Jewell Loyd, who Kobe called ‘The Gold Mamba,’ is one of USA Basketball’s top scoring threats

SB Nation is introducing each of the 12 members of the US Olympic Women’s Basketball team this week. Here’s what you need to know about Jewell Loyd, the two-time WNBA champion that Kobe Bryant hailed ‘The Gold Mamba.’

Team: Seattle Storm (17-8)

Regular Season Stats: 19.8 points (35.8%), 4.6 rebounds, 4 assists

Position: Guard

Draft Class: 2015, Pick #1

All-Star Selections: 6 (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)

Previous Olympic Appearances: 2020 Olympic gold medalist (5x5)

College: Notre Dame

At age 30, Jewell Loyd already has a decorated resume, headlined by two WNBA Championships with Seattle Storm. Loyd averaged 12.1 points in the 2018 title run, and upped that to 17.8 points in 2020, good for second-most on the team.

Last season, the Storm struggled but Jewell Loyd averaged a career-high 24.7 points per game — the highest among all WNBA players. Her 939 total points were also the most by any WNBA player in the 2023 season.

Her strong play helped attract two of the league’s top free agents, and in turn, the Storm — which seemed destined for a long rebuild — have become fringe championship contenders.

Skylar Diggins-Smith and Nneka Ogwumike have both made clear that Loyd’s strong play played a significant role in their recruitment. The pair’s collective decision to sign with Seattle in free agency immediately elevated the franchise back to relevance.

This year, her scoring is down — she’s averaging 19.7 points per game on a career-worst 35.8% shooting — but she’s still been a top offensive weapon. More importantly, Seattle has won eight of its last 10 games and now boasts the fourth-best record in the league.

“It’s been a really cool process to see the team come together, we’re right where we’re supposed to be right now,” Loyd told Andscape.

The first episode of Jewell Loyd’s Olympic diary series with Andscape came out last week, and in it, Loyd reminisced on what initially led her to fall in love with the game of basketball.

She shared that as a kid, she was primarily a tennis player, and viewed basketball as more of a side hobby. But one day, a couple of boys at the park excluded her from playing basketball with them, and so she ended up teaming up with her older brother and matching up against them. That heated basketball game — punctuated by her brother dunking in such a dramatic fashion he evoked images of Michael Jordan in her mind — changed everything.

“This is what drives me, this is what I want,” she said, reflecting on that afternoon at the park. “Ever since then, I was locked in.”

“When I quit tennis, my two goals were winning a WNBA championship and winning an Olympic gold medal,” Loyd said.

She already has two WNBA rings — and in a few weeks, she could also have two gold medals.

Kobe Bryant famously gave two WNBA stars offshoot Mamba Mentality nicknames: Diana Taurasi and Jewell Loyd. He heralded Taurasi, the league’s all-time leading scorer, as the White Mamba, and subsequently gave Loyd a Mamba nickname of her own — the ‘Gold Mamba.’

“That name brings a smile to my face. It brings a lot of memories, conversations, of someone who just inspired me and believed in me,” Loyd said in her Andscape video series.

“He gave me that because he knew I could handle it — everything that came out with the Mamba mentality and inspiring the next generation of athletes.”

Loyd is very much still in her prime, has plenty of basketball ahead. But she already has two championships and a scoring title under her belt, and a slew of basketball moves and highlight moments that resemble Kobe’s.

“Having ‘Gold Mamba’ associated with me, my play, it’s an honor,” Loyd said. “I don’t take it for granted at all.”