If Jewell Loyd retired tomorrow, she would be the first player to enter the Hall of Fame. She has built a more impressive basketball resume than most. And believe it or not, Loyd can keep building on it for another 10 or 12 years. She is only 30 years old and in her prime. Whether you look at her high school career, college career, or her time at the W, she has been the epitome of consistency…that Consistency model.
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Before Jewell fell in love with basketball, her world revolved around tennis. She was exposed to basketball because her older brother Jarryd played it, but tennis was her passion, and she was destined to become a pro. As a child growing up in Lincolnwood, Illinois, a suburb outside Chicago, she says she played tennis “six hours a day.” And if she had stuck to tennis over basketball, she would likely be competing in the U.S. Open, which she would watch after shooting the cover of SLAM on a cool, sunny September morning in our office.
But one day at the park her perspective changed forever.
Lloyd always played in the park as a child. “Of course, after I did my homework,” she would add. But when she was about 7, two older boys stopped her from playing on the basketball court. Jared, then 15, saw what was going on and offered a solution. We will fight you in court. So, the game started. 2 vs. 2. The first person to reach 10 points wins. Jewell and Jarryd teamed up for the first time.
Towards the end of the game, the boys double-teamed Jewell, who was on the verge of committing a turnover. In doing so, they left Jarryd wide open near the basket. Throw it up, throw it up! Jewel recalls what her brother said.
In dramatic fashion, she tossed the ball over her head and back toward the rim, where Jared caught it for the game-winning flush. “Jared was flying through the air, and I was the first one [had] Have you ever seen my brother dunk a basketball? We won, and at that moment,” Jewell said, “I knew basketball was what I wanted to do.”
She made a name for herself in the parks around town over the next few years, and in many ways this shaped her approach to the game.
“You start at Drake Park, 21, knockouts. It’s a beginner’s court. Then you go to Columbia Park and play 3-on-3. Then, once you get a squad, you go to Procell Park and represent them and play 5-on-5. So, you have to work your way up.
“Growing up in Lincolnwood was a privilege,” she continued. “Being raised in that environment allowed me to just be myself, and it was challenging in a lot of ways because I was one of four or five girls who got to play with the boys, and that was a great experience for me.”
By the time she reached high school, Lloyd had developed into one of the nation’s best players. She was a four-year starter at Niles West High School in Skokie, breaking essentially every school record, and averaging 24.8 points, 11.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 3.2 steals, and 2.2 blocks per game for her career.
In high school, she had the opportunity to be a practice player for the Chicago Sky. Jewell says this experience really helped her see her potential. She had a front-row seat to what it takes to play at the highest level. “Watching their routines, their lifestyles, and their games up close really made me realize, Wow, I think I can really do this.” she says.
She decided to play at Notre Dame, joining an already full roster led by All-American guard Skylar Diggins. It didn’t take Jewell long to adjust to major basketball. She was ready from the jump. She knew she wouldn’t be the strongest or most athletic freshman, so she focused on what she could control.
“A lot of it is because the body is still growing and developing. I knew I wasn’t going to be the strongest I could be right away, so I focused on conditioning,” she says. “When I got to college, I tried to get in top shape, and that’s been with me since I graduated college and went pro.”
At Notre Dame, Lloyd has carved her name into the history books as one of the program’s all-time greats. She was a two-time All-American, two-time All-ACC, two-time ACC All-Defense, two-time NCAA All-Tournament, and the 2015 ACC Player of the Year. Let’s not forget, she was also the 2013 Big East Freshman of the Year (before Notre Dame moved to the ACC as a sophomore).
She accomplished all of this in just three years, and in a move that is not exactly popular in women’s basketball, she decided to forgo her senior year and enter the 2015 WNBA Draft. And, unsurprisingly, the Seattle Storm drafted her first overall.
