Kelsey Plum facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Kelsey Plum

Plum with the Las Vegas Aces in 2023
No. 10 – Los Angeles Sparks
Point guard
Personal information
Born	(1994-08-24) August 24, 1994 (age 30) Poway, California, U.S.
High school	La Jolla Country Day (La Jolla, California)
Listed height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Listed weight	145 lb (66 kg)
Career information
College	Washington (2013–2017)
NBA Draft	2017 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall
Selected by the San Antonio Stars
Pro career	2017–present
Coaching career	2020–present
League	WNBA
Career history
As player:
2017–2024	San Antonio Stars / Las Vegas Aces
2017–2021	Fenerbahçe
2022	Galatasaray
2025–present	Los Angeles Sparks
As coach:
2020–2022	Arkansas (graduate assistant)
Career highlights and awards
2× WNBA champion (2022, 2023) 4× WNBA All-Star (2022–2025) WNBA All-Star Game MVP (2022) WNBA Sixth Player of the Year (2021) All-WNBA First Team (2022) WNBA All-Rookie Team (2017) Commissioner's Cup champion (2022) WNBA Skills Challenge Champion (2023) Turkish Cup winner (2019) 2× Turkish Super League champion (2018, 2019) Honda Sports Award (2017) John R. Wooden Award (2017) Wade Trophy (2017) Nancy Lieberman Award (2017) Naismith College Player of the Year (2017) USBWA Player of the Year (2017) Dawn Staley Award (2017) AP Player of the Year (2017) First-team All-American – AP (2017) Third-team All-American – AP (2016) 2× All-American – WBCA, USBWA (2016, 2017) Pac-12 Player of the Year (2017) 4× All Pac-12 (2014–2017) Pac-12 Freshman of the Year (2014) Pac-12 All-Freshman Team (2014) NCAA season scoring leader (2017) McDonald's All-American (2013) No. 10 retired by Washington Huskies
Medals Women's basketball Representing  United States Olympic Games Gold 2024 Paris Team World Cup Gold 2022 Australia Gold 2018 Spain Pan American Games Silver 2015 Toronto Team FIBA Under-19 World Cup Gold 2013 Lithuania Team Women's 3x3 basketball Representing  United States Olympic Games Gold 2020 Tokyo Team

Kelsey Christine Plum (born August 24, 1994) is an American professional basketball player. She plays for the Los Angeles Sparks in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). People sometimes call her "Plum Dawg".

Kelsey is a three-time WNBA All-Star. She was named the WNBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2022. She has won gold medals for the United States. These include gold in 3x3 basketball at the 2020 Summer Olympics and 5x5 basketball at the 2024 Summer Olympics. Kelsey also started the Dawg Class basketball camp.

Kelsey was born in Poway, California. She went to La Jolla Country Day School and was named a McDonald's All-American. She played college basketball at Washington. There, she became the all-time leading scorer in NCAA Division I women's basketball. In her final college year, she was named national player of the year. She also set a new record for points scored in a single season.

The San Antonio Stars picked her first overall in the 2017 WNBA draft. This team later became the Las Vegas Aces. With the Aces, she won two WNBA championships in a row in 2022 and 2023. She also made the All-WNBA First Team in 2022.

Kelsey Plum's Early Life and Family

Kelsey Plum is the daughter of Katie and Jim Plum. Her mom, Katie, was a great volleyball player for the University of California, Davis. Her dad, Jim, was an All-American football player. He played football and baseball at San Diego State.

Kelsey has two older sisters and a younger brother. Her sisters, Kaitlyn and Lauren, both played volleyball like their mom. Her brother, Daniel, played football at UC Davis.

Kelsey faced challenges early in life. She has dyslexia, which made school difficult. She also experienced bullying. These experiences taught her to be strong. She hopes her story helps others facing tough times.

She first played volleyball and was very good. But when she started high school, she chose basketball. She went to La Jolla Country Day School. This is the same school where famous player Candice Wiggins played.

High School Basketball Achievements

During her high school career, Kelsey scored 2,247 points. She averaged almost 20 points per game. She also had 677 rebounds, 381 assists, and 370 steals. Her team had a great record of 103 wins and 22 losses. They won four section titles and the 2012 CIF Division IV state championship.

Kelsey was chosen for the 2013 WBCA High School Coaches' All-America Team. She played in the 2013 WBCA High School All-America Game. She scored 14 points in that game.

She was also named a McDonald's All-American. This meant she played in the 2013 McDonald's All-American Girls Game. CalHiSports named her Ms. Basketball, which is given to the best female high school player in California.

When it was time for college, Kelsey chose the University of Washington.

College Basketball Career

Freshman Year Success

After winning a gold medal with the USA U19 team, Kelsey went straight to the University of Washington. She started summer classes and got to know her team. Her coach, Mike Neighbors, saw how eager she was. He made her team captain, which is rare for a freshman.

In her first year, she set six freshman records for Washington. She scored 695 points, the most ever by a freshman. She also scored 38 points in one game, another freshman record. She was named Freshman of the Year for the Pac-12. She averaged almost 21 points per game. One big moment was scoring 23 points in a win against the fourth-ranked Stanford team.

Sophomore and Junior Year Highlights

In her sophomore year, Kelsey set a new school record with 45 points against Oklahoma. She was named to the "Wade Watch" list. This list includes players who might win player of the year awards. She also helped the Washington Huskies get into the NCAA Tournament.

