Introduction
Glory Johnson (born July 27, 1990) is an American basketball forward for the Dallas Wings of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, she went to Webb School Of Knoxville and played collegiately for the University of Tennessee Lady Vols.
College
Johnson enrolled at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville in 2008. She recorded 36 double-doubles over the course of her college career.
Johnson completed her bachelor's degree in global studies in three years, and earned a master's degree in communications during her fourth year of basketball eligibility.
Tennessee statistics
Source
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Points | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-09 | Tennessee | 33 | 335 | 40.4 | - | 61.6 | 7.2 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 10.2 |
| 2009-10 | Tennessee | 35 | 354 | 45.8 | 100.0 | 64.8 | 7.7 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 10.1 |
| 2010-11 | Tennessee | 37 | 443 | 53.4 | - | 58.6 | 9.7 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 12.0 |
| 2011-12 | Tennessee | 36 | 511 | 53.8 | 50.0 | 63.6 | 9.9 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 14.2 |
| Career | Tennessee | 141 | 1643 | 48.8 | 40.0 | 61.9 | 8.6 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 11.7 |
USA Basketball
Johnson played on the team representing the USA at the 2011 World University Games held in Shenzhen, China. The team won all six games to earn the gold medal. Johnson scored 6.2 points per game and had nine steals, tied for second place on the team.
Professional career
WNBA
Johnson was selected in the first round of the 2012 WNBA Draft (4th overall) by the Tulsa Shock. In her rookie season, she was ranked fourth in steals per game (a career-high 2.1 spg). In 2013 and 2014, her second and third seasons with the Shock, Johnson was named in the Western Conference All-Star team. Johnson sat out the 2015 WNBA season on a maternity leave after announcing her pregnancy. She returned one month into the 2016 WNBA season after her suspension stemming from her domestic violence incident with Brittney Griner. By this time the Tulsa Shock had relocated to Dallas and were renamed the Dallas Wings. Johnson averaged 11.3 ppg in 18 games with 6 starts. Also during her comeback season, she recorded the league's first 20-point, 20-rebound performance of the season in a win against the Phoenix Mercury when she scored 23 points along with a career-high 22 rebounds.
Overseas
From 2012 to 2015, Johnson played three off-seasons in Russia for two different teams; Chevakata Vologda and Nadezhda Orenburg. As of November 2016, Johnson signed with the Xinjiang Tiashan Deers of the WCBA for the 2016-17 off-season.
WNBA career statistics
| Legend | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career high | League leader | |||||
Regular season
Personal life
On August 14, 2014, it was announced that both Johnson and fellow WNBA player Brittney Griner were engaged. On April 22, 2015, both women were arrested for physically attacking each other after police broke up a fight between the two in their Goodyear, Arizona home. Both sustained minor injuries after the incident. Nevertheless, the couple stayed together and married on May 8, 2015. It was announced on June 4, 2015 that Johnson was pregnant and that she would miss the 2015 WNBA season. One day later, Griner filed for annulment which was rejected. Johnson gave birth to twin girls in October 2015, 16 weeks premature. Griner has no biological connection to the twins as it was revealed that Johnson had gotten pregnant through IVF treatment using her eggs and a sperm donation instead of sexual intercourse with a male. The divorce was finalized in June 2016.
Johnson had also spoken out about her sexuality claiming that she's "not a lesbian", and has reverted to heterosexual dating.