Lloyd arrived at the W with enormous expectations, not only because of her sheer dominance since her high school days, but also because she was nicknamed the Black Mamba, or “Gold Mamba,” by the late, great Kobe Bryant. Now, that’s a tough thing to live up to. But if anyone was built to carry that weight, it was Lloyd. She took the high expectations head on. It’s very hard for a No. 1 pick to live up to expectations. She exceeded them.
“all the time [my rookie] “This year was about figuring out who I am, believing that I can do something, believing that I can stay in the league and be a part of this league and grow the league. I really thought I could do it,” she says.
“And I’m one of those people who thinks that if I really believe that I can do something, then maybe it will happen. I’ve always been that way since I was a little kid. I’ve never been afraid to say what I want to do, to believe it, to write it down. And I don’t dream small dreams. I always dream big, and that’s something that no one can take away from me.”
The Gold Mamba is made of the same cloth as her namesake. She has natural talent, a relentless work ethic, and a willingness to do things that ordinary people simply don’t do. But the similarities run deeper than that. Like Kobe, Jewel has an insatiable thirst for learning.
“It’s pretty cool that as a pro player, you’re still learning and building on the game. For me, the best part about gaming is that you’re still learning so much about the game,” she says. “That’s the best part about life in general. You’re constantly learning and building on it, and you don’t know until you make a mistake, and you learn from that. A lot of people are afraid to make a mistake and move on. But you need to make mistakes. You need a lot of experiences to grow and get better.”
Now it’s Lloyd’s turn to give back. She’s eager to continue learning and thank those who paved her way, but she understands the importance of mentorship and is now in a position to mentor the next generation of hoopers. She’s been spotted working out with USC star JuJu Watkins, has been very supportive of Seattle Storm rookie Nika Muhl and the stellar 2024 class, and is available to younger teammates who ask for her wisdom or advice.
“I know that I’m here because of the people who helped me. I didn’t get here on my own,” she says. “Without my family, without the people around me, I don’t know if I would have actually been able to get to the next level.”
The accolades are legion. Two-time WNBA champion, six-time All-Star (and 2023 All-Star Game MVP), three-time All-WNBA selection, 2015 Rookie of the Year, two-time Olympic gold medalist, most recently at the Paris Olympics this past August. And given the circumstances, all of those accolades, except for the Rookie of the Year, should probably be classified as “continuing.”
The 2023 WNBA season was a contract season for Lloyd, and she played accordingly, posting career-highs of 24.7 ppg (also a league-high that season) and 4.7 rpg. But the Seattle Storm struggled as a team, finishing the season with a disappointing 11-29 record.
Instead of jumping ship to team up with other All-Stars, she signed a contract extension with the Storm in the offseason, betting that other players would be interested in joining her in Seattle to build a championship contender. Seattle looked headed for a rebuild until it added two elite players, Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins-Smith.
As of this writing, Loyd is averaging 20.1ppg, 4.5rpg, 3.5apg, and 1.5spg. More importantly, the Seattle Storm have clinched a playoff spot and are looking to make a deep run. They may not be the favorites to win the title, but trust me, no one is expecting to play against them.
Lloyd is not a brash person, but rather has a kind of quiet confidence that is felt through her presence rather than her words. She doesn’t demand special attention, but her game demands it. She’s not usually the loudest person in the room, but when she does, you want to listen. She’s a wealth of knowledge and insight, and one of the most eloquent and thoughtful people you’ll ever meet, let alone an athlete.
Lloyd said she’s been asked since her freshman year of high school what legacy she wants to leave behind, and her answers have changed constantly. But this time, her answer had nothing to do with the game she loves, the one that has defined her life for 23 years, ever since that day at the playground with her brother.
“I just want my legacy to be that I’m a really good person, honestly,” she says. “I’m here to serve. That’s what I want people to understand about me. I’m going to give back to the world as much as I can. And you don’t have to receive anything in return, but I’m here to let you know that everything is love.”
Portrait of Luke Schleifer.