During her junior year, Kelsey was named National Player of the Week. She led the Pac-12 and ranked fourth nationally in scoring. She helped the Huskies reach their first-ever Final Four in the NCAA Tournament.

Record-Breaking Senior Season

Kelsey's senior year was amazing. She became the all-time leading scorer in Pac-12 history. She passed Chiney Ogwumike's record in December 2016. The next month, she became the first Pac-12 player to reach 3,000 career points.

On February 25, 2017, Kelsey scored a Pac-12 record 57 points against Utah. This game also made her the NCAA Division I women's basketball career scoring leader. She broke Jackie Stiles's record of 3,393 points.

Kelsey led her team to a 29–6 record. She averaged 31.7 points per game. She was chosen as an Associated Press All-American First Teamer. She also won the AP Player of the Year award. Other awards included the Nancy Lieberman Award and the Dawn Staley Award. Kelsey finished her college career with 3,527 points and 519 assists. Her #10 jersey was retired by Washington in January 2025.

Professional Basketball Career

WNBA Journey: San Antonio Stars to Las Vegas Aces

Plum with the Las Vegas Aces in 2019

The San Antonio Stars picked Kelsey as the first overall pick in the 2017 WNBA draft. She made her debut on May 25, 2017. She scored 23 points in a game against the Seattle Storm on August 5, 2017. She was named to the All-Rookie Team.

In 2018, the San Antonio Stars moved and became the Las Vegas Aces. Kelsey improved her stats, helping the Aces win more games. In 2019, the Aces made the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Kelsey played a key role, scoring double-digits in points during their playoff run. They reached the semi-finals but lost to the Washington Mystics.

In 2020, Kelsey signed a new contract with the Aces. However, she missed the entire 2020 season due to an Achilles tendon injury.

When she returned in 2021, Kelsey had a fantastic year coming off the bench. She averaged 14.8 points, 3.6 assists, and 2.5 rebounds. She won the WNBA Sixth Player of the Year award.

In 2022, Kelsey became a starter and had a career-best season. She averaged 20.2 points, 5.1 assists, and 2.7 rebounds. She was named to her first All-Star team and was voted a starter. On July 10, she scored 30 points in the All-Star Game and was named the MVP. Kelsey helped the Aces win their first WNBA championship in franchise history.

The Aces won another championship in 2023, making them back-to-back champions.

New Team: Los Angeles Sparks

Kelsey Plum was part of a big trade in the WNBA. She moved from the Las Vegas Aces to the Los Angeles Sparks for the 2025 WNBA season.

Playing Overseas: Turkey

Plum with Fenerbahçe in October 2017

Kelsey also played basketball in Turkey. In 2017, she joined Fenerbahçe in the Women's Basketball Super League (KBSL). She helped them win the KBSL championship title. She returned in 2018–19 and won another KBSL championship and the Turkish Women's Basketball Cup. In 2022, she played for Galatasaray in Turkey.

Unrivaled League

In July 2024, it was announced that Kelsey would play in Unrivaled. This is a new women's 3-on-3 basketball league. However, in November 2024, she decided not to play in the 2025 season. She wanted to take more time for herself.

National Team Career

USA U19 Team (2013)

Kelsey was part of the USA Basketball U19 team in 2013. The team played in the FIBA U19 World Championship in Lithuania. They won all nine games and took home the gold medal.

Pan American Team (2015)

In 2015, Kelsey was chosen for the US team to play in the Basketball at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto. The team played well, winning close games against Brazil and Cuba. They reached the gold-medal game against Canada. The US team won the silver medal in a tough game against the host country.

Olympic Gold Medals

Kelsey has won two Olympic gold medals for the United States.

• In July 2021, she won gold in 3x3 basketball at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
• In June 2024, she was named to the US women's Olympic team for the 2024 Summer Olympics in France. The team, including fellow Aces players Chelsea Gray, A'ja Wilson, and Jackie Young, defeated France in the final. This earned Kelsey her first 5x5 gold medal. It was also the United States' eighth consecutive gold medal in women's basketball.

Career Statistics Summary

Kelsey Plum has had an impressive career in both college and professional basketball.

Kelsey Plum's Personal Life

Kelsey Plum is a Christian. She has one tattoo on her right forearm that says "Keep the faith." She got it in 2018. Kelsey says the tattoo helped her through a tough time.

Kelsey has spoken openly about her struggles with mental health. She is now an advocate for mental health awareness. She wants to help others who might be going through similar challenges.

Kelsey is also involved in charity work. She has her own cigar brand and enjoys cigars.

Awards and Honors

Kelsey Plum has received many awards throughout her career:

• 2013—CalHiSports Ms. Basketball
• 2013—WBCA High School Coaches' All-America Team
• 2013—McDonald's All-America team
• 2016—WBCA NCAA Div. 1 All-America team
• 2017—NCAA all-time women's basketball leading scorer
• 2017—espnW national player of the year
• 2017—unanimous pick on the espnW All-America first team
• 2017—unanimous pick on the AP All-America first team
• 2017—USBWA All-America team
• 2017—AP women's basketball player of the year
• 2017—Dawn Staley Award
• 2017—The Ann Meyers Drysdale Award as USBWA national player of the year
• 2017—Naismith Trophy
• 2017—Nancy Lieberman Award
• 2017—WBCA NCAA Div. 1 All-America team
• 2017—Wade Trophy
• 2017—John R. Wooden Award Women's Player of the Year
• 2017—Honda Sports Award
• 2022—WNBA All-Star Game MVP