It was two decades ago when I was on the practice court of the Washington Mystics when I asked for, and received, five minutes of conversation with Lauren Jackson.
I was doing a story analyzing the direction of tactics in the WNBA, one which had been for years a guard’s league, but there was just starting to be an emphasis on tall, skilled, and physical pivot players. Lauren Jackson, a 6-foot-5 center, certainly fit that description.
Jackson played with distinction not only for the Seattle Storm of the WNBA, but for several club teams as well as the Australian Opals, winning three WNBA MVP titles, four Olympic medals, and her personal apex, a gold medal in the 2006 FIBA World Cup.
Injuries to her knee put her on the sidelines in 2016. She was elected to the Naismith Hall of Fame in 2021 and could have enjoyed her retirement as one of the greatest women ever to play basketball.
But in 2022 she came out of retirement to play for the Albury Wodonda Bandits of the National Basketbal League 1, and the Southside Flyers of the Women’s National Basketball League. In an even more amazing development, she found her way onto the radar for selection for the Opals again.
Today, Jackson had minutes in a loss to the United States in the Olympic semifinals. Just making it onto the roster of the Australian national team is, for me, one of the great stories of the Paris Games. Lower-leg injuries like the ones she had in the last 15 years are enough to stop even the grittiest of souls on a basketball court.
But Jackson, obviously, is made of sterner stuff. And no matter the result for Australia in this tournament, this last two years for Jackson further burnishes her as one of the greatest international ambassadors for the sport of basketball.
