.1 1.1 1.1 0.1 1.5 9.3
2023 Los Angeles 40 19 24.8 .431 .220 .648 5.9 1.8 0.9 0.3 1.5 8.9
Career 9 years, 2 teams 282 104 22.7 .469 .286 .681 5.7 1.4 0.9 0.3 1.5 9.2

Postseason

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2019 Las Vegas 5 0 28.4 .556 .462 .400 7.0 3.0 0.8 0.0 1.6 12.0
2020 Las Vegas 3 0 25.0 .529 .200 .625 3.0 2.3 0.7 0.0 2.7 8.0
2021 Las Vegas 5 0 17.4 .292 .000 .500 4.8 1.0 0.4 0.2 0.4 3.8
2022† Las Vegas 6 0 8.5 .600 .000 .250 1.5 0.8 0.2 0.2 0.7 1.2
Career 4 years, 1 team 19 0 18.7 .484 .292 .469 4.1 1.7 0.5 0.1 1.2 5.8

[13]

References

  1. ^ Journal, Scott Hamilton/Winston-Salem. "Hamby selected 6th by San Antonio in WNBA Draft". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved 2017-09-08.
  2. ^ "NCAA Statistics". web1.ncaa.org. Retrieved 2017-08-28.
  3. ^ "Las Vegas' Dearica Hamby Named 2019 WNBA Sixth Woman Of The Year" (Press release). NBA Media Ventures. September 15, 2019. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  4. ^ WNBA says "5 seconds" left in "Hamby's Steal, 3-Pointer Help Aces Advance, Eliminate Sky". NBA Media Ventures. Associated Press. September 15, 2019. and Michelle Smith says she took her shot with "6.5 seconds to go", in Smith, Michelle (September 15, 2019). "Hamby Gives The Aces, WNBA An Unforgettable Moment". NBA Media Ventures. and, M.A. Voepel says "about 8.8 seconds left" in Voepel, M.A. (September 15, 2019). "Dearica Hamby's ill-advised shot lifts Las Vegas Aces into WNBA semifinals". ESPN. Retrieved September 16, 2019.
  5. ^ "Aces Sign Dearica Hamby To Contract Extension". aces.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
  6. ^ "Sparks Acquire WNBA Champion Dearica Hamby".
  7. ^ "WNBA player files pregnancy discrimination complaint - JWS". Just Women's Sports. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  8. ^ a b "Dearica Hamby Gears for First USA Basketball 3x3 Experience". USA Basketball. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  9. ^ "USA Women Take Home FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup Gold Medal With Last-Second Lob". USA Basketball. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  10. ^ "Hamby lifts U.S. women to 3x3 AmeriCup gold". ESPN.com. 2023-12-04. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  11. ^ Williams, Madison. "Aces Player Reveals She Was Pregnant While Playing in WNBA Finals". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 2022-11-10.
  12. ^ "espnW - Congratulations to Dearica Hamby on the birth of her second child, Legend 🤩 (via Dearica Hamby)". Facebook. March 16, 2023.
  13. ^ "Dearica Hamby WNBA Stats". Basketball Reference. Retrieved 2021-08-23.

External links

Los Angeles Sparks current roster
Las Vegas Aces 2022 WNBA champions
2015 WNBA draft
WNBA Sixth Player of the Year Award
Categories