There is one word that comes to mind when you hear Lisa Leslie’s name: baller.
Regarded as one of the best female basketball players of all time, Leslie is not only an iconic Olympian, but a star in the WNBA.
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Leslie’s Olympic career started off when she competed in her first games in 1996 in Atlanta. Even though she was one of the youngest players on the team, she made a huge impact on the team and helped them add a gold medal to their list of wins.
That would be the first gold medal of many for Leslie.
Leslie went on to compete in three more Olympics after the Atlanta games, and she continued to dominate. She won a gold medal in every Olympic game in which she appeared. Team USA is extremely dominant in women’s basketball, and Leslie was instrumental in maintaining that success when she was on the team.
Not only did Leslie rack up the medals, but she also made records of her own while she was competing in the Olympics. She set an American Olympic scoring record during the 1996 games when she scored 35 points on her own during the semi-final game against Japan.
It’s bonkers that she won four gold medals, but to also be setting personal records during the games was just the cherry on top.
So what has Leslie been up to since she stopped competing in the Olympics after the 2008 Beijing games?
She retired from the WNBA shortly after her last Olympics game, but basketball has never left her life.
She got married and had two children, as well as picked up some acting and modeling gigs. She’s been busy ever since retiring.
Her most consistent gig has been serving as a basketball analysis for a variety of sports outlets. In 2018, she joined Fox Sports Florida as a studio analyst for the Orlando Magic.
She has also dabbled in some coaching. Any basketball fan will know that 3-on-3 basketball is a lot of fun (and a new Olympics sport this year), and Leslie is the coach of the team Triplets in the Big3 league that was created by rapper and actor Ice Cube.
The California native is an absolute legend in basketball, and we don’t think it would be too surprising if she is somehow involved in the Opening Ceremonies for the 2026 Olympics that will be in Los Angeles.
