BriannJanuary

Position
Guard
Height
5-8
Weight
148 lbs
Birthdate
Jan 11, 1987
College/Country
Arizona State/USA
Draft
2009 Rnd 1 Pick 6
EXP
14 years
20
Briann January headshot
PPG
7.8
RPG
1.7
APG
3.4

About Briann

Position: Guard

WNBA Years: 14

Height: 5-8

Weight: 144

Born: January 11, 1987 in Spokane, Wash.

High School: Lewis and Clark (Spokane, Wash.)

College: Arizona State ‘09

Drafted: By Indiana, first round, 2009 WNBA Draft (6th overall)

  • Most prolific point guard in Fever history
  • WNBA champion in 2012 with Indiana, and three trips to WNBA Finals (2009, 2012, 2015)
  • Ranks second in Fever history in games played (250), assists (909) and free throws (560); and third in points (2,244), 3-point field goals (242) and steals (285)
  • Fever career leader in assists per game (3.6)
  • Led WNBA in 3-point shooting percentage (.431) in 2015
  • Seven-time selection to WNBA All-Defensive Team (2012-17, 21)
  • Earned her first All-Star selection in 2014 in Phoenix
  • Former assistant coach at alma mater, Arizona State University

WNBA CAREER

14-year pro, having played first nine seasons in Indiana after being selected 6th overall in the 2009 WNBA Draft by the Fever

Acquired via trade by Phoenix on March 6, 2018; acquired via trade by Connecticut on February 19, 2020; signed by Seattle on February 2, 2022

2012 WNBA Champion with the Indiana Fever

2014 WNBA All-Star

Five-time All-WNBA All Defensive First Team (2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2021)

Two-Time All-WNBA All Defensive Second Team (2013, 2017)

Only WNBA player named to either the WNBA All-Defensive First or Second teams from 2012-17

Three career trips to the WNBA Finals (2009, 2012, 2015)

Has appeared in the Playoffs 12 times during her 14-year career including seven appearances in WNBA Semifinals (formerly the Eastern/Western Conference Finals)

68 career playoff games played is tied for fifth most all-time

Drained a three-pointer in the 2nd quarter on June 3, 2022 vs Dallas to reach the 3,000-point plateau, becoming the 75th WNBA player to reach 3,000-point mark and one of 12 players to record at least 3,000 points, 1,275 assists and 300 steals in their career.

Ranks second in Indiana Fever history in games played (250), assists (909) and free throws (560)…third in points (2,244), three-point field goals (242) and steals (285)

Played in 300th career game on July 20, 2019 against Dallas

Recorded her 2,000th-career point on September 16, 2016 against Minnesota

Career regular season averages of 8.5 points, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 315 games

Recorded her 1,000th-career assist on August 5, 2018 at Los Angeles…26th player in WNBA history to do so

Her 1,122 career assists rank 8th all-time among active players…20th all-time among all players

Ranks third on the WNBA’s all-time postseason assists chart with 201, trailing only Diana Taurasi (247) and Sue Bird (258) entering 2020

Fever career leader in assists per game

Has Led the WNBA in three-point shooting percentage twice in her career, once in 2018 with Phoenix (47.0 percent) and the other in 2015 with Indiana (43.2 percent)…one-of-four players in WNBA history to lead league in three-point percentage in more than one season (Eva Nemcova – 1997 and 1998, Jennifer Azzi – 1999 and 2001, Laurie Koehn – 2005 and 2006)…one of only two players in league history to lead league in three-point percentage with more than one team (Jennifer Azzi – 1999 with Detroit and 2001 with Utah)

Career Playoff averages of 9.3 points, 3.6 assists and 0.9 steals in 68 games

Sixth all-time in WNBA postseason history with 242 career playoff assists

2022 SEASON with Connecticut

  • Closed out WNBA career with Seattle, appearing in all 36 games, making five starts
  • Averaged 7.9 points, 3.4 assists, and 1.0 steals
  • Scored 20 points over final two regular season games, connecting on 6-of-10 from three-point range, adding seven assists
  • Finished career with 1,340 assists, 14th on the all-time WNBA list
  • Drained a three-pointer in the 2nd quarter on June 3, 2022 vs Dallas to reach the 3,000-point plateau, becoming the 75th WNBA player to reach 3,000-point mark and one of 12 players to record at least 3,000 points, 1,275 assists and 300 steals in their career.

