The Women’s Basetball Hall of Fame inductee was hired by the Sparks as head coach on Dec. 14, 2009, after spending two years with the Minnesota Lynx. Last year, she guided Los Angeles to the 11th WNBA Playoff appearance in franchise history despite losing star forward Candace Parker to a shoulder injury just 10 games into the season.

Gillom spent the 2008 season as an assistant coach for the Minnesota Lynx before being elevated to interim head coach of the Lynx three days before the start of the 2009 season. She compiled a 14-20 record with Minnesota, but lost star forward Seimone Augustus six games into the season.

Not only did she become a WNBA head coach in 2009, but Gillom was also inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame on June 13, 2009, her 45th birthday.

Gillom began her coaching career in 2004 with the girl's basketball team at Xavier College Preparatory, a private high school in Phoenix. During her six years as head coach, Gillom has compiled a 130-25 record (.839 winning percentage).

Gillom was one of the first players signed by the WNBA – played seven seasons in the league, six with the Phoenix Mercury before a final season with the Sparks in 2003. She led the Mercury to three playoff berths (1997, 1998 and 2000), and reached the 1998 WNBA Finals, losing to the Houston Comets.

Gillom retired from the WNBA in 2003 with career averages of 13.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. Her best season came in 1998, posting career-high averages of 20.8 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.

The league’s 2002 Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award recipient, Gillom participated in the inaugural WNBA All-Star Game in 1999 and was also named to the 1997 All-WNBA first team and 1998 All-WNBA second team. She was named USA Basketball’s 1985 Female Athlete of the Year and collected a total of six gold medals including the 1988 Olympic Games, plus one silver medal as a member of USA Basketball.

Collegiately, Gillom played for former Houston Comets coach Van Chancellor at Mississippi, where she was the 1986 Southeastern Conference (SEC) Female Athlete of the Year. A 1986 Kodak All-American, Gillom earned 1986 NCAA Midwest Regional MVP and 1985 NCAA All-Mideast Regional honors and was a four-time All-SEC first team selection. She led the Lady Rebels in scoring her final three seasons and finished (behind her sister Peggie) as Ole Miss’ all-time second leading scorer with 2,186 points. During her four-year Ole Miss career, Gillom helped her teams to a 103-23 record with four NCAA Tournament appearances, including two Sweet 16s (1983, 1984) and two trips to the Elite Eight (1985, 1986) plus three SEC West titles.

Gillom was named one of Arizona’s top athletes of the 20th century (No. 74). The Gillom’s Sports Center for Women’s Athletics at Ole Miss is named in recognition of Jennifer and her sister Peggie.

Gillom also enjoyed a lengthy professional career overseas prior to joining the WNBA, playing for teams in Italy, Greece, Spain and Turkey. Spending most of her time in Italy, Gillom played in Ansona, Messina, Milan and Taranto and was selected to several Italian League All-Star teams.