Lauren Jackson

Lauren Elizabeth Jackson AO (born 11 May 1981) is an Australian former professional basketball player. She is often called the most famous Australian women's basketball player. She played for the Australia women's national basketball team, known as the Opals, and in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) from 1997 to 2024. She also played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 2001 to 2012.

Jackson competed in the Summer Olympics in multiple years, winning three silver medals and two bronze medals with the Opals. In the WNBL, she won seven championships and was named the league's Most Valuable Player (MVP) four times. In the WNBA, she won two championships and was named the league's MVP three times while playing for the Seattle Storm.

She began her career at the Australian Institute of Sport in 1997 and joined the Canberra Capitals later. Jackson was chosen in the WNBA draft in 2001 by the Seattle Storm, where she played for twelve seasons. After retiring in 2016, she returned to basketball in 2022 and played until the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Jackson was honored with induction into the Australian Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019, the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2020, and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.

Early life

Lauren Jackson, known by nicknames like "Loz", "Jacko", and "LJ", was born on 11 May 1981 in Albury, New South Wales. Her parents, Gary Jackson and Maree Bennie, both played for Australia’s national basketball teams. Maree played for the Opals and wore the number 15, which Lauren later honored. By the time she was 16, Lauren was very tall—196 cm—after growing 15 cm when she was 15 years old.

Lauren began playing basketball at the Albury Sports Centre when she was just four years old. Her mother taught her how to play, and by six, she was already playing in local competitions. Even at 11, she wasn’t the best player in her town, but she kept working hard. At 14, she led her New South Wales team to a national championship and became known as a top young player. She also tried other sports like athletics, tennis, and netball, but focused on basketball when she was 14.

Professional career

Lauren Jackson was recognized as one of the world's best basketball players by the time she was 21. She is often called Australia's best female player and one of the best female basketball players in the world. Jackson plays two positions, power forward and centre, and can make jump shots and spinning bank shots.

Jackson had a rivalry with American basketball player Lisa Leslie. Their rivalry started when Jackson was on tour in the United States with the Australia team as a 16-year-old. It became more intense in 2000 at the Olympics when Jackson pulled off Leslie's hair extension while both were trying to grab a rebound. Jackson treated it as a joke, but Leslie did not feel the same way. The rivalry continued when Jackson joined the WNBA and her Seattle Storm team played against Leslie's Los Angeles Sparks.

WNBL

1997–2016

Jackson joined the Australian Institute of Sport basketball team in the Women's National Basketball League in 1997. She helped the team win the championship in the 1998–99 season. She later joined the Canberra Capitals and helped them win championships in the 1999–2000, 2001–02, 2002–03, and 2009–10 seasons.

In 2011, Jackson signed a deal to play with the Capitals, but injuries kept her from playing in the 2012–13 season. She returned in 2014–15 but injuries forced her to sit out the rest of the season. She did not play in 2015–16, and the team released her in January 2016.

2022–2024

Jackson came out of retirement at age 40 to play for the Albury Wodonga Bandits. She helped the team win the NBL1 East championship. She later played for the Southside Flyers and helped them win the grand final in the 2023–24 season. She joined the Albury Wodonga Bandits again for the 2024 season and had games with 43 points and 22 rebounds, and 50 points and 19 rebounds. She retired again after undergoing knee surgery following the 2024 Paris Olympics.

WNBA

Seattle Storm saw Jackson as a top player. She was known for her sharp comments toward other players. She played for the Storm from 2001 to 2012. She was a WNBA All Star multiple times and won the WNBA Championship in 2004 and 2010. She was also named the league's MVP in 2007.

2001

Jackson was drafted first by the Seattle Storm in 2001. In her first season, she played 21 games and averaged 15.2 points per game. She had a player efficiency rating of 22.5 and was a WNBA All Star.

2002

Jackson was a WNBA All Star again in 2002. She averaged 17.2 points per game and was the team's captain. She played in 28 games and averaged 31.5 minutes per game.

2003

Jackson was a WNBA All Star and named to the All-WNBA First Team in 2003. She averaged 21.2 points per game and was named the league's MVP. She was the youngest player to score 1,000 points in the league.

2004

In 2004, her Seattle Storm team won the WNBA Championship. She was named to the All-WNBA First Team and averaged 20.5 points per game.

2005

Jackson was a WNBA All Star and named to the All-WNBA First Team in 2005. She averaged 17.6 points per game and played in 34 games.

2006

Jackson was a WNBA All Star and named to the All-WNBA First Team in 2006. She was named to the WNBA All-Decade Team. She averaged 19.5 points per game and played in 30 games.