2021 SEASON with Connecticut

  • Played and started in 29 games for the Sun.
  • Finished with 202 points, 89 assists, 42 rebounds and 25 steals.
  • Had nine games this season where she finished with double-digits in points with a season high 19 against Las Vegas on 8/24.
  • Moved up to ninth on the WNBA all-time assists list (1255).
  • Earned her 600th career rebound and her 1200th career assist in the game against Chicago (6/29).

2020 SEASON with Connecticut

  • Acquired by the Connecticut Sun during the 2020 Free Agency period.
  • Competed in 13 of the team’s 22 regular season games and made 10 starts. Missed the first eight games due to COVID-19 and one game later on due to a dislocated finger.
  • Appeared and started in all seven of the team’s post season games.
  • Scored 65 regular season points and tallied 44 assists.
  • Sits 20th all-time in WNBA assists with 1166.
  • Scored a season high 15 points against Las Vegas (8/20) on a season-high six made field goals and three made three pointers. Dished out a season high seven assists against Washington (8/30).
  • In seven playoff games, she scored 63 points and tallied 25 assists.
  • Recorded a playoff-high 20 points against Las Vegas (9/22).
  • Played in her 59th postseason game and is now 7th all-time in WNBA history.
  • Sits at 4th all-time in postseason assists with 224 total after passing former teammate Tamika Catchings (223).

2019 SEASON

  • Averaged 6.5 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 32 games
  • Started in 26 of the 32 games she appeared in…missed two games in August with a foot injury
  • Scored a season-high 18 points on July 10 at Washington…added six assists in the win and a season-high five rebounds
  • Won the WNBA Cares Community Assist Award for the month of May
  • Scored in double figures six times on the season…Mercury finished 5-1 in 2019 when January scored 10 or more points
  • Recorded an assist in all but one game…dished three or more assists 22 times and recorded five or more seven times, including a season-high 7 on July 23 vs. Indiana
  • Notched a career-high six steals in the Mercury’s season opener on May 25 at Seattle
  • Scored 12 points to go along with two rebounds and two assists in the Mercury’s only playoff game on September 11 at Chicago
  • Moved into sixth place on the WNBA’s all-time playoff assists list with 201 career postseason assists

2018 SEASON

  • Averaged 7.0 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 33 games…highest rebound average she’s had in a season since averaging a career-best 2.4 rebounds in 2013
  • Started in all 33 games she appeared in…missed Mercury’s game at Indiana on June 29 with a foot injury
  • Led WNBA in three-point shooting at 47.0 percent (47-of-100)…second time leading league in three-point percentage (2015 with Indiana)…fourth player in WNBA history to lead league in three-point shooting in more than one season and second only player to do so with different teams
  • Her 47.0-percent (47-of-100) three-point shooting percentage was the highest of her career in a season…previous was 43.1 percent in 2015 with Indiana
  • Scored a season-high 20 points on July 25 against Chicago…knocked down four of her five three-point attempts and dished five assists
  • Scored in double figures nine times on the season
  • Recorded an assist in all but five games…dished three or more assists 19 times and recorded five or more nine times, including a season-high 9 on August 5 at Los Angeles
  • Became the 26th player in WNBA history to reach 1,000 career assists on August 5 at Los Angeles
  • Averaged 7.1 points, a 2.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists in seven playoff games, starting in all seven
  • Moved into sixth place on the WNBA’s all-time playoff assists list with 199 career postseason assists
  • Matched her playoffs career high for rebounds in a game (five) in Round 2 of the WNBA Playoffs at Connecticut on August 23…has now grabbed five rebounds in the postseason four times in her career

2017: In her ninth pro season, January averaged 9.5 points, 1.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game while seeing action in only 25 games due to a pair of nagging leg injuries…she still earned her sixth straight selection to the WNBA All-Defense Team while averaging just under a steal per game (0.92)…she scored a season-high 23 points in a narrow defeat at Seattle in the season opener, 5/14.

