Hall of Fame
SHERYL SWOOPES
CLASS OF 2022
Sheryl Swoopes burst onto the scene in 1993 when she led the Texas Tech Red Raiders to the NCAA title and was named the Naismith College Player of the Year. Her legendary performance in the championship game, which included a record 47 points, led opposing coach Nancy Darsch to say, “you don’t really appreciate Sheryl Swoopes until you try to stop her.”
Sheryl Swoopes and her son Jordan pose with her Hall of Fame painting at the 2022 Houston Sports Awards.
Watch Sheryl Swoopes interview with Kevin Eschenfelderon, the "Red Carpet" at the 2022 Houston Sports Awards.
After graduation, she played for Team USA and was on the first of three straight Olympic gold medal teams in 1996. Swoopes became the first player to sign with the WNBA the following year when she joined the Houston Comets. Swoopes helped lead the Comets to the first of four consecutive WNBA titles and went on to become, among other things, a three-time WNBA Most Valuable Player, a three-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, a two-time WNBA scoring champion and a six-time WNBA All-Star. One of the early faces of the WNBA, her star power was even compared to “a female Michael Jordan.”
After 11 years with the Comets, she signed with the Seattle Storm and later played for the Tulsa Shock. She is a member of the Naismith Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and was named one of the top 15 Players in the first 15 years of the WNBA. She was the first women’s player to have a Nike shoe named after her – the Air Swoopes.
Watch the introduction of Sheryl Swoopes by Grammy Award Winner Yolanda Adams at the 2022 Houston Sports Awards
Watch the Sheryl Swoopes induction speech at the 2022 Houston Sports Awards
Sheryl Swoopes and her son Jordan at the plaque unveiling on the Walk of Fame.
Sheryl Swoopes with invited guests to her induction to at the 2022 Houston Sports Awards.
Sheryl signs her comemorative Walk of Fame plaque on the day her induction into the Houston Sports Hall of Fame is announced.
Sheryl Swoopes receives her Hall of Fame jacket with the help of presenter Yolanda Adams at the 2022 Houston Sports Awards
Sheryl Swoopes on the day of the announcement of his selection into the Houston Sports Hall of Fame.
With the help of staff members of the Houston Rockets and the Harris County - Houston Sports Authority, Sheryl Swoopes receives word that she has been selected for the Houston Sports Hall of Fame.
