Michigan basketball adds former WNBA player to coaching staff

Michigan is replacing one WNBA player with another on its coaching staff. The women’s basketball program announced on Tuesday that Natalie Achonwa will serve as the assistant coach for player development.

Achonwa played eight seasons in the WNBA, most recently in 2022, and was a captain for the Canadian Olympic team this summer, making a record fourth appearance with the team.

She replaces Ariel Atkins, an active WNBA player who was on Michigan’s staff last season.

“One of the most decorated basketball players in Canada history, Natalie has been successful at every level of basketball,” Michigan head coach Kim Barnes Arico said in a statement. “It’s so beneficial for our student-athletes to be around and learn from women who have achieved what they want to achieve, like playing in the WNBA and at the international level.

“She is an unbelievable leader who has such a high basketball IQ. Our players will be able to learn so much from her and we are thrilled she is joining us in Ann Arbor.”

Achonwa, 31, spent four seasons at Notre Dame, where she reached the national championship three times. The 6-foot-3 forward was drafted by the Indiana Fever with the ninth pick in the 2014 WNBA draft but missed that season due to a torn ACL.

She was a starter for most of her six seasons with the Fever and was an All-Rookie Team selection in 2015. She spent the 2020 and 2021 seasons with the Minnesota Lynx as a key reserve. For her WNBA career, she averaged 7.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

In addition to several years playing overseas, Achonwa was a regular on the Canadian national team. Her four Olympic appearances are a Canadian basketball record. In Paris this summer, she was teammates with a player she will now coach: Michigan freshman Syla Swords.

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