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Alissa Pili

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Alissa Pili
Pili with the Minnesota Lynx in 2024
No. 35 – Minnesota Lynx
PositionForward
LeagueWNBA
Personal information
Born (2001-06-08) June 8, 2001 (age 23)
Anchorage, Alaska, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High schoolDimond (Anchorage, Alaska)
College
  • USC (2019–2022)
  • Utah (2022–2024)
WNBA draft2024: 1st round, 8th overall pick
Selected by the Minnesota Lynx
Playing career2024–present
Career history
2024–presentMinnesota Lynx
Career highlights and awards

Alissa Katelina Pili (born June 8, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Lynx of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the Utah Utes and USC Trojans.

Early life

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Pili was born in Anchorage, Alaska, to Heather and Billy Pili and is of Samoan and Inupiaq descent.[1][2]

She played football as a lineman from third to eighth grade as the only girl in her league and started playing organized basketball at age eight.[2][3]

Pili attended Dimond High School in Anchorage. As a freshman, Pili helped her team to a runner-up finish at the Class 4A state tournament.[2] She led Dimond to two state championships, set the Class 4A all-time scoring record and was a three-time Alaska Gatorade Player of the Year.[4] Pili won 13 state titles across all sports at Dimond, including four in volleyball, four in shot put, two in discus and one in wrestling. In her final two years of high school, she was named MaxPreps Female High School Athlete of the Year for her success in multiple sports, joining Missy Franklin as the only two-time recipients of the award.[5] Rated a five-star recruit by ESPN, she committed to playing college basketball for USC.[6]

College career

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USC Trojans

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Pili entered her freshman season at USC as the team's starting forward.[7] On February 23, 2020, she recorded a career-high 32 points and 12 rebounds in a 66–60 win over Washington State.[8] As a freshman, Pili averaged 16.3 points and eight rebounds per game, and was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Year while making the All-Pac-12 Team.[9] She missed the first 10 games of her sophomore season with an ankle injury.[10] Pili averaged 11 points and 3.8 rebounds per game as a sophomore, earning All-Pac-12 honorable mention.[11] In her junior season, she averaged 7.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, before entering the transfer portal.[9]

Utah Utes

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For her fourth year of college eligibility, Pili transferred to Utah for the 2023-24 season.[12] Pili was named Pac-12 Player of the Year and earned All-Pac-12 honors after leading her team to a share of the conference regular season title.[13] She was a second-team All-American selection by the Associated Press and the United States Basketball Writers Association, and made the Women's Basketball Coaches Association Coaches' All-America team. In her first season at Utah, she averaged 20.7 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. Utah received an at-large bid to the 2024 NCAA tournament and reached the second round.[14] South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said of Pili's 37-point game, "We can't stop her," after the Gamecocks beat the Utes in their December 10, 2023, Hall of Fame showcase game.[15]

Professional career

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WNBA

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Pili was selected as the eighth pick of the 2024 WNBA draft by the Minnesota Lynx.[16] The Lynx welcomed Pili to the team with an event introducing her to local members of Indigenous and Polynesian communities, including the Minnesota Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan and former Vikings player Esera Tuaolo.[17]

In the 2024 preseason, Pili scored 10 points with 2 assists and 3 rebounds in the Lynx game on May 8, 2024, against the Washington Mystics.[18]

Pili made her WNBA debut in the Lynx game against the Seattle Storm at Climate Pledge Arena on May 14, 2024. She played 10 minutes and had one rebound.[19] In her second WNBA game, also against the Seattle Storm, on May 17, 2024, at Target Center, she scored her first points in the league, playing 9 minutes and bringing in 5 points and 2 rebounds.[20]

Pili became the 10th WNBA rookie to score "20+pts while shooting perfect from deep with 4 or more 3’s" in the May 31, 2024, Lynx "Native American heritage night" game against the Phoenix Mercury.[21] In playing just over 15 minutes of the game off the bench, Pili put up 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists.[22][23] She is also only the 4th WNBA rookie to score "20+ PTS and 4+ 3PM shooting 75+% from the field and perfect from three" and the only one of those four to do so coming off the bench.[24][25]