2016: January averaged 9.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and a career-best 4.7 assists per game…she appeared in 29 games and started 27, after missing the first five games of the season while recovering from offseason knee surgery…named to the WNBA All-Defensive Team for the fifth straight season, she finished fourth in the WNBA in assists, fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.67) and eighth in 3-point percentage (.392)…she became the third player in Fever history to reach the 2,000-point plateau, against Minnesota, 9/16…she missed the second double-double of her career while finishing with 12 points and a season-high nine assists in a win over Los Angeles, 7/19.

2015: Named to the WNBA All-Defensive Team for the fourth straight season, she started in 29 games, missing five games late in the year with knee and back pain following a collision against Atlanta, 8/28…she posted season averages of 8.1 points and 3.4 assists per game, and led all WNBA players with 25-of-58 (43.1%) shooting from 3-point range…she averaged a steal per game and posted at least 30 steals for the sixth time in her career…she tied a career high with four steals at Atlanta, 6/16.

2014: The Fever point guard earned her first Eastern Conference Player of the Week award and was later rewarded with her first All-Star appearance…she was one of three Fever stars to average double-figure points, scoring at a 10.3-point clip while averaging 3.7 assists per game…in May, she hit seven straight 3-point field goals to set a franchise record, and in three straight home games, the streak reached eight-in-a-row to earn her first player of the week award with back-to-back 20-point games against Connecticut, 5/29, and New York, 5/31…representing the East in the All-Star Game in Phoenix, she scored nine points with three 3-pointers, and added four assists.

2013: Named to the WNBA All-Defensive Team for the second time, January started in 32 of the Fever’s 34 games while averaging 9.8 points and 3.7 assists…she averaged 15.5 points over her last four regular season games, reaching double figures in each…returning from a stomach illness two nights earlier, she blitzed Chicago, 9/6, with a career-high 23 points and a career-best five 3-pointers, shooting 8-of-16 from the floor and 5-of-7 from long distance…she had nine points while matching a season-high seven assists at Minnesota, 8/24…she scored 14 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor and a career-high seven rebounds against Connecticut, 7/6.

2012: January played in 31 games, starting in 26…she missed the last three games due to a concussion suffered at Minnesota, 9/17…she averaged 10.3 points, 1.8 rebounds 3.9 assists and 1.2 steals for the season…she had the sixth-best 3-point shooting percentage in the WNBA (.430) and made a career-high 46 3-pt FG…her best game featured a career-high 22 points, shooting 8-of-15 from the field and 3-of-6 from behind the arc against Phoenix, 8/25…she received her first league honor while named to the WNBA All-Defensive First Team.

2011: January started the team’s first ten games before tearing her right ACL and missing the remaining 24 games…she recorded her first career double-double with 12 points and 10 assists vs. Tulsa, 6/14…she had a career high four steals vs. Chicago, 6/4…she finished her season with averages of 8.6 points and 5.0 assists per game.

2010: January appeared in 30 games with seven starts…initially thrust into the starting lineup for the Fever’s first two games, she served mostly as a spot starter and top backup to veteran point guard Tully Bevilaqua…she averaged 7.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and 3.1 assists for the season…her top game featured season highs of 19 points and eight assists, while hitting 14 of 15 free throws at Washington, 7/24…she had a second game with eight assists at Phoenix, 8/8.

2009: Indiana’s first-round pick started four of 33 games in which she appeared…she averaged 6.9 points, 2.3 assists, 1.9 rebounds and 1.09 steals per game…she posted a season-high 17 points against Detroit, 8/15…she had nine double-figure games and had a season-high six assists in three different games…among WNBA rookie rankings, January was second in assists and steals, fifth in free throw percentage and seventh in scoring and minutes per game.

PLAYOFFS

January has reached the WNBA Finals on three occasions and averaged double-figure scoring throughout the playoffs in each of those seasons…she averages 10.7 points and 3.8 assists through 43 playoff games overall…January and the Fever have never failed to reach the playoffs…she is tied with Becky Hammon for ninth in WNBA postseason history with 173 career assists.

