Eastern Illinois University Athletics

Position: Assistant Women's Basketball Coach
Years at EIU: 4th year
Alma Mater: Vanderbilt, 1996

WNBA Veteran Sheri (sha-ree) Sam begins her third season as an assistant coach on Eastern Illinois women’s basketball coach Debbie Black's staff. 

In her first season Sam helped coach a young EIU women's team to their seventh straight appearance in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.  The Panthers were led by junior post player Sabina Oroszova who earned second team All-OVC honors while setting the school record for points in a game with 38 at Bradley.  In Sam's second season EIU mixed eight new faces into the roster as the Panthers made an eighth straight OVC Tournament, a streak that is tied for the longest active streak in the league.  EIU was again led by Oroszova who earned first team All-OVC honors and second team Mid-Major All-American honors. In her third year, Sam helped mold a brand new team after losing half of the previous season's team to graduation and transfers. The Panthers finished the 2015-16 season with a 3-25 record while going 2-14 in OVC play.

Sam had a ten year WNBA career spanning from 1999-2009 where she and Black played together for several seasons with the Miami Sol.  Sam was drafted by the Orlando Miracle in 1999 finishing her career in 2009 with the Detroit Shock.  She was a WNBA All-Star in 2002 as a member of the Sol and won a  pair WNBA Championship in 2004 as a member of the Seattle Storm and in 2008 as a member of the Detroit Shock.  She also played for Charlotte Sting, Indiana Fever and Minnesota Lynx.

As a collegiate player Sam was a Naismith Award finalist her senior season leading Vanderbilt to the Elite 8 of the women’s basketball tournament.  She was an All-American during her playing days later honored as a Women’s Legend by the Southeastern Conference and inducted into the Vanderbilt Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011.  Sam helped Vanderbilt win a pair of SEC Tournament titles and during her freshman season helped the team advance to the NCAA Women’s Final 4.

Following her career at Vanderbilt, Sam played as a member of Team USA earning a silver medal at the FIBA Americas Championships.  In addition to her time in the WNBA Sam played professionally both in the ABL and overseas.  She was a two-time ABL All-Star and won National Championships playing in Turkey and Israel.  Sam played internationally in Russia, South Korea, Italy, Greece and the Czech Republic.

Outside of basketball Sam has worked as a marketing representative for both Reebok and Nike.  Most recently she was the marketing director for Sportsbum, LLC and the lead WNBA Correspondent for DraftNasty.com.

“Sheri is an outstanding person who I have been associated with both as a coach and a player for a number of years,” said Black.  “While Sheri may be new to the coaching part of the game, her experience as a player on both the collegiate and professional level will make her a valuable asset to our Eastern Illinois program.”

Sam earned her degree from Vanderbilt in 1996.