Athletes Unlimited

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Pili signed to play the 2025 season with Athletes Unlimited.[26]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage
 FT%  Free throw percentage  RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game
 TO  Turnovers per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high ° League leader  ‡  WNBA record

WNBA

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Regular season

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WNBA regular season statistics[27]
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2024 Minnesota 22 0 6.3 .422 .333 .545 1.2 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.9 2.4
Career 1 year, 1 team 22 0 6.3 .422 .333 .545 1.2 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.9 2.4

Playoffs

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WNBA playoff statistics
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2024 Minnesota 3 0 0.3 — — — 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.0
Career 1 year, 1 team 3 0 0.3 — — — 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.0

College

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NCAA statistics[28]
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG
2019–20 USC 31 30 30.6 51.1 23.4 79.6 8.0 1.3 1.0 0.9 2.1 16.3
2020–21 USC 13 10 21.8 41.5 30.0 81.3 3.8 1.0 1.1 0.5 1.4 11.0
2021–22 USC 19 18 19.3 33.1 22.4 82.2 4.5 0.8 0.8 0.3 1.5 7.8
2022–23 Utah 31 30 26.7 59.0 42.6 79.7 5.6 2.3 1.0 0.7 2.3 20.7
2023–24 Utah 34 34 28.6 55.0 40.4 82.0 6.6 2.4 0.9 0.8 2.0 21.4
Career 128 122 26.5 51.9 34.4 80.7 6.1 1.7 1.0 0.7 2.0 16.9

Business interests

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On June 7, 2024, Nike announced that Pili signed an endorsement deal with the company for its N7 collection that has an Indigenous focus.[29] Proceeds from items in the collection benefit the N7 Fund "to provide sport and physical activity programming to kids in Native American and Aboriginal communities."[29]

Personal life

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In addition to her athletic success, Pili's Samoan and Indigenous heritage has made her a role model for others. Since college, she has attracted people with Samoan and Indigenous backgrounds to her games.[30][31] Her mother, Heather Pili, said "It gives a lot of hope to all of the natives in America. It’s amazing to see. It’s hard to describe being in that environment and seeing the crowds that she’s drawing. It’s pretty emotional.”[30] For the WNBA draft, Pili worked with designer Jason Vu on a dress that showcased her Samoan culture.[32] The dress used Samoan designs on the skirt, which had a slit to highlight the tribal tattoos on her right leg. The dress also was one shouldered to also highlight the tribal tattoos on her left shoulder.[32] During the draft, Pili was quoted as saying, "A lot of Indigenous and Polynesian girls don’t get to see that role model and I’m just so blessed to be in the position to be that for them...I’m representing them with pride, I had to include the tribal in my dress."[33] More than 100 people of Samoan heritage attended Pili's first home game playing for the Minnesota Lynx to show their support for her.[34]

Her older brother, Brandon, played football for USC as a defensive lineman, and currently plays for the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League.[3]

