Duke women’s basketball alum [autotag]Chelsea Gray[/autotag] made her WNBA return on Wednesday night.
Gray, who helped the Aces win each of the last two championships, missed the first 12 games of the season with a foot injury she suffered during last year’s WNBA Finals. Fans treated the three-time champion with a standing ovation when she checked into her first 2024 game.
The Aces defeated the Seattle Storm 94-83 to improve to 7-6 on the season. Gray, who came off the bench for 16 minutes, scored one point but tallied seven assists and four rebounds while rejecting two shots via blocks.
The stat line reflects Gray’s 2023 form when she set a personal record with 7.3 assists per game. One of the best passers in the league, the former Duke basketball star averaged at least five assists per game in each of the last six seasons, and she averaged at least 14.0 points per game in five of the last seven campaigns.
Gray’s injury, while limiting her start to the 2024 season, will not keep her out of this summer’s Olympics. USA Basketball already announced that she made the women’s basketball team along with three of her Vegas teammates.
CHELSEA GRAY CHECKS IN FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS SEASON TO A HUGE OVATION 👏🗣️ pic.twitter.com/Vwx1bsM2ZP
— ESPN (@espn) June 20, 2024
Gray, on top of her three WNBA titles, won a gold medal in Tokyo three years ago.