Stacey Lovelace-Tolbert Profile

For Stacey Lovelace-Tolbert, 31, basketball is not just a lifelong passion�it�s a family affair. Her husband Brian Tolbert�a professional basketball player who is currently overseas playing in Israel�and her two-year-old daughter Ryann were both frequent attendees at practices for her last WNBA team, the Minnesota Lynx.

�If we didn�t have enough people or a lot of people were injured, Brian would come in and play with us,� Lovelace-Tolbert said. �And Ryann would come along too�the team basically adopted her. They�re definitely going to miss her as much as they miss me this season.�

A favorite with the fans as well, Ryann also made her presence known at Lynx games.

�She had a little Lynx jersey and the fans would get so excited when they saw her,� Lovelace-Tolbert said. �They would even bring her presents. She was like a little celebrity.�

The 6-foot-4-inch forward began her career in the WNBA in 2000 with the Seattle Storm, which was also an expansion team at that time. She stayed with the Storm through two seasons before leaving to play professionally in Europe. She returned to the WNBA in 2004 and played with the Minnesota Lynx for two seasons.

�I�ve really enjoyed my experience with the WNBA so far,� Lovelace-Tolbert said. �So far I�ve had two very different coaches, with two very different systems, and I�m excited to see what playing with the Sky will be like.�

In her previous four seasons with the WNBA, Lovelace-Tolbert averaged 6.1 points per game and 3.1 rebounds per game, and charted a .405 field-goal percentage and a .413 three-point field-goal percentage, ranking her in the top ten in the WNBA for that statistic.

After being drafted to the Chicago Sky in the 2005 expansion draft, Lovelace-Tolbert was surprised but pleased. �I wasn�t expecting it, but it�s so exciting,� she said. �It�s a great opportunity and I�m really looking forward to it.�

While playing basketball at Purdue University, Lovelace-Tolbert earned Big Ten Player of the Year and team MVP honors and was also named to the Kodak All-American Team in 1995. But despite her enormous success, playing professionally was the last thing on her mind.

�They didn�t even have a pro league until just before I graduated, so I always assumed I would just go home and work like everyone else in my family,� said Lovelace-Tolbert, who grew up in Detroit. �But the opportunity just kind of fell into my lap, so I went with it.�

Now, years later, she is beginning to look ahead to life after basketball.

�All I�ve ever really done is basketball, but there are a lot of things that I eventually want to try,� Lovelace-Tolbert said. �I want to get a feel for different things�broadcasting or maybe front-office work for a major sports team. I definitely want to do something in the sports and entertainment industry, since that�s what I know and feel passionate about.�

But for now, she�s excited to start the new season as a member of the Sky. �I�ve already had the experience of joining a brand-new team and working with them from the ground up,� Lovelace-Tolbert said. �And I�m excited to go through that process again with the Sky.�

As for Ryann, there is most definitely an XXXS Sky jersey in her very near future�and who knows, maybe even a whole new Chicago fan-base.

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