References

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  1. ^ Estus, Joaqlin (March 26, 2024). "Defeat on top of racial incident mars Alissa Pili's NCAA experience". ICT News. Retrieved April 16, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Villa, Walter (August 17, 2016). "Alissa Pili makes a strong case that a game-changing recruit resides in Alaska". ESPN. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Drew, Jay (January 17, 2023). "USC transfer Alissa Pili powers Utah women's basketball to new heights". Deseret News. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  4. ^ Carreon, Joey (March 18, 2019). "Alissa Pili leaves her mark as one of Dimond High's greatest athletes". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  5. ^ Williams, Aaron (June 11, 2019). "2018-19 MaxPreps Female High School Athlete of the Year: Alissa Pili". MaxPreps. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  6. ^ "Alissa Pili 2019 High School Girls' Basketball Profile". ESPN. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  7. ^ "Pili delivers double-double in first college game with USC". Alaska Sports Hall of Fame. November 5, 2019. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  8. ^ "Pili scores 32, becomes sixth Alaska woman to net 30 at D1 level". Alaska Sports Hall of Fame. February 23, 2020. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Furlong, Josh (January 25, 2023). "Alissa Pili found her 'joy' of basketball again, and what a change has meant to her game". KSL Sports. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  10. ^ Bragg, Beth (February 11, 2021). "Sidelined for 10 games with an injury, Anchorage basketball player Alissa Pili returns to form". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  11. ^ Jasper, Adam; Kregorian, Georgina (October 7, 2021). "Five women's basketball players to watch this year". Daily Trojan. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  12. ^ Graham, Pat (January 5, 2023). "Transfer Alissa Pili leading way as No. 8 Utah starts 14-0". Associated Press. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
  13. ^ Drew, Jay (February 28, 2023). "Co-champion Utes well-represented on Pac-12's All-Conference honors list". Deseret News. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
  14. ^ Bodkin, Michelle (March 30, 2023). "Utah Women's Basketball Star Alissa Pili Named WBCA All-American". KSL Sports. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
  15. ^ "How Utah's Alissa Pili is embracing her role as an Indigenous basketball star". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
  16. ^ Youngblood, Kent (April 15, 2024). "Lynx land dynamic scorer Alissa Pili with No. 8 overall pick in WNBA draft". Star Tribune. Retrieved April 15, 2024.
  17. ^ "Lynx, Lt. Gov. Flanagan welcome Alissa Pili to Minnesota with surprise reception". Minnesota Lynx. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  18. ^ Murray, Elijah Grayson (2024-05-11). "Alissa Pili Goes for Double Digits in her Preseason WNBA Debut". All Utes. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  19. ^ "Playing at a new level, Anchorage's Alissa Pili finds her footing and connects with fans". Yahoo Sports. 2024-05-17. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  20. ^ "Alissa Pili Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft Status and More | WNBA". www.wnba.com. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  21. ^ "x.com". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2024-06-01.
  22. ^ "Phoenix Mercury vs. Minnesota Lynx - WNBA Game Summary - May 31, 2024 | WNBA". www.wnba.com. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
  23. ^ "How Alissa Pili broke out for a 20-point night in Lynx win". Deseret News. 2024-06-01. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
  24. ^ "x.com". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 2024-06-01.
  25. ^ Borman, Jack (2024-05-31). "Lynx 95, Mercury 71: Pili Leads Offensive Explosion to Fuel Big Home Win". Canis Hoopus. Retrieved 2024-06-01.
  26. ^ Savanna (2024-10-21). "Alissa Pili signs with AU Pro Basketball". Athletes Unlimited. Retrieved 2024-10-22.
  27. ^ "WNBA Stats – Alissa Pili". WNBA.
  28. ^ "Alissa Pili College Stats". Sports-Reference. Retrieved April 11, 2024.
  29. ^ a b Anchorage Daily News, Anchorage Daily News Updated: 8 hours ago Published: 8 hours (June 7, 2024). "Anchorage's Alissa Pili signs with Nike to represent Indigenous-focused N7 brand". Anchorage Daily News. Retrieved 2024-06-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  30. ^ a b Kamrani, Christopher. "What Utah star Alissa Pili represents to the fans who flock to see her". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  31. ^ "Playing at a new level, Anchorage's Alissa Pili finds her footing and connects with fans". Yahoo Sports. 2024-05-17. Retrieved 2024-05-29.
  32. ^ a b "The Powerful Storytelling Behind Alissa Pili's 2024 WNBA Draft Look". SLAM. 2024-05-17. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  33. ^ "Alissa Pili Honors Her Heritage in a Black Dress With Tribal Print Skirt for the WNBA Draft". Yahoo Entertainment. 2024-04-16. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
  34. ^ "'It gives us hope': Minnesota Samoans cheer on Alissa Pili at her first Lynx home game". MPR News. 2024-05-18. Retrieved 2024-05-18.
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