Michele Timms

From Adelaide to Atlanta, from Seoul to Sydney, from the desert to the down under, Michele Timms put the Opals on the basketball map. Timms personified the prototypical point guard. She was clever, confident, unselfish, and most of all, she understood how to win. Timms played for teams like the Perth Breakers, the Sydney Flames, and the Nunawading Spectres of Australia’s Women’s National Basketball League. She led the Spectres to four straight WNBL titles starting in 1986. That same year, Timms joined the national team at the FIBA World Championships. The Opals gained valuable experience and over the next 15 years established a foothold on international competition. Timms led Australia to three more FIBA Worlds and three Olympic appearances. She won bronze in 1996 in Atlanta and returned to her native Australia for the Sydney Olympics in 2000 to win silver. In 1997, the seven-time NWBL All-Star became the first Australian to play in the WNBA. She led the Phoenix Mercury to the 1998 WNBA Finals, earned a post on the 1999 All-Star roster, and paved the way for the next generation of Aussie basketball talent.