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WNBA

Cheryl Reeve, Elena Delle Donne elected to Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame

Reeve, who's from South Jersey and attended La Salle, built a dynasty with the Minnesota Lynx. Delle Donne, a Delaware native, was a two-time WNBA MVP and seven-time All-Star.

Cheryl Reeve and Elena Delle Donne are no strangers to winning rings, and they’ll add another this summer.

Reeve, the Minnesota Lynx coach from South Jersey, and Delle Donne, a retired WNBA star from Delaware, are among the eight who were elected to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame for the Class of 2026, the Knoxville, Tenn.-based organization announced Thursday.

“We are honored to pay tribute to eight distinguished legends of this exceptional sport,” WBHOF president Dana Hart said in a release. “They exemplify the highest standards in women’s basketball and have made substantial contributions to the sport, along with shaping the game’s historical trajectory.”

» READ MORE: Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve says Philly is finally ready for a WNBA team — and is excited for its impact on girls basketball

Before Reeve built a dynasty as coach and general manager of the Minnesota Lynx, she played at Washington Township High School and La Salle. With the Explorers from 1984 to 1988, she averaged 8.4 points and 3.6 assists in 116 games. She led the Lynx to four WNBA titles, most recently in 2017, and made three other Finals appearances as a coach. Team USA also won Olympic gold at the 2016 and 2020 Games with her on the coaching staff. She’s a four-time WNBA coach of the year.

Delle Donne won a WNBA championship with the Washington Mystics in 2019 and averaged 19.5 points on 47.5% shooting and 6.7 rebounds in 10 seasons with the Mystics and Chicago Sky. The Wilmington native and Ursuline Academy graduate was a three-time All-American who averaged 26.7 points and 8.9 rebounds at Delaware. Additionally, the seven-time All-Star and two-time WNBA MVP was on the squad at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The other members of the Class of 2026 are WNBA and Tennessee legend Candace Parker, international stars Isabelle Fijalkowski and Amaya Valdemoro, NJCAA Hall of Fame coach Kim Muhl, broadcaster Doris Burke, and Barbara Kennedy-Dixon, a posthumous honoree. The group will be honored June 27 in Tennessee.