2007

Jackson was a WNBA All Star for the sixth time in 2007. She scored 47 points in a game and set a league high single game scoring total. She was named the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year and the league's MVP. She averaged 23.8 points per game.

2008

In 2008, Jackson averaged 20.2 points per game. She scored 33 points in a game against Washington and was named to the Australian Olympic squad. The Seattle Storm went out of the post season in the first round.

2009

Jackson became a WNBA All Star for the seventh time in 2009 and was named to the All-WNBA First Team. She averaged 19.4 points per game and played in 26 games.

2010

Jackson played for the WNBA All-Stars and her Seattle Storm team won the WNBA Championship in 2010. She was named to the All-WNBA First Team and the finals MVP. She averaged 20.5 points per game and played in 32 games.

2011

In 2011, Jackson had injuries that kept her out for most of the season. She played in only 13 games and averaged 24.9 minutes per game.

2012

Jackson returned in September 2012 after focusing on the Olympics. She helped the Storm in two wins but an injury kept her out for three games. She became the fourth WNBA player to reach 6,000 points. This was her final game in the WNBA.

Injuries ending her WNBA career

A hamstring surgery forced Jackson out of the 2013 season, and she missed the 2014 season after knee and Achilles surgery. Her contract was dissolved in 2014, and she announced her retirement in February 2016.

Other

Korea

In 2006, Jackson moved to South Korea to play for Samsung Bichumi. She was named Most Valuable Player of the league's all-star game and set a league record with 56 points in a game.

Russia

Jackson played for WBC Spartak Moscow Region in Russia. She helped the team win the Russian Superleague title and the EuroLeague. She scored 35 points in a EuroLeague game in 2008.

Spain

Jackson joined Ros Casares Valencia in Spain for the 2011–12 season. She helped the team win the EuroLeague championship.

China

In 2013, Jackson joined Heilongjiang Shenda in China. She helped the team qualify for the playoffs but missed the post-season due to a heel injury. She injured her meniscus during the season.

National team career

Lauren Jackson joined the Australian under-20 basketball team when she was just 14 years old. She made the senior national team, called the Opals, at 16. Coaches often praised her publicly but kept quiet with her, a strategy to keep her motivated. One coach once said she could become one of the greatest athletes in the world.

Jackson helped the Australian Junior Women's Team win a silver medal at the World Championships in Brazil when she was only 16. She also won a bronze medal with the senior team later that year, becoming the youngest player ever on the team. She played in the 2000 Summer Olympics, where her team won silver, and she led in points and rebounds. Over the years, she won many more medals, including gold at the 2006 World Championships—the first time Australia had ever done so. Jackson also became the first Australian athlete to win medals in five Olympic Games, earning her fifth Olympic bronze in 2024 before retiring from international basketball after a knee replacement.

Coaching career

Lauren Jackson worked as the head coach for the women's team called the Albury Wodonga Bandits during the 2019 NBL1 season.

Health issues

Lauren Jackson faced many health challenges during her basketball career. She had surgeries on her ankle, back, and hip, and dealt with injuries to her knees. In later years, she also had to manage pain without certain medicines and used special treatments to help with her discomfort.

Celebrity

By 2003, Lauren Jackson was becoming well-known around the world, even in places like Portugal and Japan. She talked about her personal life, saying it was hard to maintain relationships because of her busy career as an athlete, but she had family and friends who supported her. She enjoyed having fun when she was younger but found it challenging as she got older.

There were untrue rumors that she was romantically involved with another player, Yao Ming, after they shared a friendly hug at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Jackson laughed about these rumors, explaining that it was just a cultural misunderstanding.

Jackson has supported many important causes, like helping families affected by domestic violence and encouraging children in sports. She has worked with charities and visited young athletes to inspire them.

Honours

Lauren Jackson received many awards for her amazing basketball skills. She was named Australian International Player of the Year several times and was inducted into important sports halls of fame. In 2012, she carried Australia’s flag at the Summer Olympics, showing her importance to the country.

Many places and events honoured her, including renaming a stadium after her and giving her special awards for her courage and contributions to sports.

Personal life

Lauren Jackson studied psychology at Lomonosov Moscow State University and later took classes at Macquarie University in Sydney, focusing on cultural studies like women’s rights and racism. After injuries, she returned to her studies in 2012 and hoped to become a United Nations diplomat or an advocate for women. Her interest in these topics grew after reading about women affected during a difficult time in Rwanda. By 2015, she was working toward a degree in gender and diversity at the University of Canberra.

Jackson became a leader of the Australian Basketball Alliance in 2016 and joined the ownership group of the Melbourne Boomers. She also worked as a commentator for the Seven Network during the 2016 Olympics. She released a book about her life in basketball in October 2018 and had two children, one in 2017 and another in 2018.