2016: January nearly collected the first postseason double-doule of her career, finishing with 12 points and nine assists during a first-round loss to Phoenix.

2015: January appeared in the WNBA Finals for the third time in her career, guiding Indiana to a 5-game series with Minnesota while averaging 11.3 points and 5.0 assists through 11 postseason games…she posted a postseason career-high eight assists in three different games, and corraled a playoff career-high six steals in a decisive Game 3 of the East Finals at New York, 9/29…she scored 19 points against the Lynx in Game 1 of the Finals, and reached double figures in every game, averaging 15.4 points in the series…she played through a torn meniscus during Game 5, however, which resulted in offseason surgery.

2014: January averaged 12.8 points over five games in the East Semis and East Finals…she had 19 points with three 3-pointers in a Game 1 win over Chicago in the East Finals.

2013: January started in all four playoff games, finishing with a team-high 3.5 assists and adding 7.5 points per game…she had playoff highs of 16 points and six assists in the win at Chicago, 9/20, finishing 3-of-4 from long-range…she tied her playoff career high with five rebounds in the loss against Atlanta, 9/29.

2012: January started all 10 Fever playoff games…she averaged 11.5 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.6 steals and a team-high 3.8 assists…she reach double-figure scoring in seven of the 10 games, including a 15-point, two-rebound and three-assist performance in Game 4 of the Finals against Minnesota, 10/21…she held All-Star and Olympian Seimone Augustus to single-digit scoring in each of Games 3 & 4 of the Finals to mark only the third and fourth time that had been done all season…her finest game may have been a 24-point, 7-assist effort at Atlanta in Game 2 of the East Semis, 9/30.

2011: She missed the playoffs due to a season-ending injury.

2010: In three games against New York, she averaged 6.7 points and 2.0 assists per game.

2009: As a rookie, January appeared in all ten Fever playoff games…she averaged 10.6 points, 3.0 assists and 2.4 rebounds per game…she scored in double figures in five of 10 playoff games, including 16 or more points on three occasions…she led the team in 3-point percentage and was second on the team in free throw percentage…January averaged 12 points per game in the WNBA Finals…in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals against Phoenix, 10/4, she had a playoff-high 17 points…in Game 1 of the Finals at Phoenix, 9/29, she had 11 points and seven assists.

PRO-OVERSEAS:

2020-21: January continued her international career with Sopron. She played in 10 games and averaged 8.5 points per game. January dished out 4.1 assists per game and averaged 2.7 rebounds. January helped lead her team to a 7-3 overall record.

2019-20: January played with Sopron Basket in Hungary. She was second on the team assists averaging 3.7 a game. During this season, she averaged 6.8 points per game and played 30.9 a game. Her team finished 6-6 on the season.

2014-15: In 31 games with Adana ASKI in Turkey, she averaged 16.5 points with 4.0 assists per game, playing alongside Fever teammate Erlana Larkins.

2013-14: January averaged 12.3 points and led the Brazilian League with 4.4 assists while playing for Maranhao Basquete.

2012-13: January averaged 11.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and a league-leading 5.7 assists while playing for Ramat Hasharon Electra in Israel.

2010-11: She joined Raanana Hertzeliya of the Israeli League at mid-season and helped the club to the semifinal round of the playoffs…she averaged 14.5 points and 5.5 assists while sparking the club to a 7-4 regular season mark upon her arrival…she was named all-league honorable mention.

2009-10: January played with Tarsus in the Turkish League.

INTERNATIONAL

2013-15: January was a member of the USA Basketball Women’s National Team Pool for 2014-16.

COLLEGE

The 2008 and 2009 Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year, she was a First Team All-Pac 10 selection in 2009 and an honorable mention All-America pick as a junior and senior…she ended her career as Arizona State’s all-time leader in assists (538) and free throw percentage (.830)…she was also among the Sun Devils’ all-time leaders in steals (second, 272), free throws (second, 401), 3-point field goal percentage (fourth, .399), 3-point field goals (fifth, 132) and scoring (seventh, 1,317 points)…in 2008-09, she set the school’s single-season record for 3-pt field goals (65)…she is the only player in school history to lead the team in steals and assists four straight years.

2008-09: Ranked second in the nation in 3-point FG pct. (.469) and 12th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.1-to-1), January led the Pac-10 in assists (4.7), 3-point FG percentage (.469) and assist-to-turnover ratio…she was second in steals (2.3) and fourth in FT pct. (.840)…she averaged 13.8 points, 5.8 assists and 1.5 steals in ASU’s four NCAA Tournament games…she scored a career-best 25 points and tied a school record with seven 3-pointers in ASU’s 73-59 win at UC Davis, 12/3…she nearly posted a double-double with 10 points, nine assists and two steals in ASU’s NCAA first-round win over Georgia…she matched her scoring high in an NCAA Tournament game with 22 points to go along with five assists, two steals and a block in ASU’s 84-69 win over Texas A&M in the Trenton Regional semifinal, 3/29.

2007-08: She was selected an All-Pac-10 All-Academic Honorable Mention…she finished the season ranked first in the Pac-10 in free throw percentage (.864) and steals (2.18) while ranking third in assists (4.39), fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio and 15th in scoring (11.3)…she scored in double figures 23 times, including a 22-point performance against Texas, 12/22… she averaged 13.8 points while connecting on 55.2 percent of her shots (16-29), including 54.5 percent from beyond the arc (6-of-11), and 85 percent of her free throws (17-of-20) in ASU’s four Pac-10 and NCAA Tournament contests.

2006-07: An honorable mention All-Pac-10 selection, she finished third in the league in steals (2.1), fourth in assists (4.0), fourth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.67-to-1) and sixth in free throw percentage (81.7)…she also earned Pac-10 Honorable Mention Academic honors…a starter in 34 games, she led ASU in assists and steals and was second in scoring (10.2) and free throw percentage…in the postseason, she averaged 14.0 ppg while connecting on 26-of-28 FGs (.929) and 10-of-19 3-pt FGs (.526) in the Pac-10 and NCAA Tournaments…she posted season-best numbers in points (22) and steals (6) in ASU’s 80-69 win over UCLA, 2/18.

2005-06: She was named to the Pac-10’s All-Freshman Team after a season in which she led ASU in assists (86) and steals (46)…her 86 assists represented the second-highest total ever for a Sun Devil freshman…she had one or zero turnovers 13 times…she turned in an outstanding effort in ASU’s 62-59 upset of No. 11 Stanford, 2/16, leading the team with a season-best 13 points to go with six assists and four steals.

PERSONAL

Full name is Briann Jolie January…she was born January 11, 1987 in Spokane, Wash…she majored in Education and Society at ASU…her father Barry is a karate instructor and her mother, Sally, is a teacher…she has a younger sister, Kiara (19)…Briann holds a black belt in karate…a 2005 graduate of Lewis and Clark High School in Spokane, Wash., she earned first-team all-state honors from both the AP and the Seattle Times as a senior…she earned WBCA High School All-America honors in 2005, in addition to being a four-time, first-team All-Greater Spokane League honoree…she led Lewis and Clark to a 25-3 record and an appearance in the state semifinals as a senior, averaging 13 points a game in her final season…she was named the team MVP in each of her four seasons…she earned second-team all-state honors as a junior in 2004 and was a 2002 BCI All-American as a freshman…a four-year letterwinner in both basketball and track and field, she captained the basketball team all four seasons and served as a team captain in track and field as a senior…she won the state high jump title in 2004, with her personal best in the high jump being 5’8”…she played club basketball for the Spokane Stars.

CAREER TRANSACTIONS

(1) Drafted by the Indiana Fever with the sixth overall pick, first round, in the 2009 WNBA Draft, 4/9/09. (2) Signed a free agent contract with Indiana, 2/5/13. (3) Signed a contract extension with Indiana, 8/31/15. (4) Acquired by the Phoenix Mercury on March 6, 2018 in a trade with the Indiana Fever in exchange for the 8th overall pick in the 2018 WNBA Draft

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