Alberta's Yvonne Ejim named Becky Hammon Player of the Year

Alberta Basketball Association (ABA) congratulates Calgary’s Yvonne Ejim on being named the 2024 Becky Hammon Player of the Year presented by Her Hoop Stats.

On April 3, the Gonzaga Bulldogs senior forward was announced as recipient of the annual honour, which recognizes the best mid-major player in the NCAA Division 1 women’s basketball. Ejim becomes the first Canadian to win the award.

In 34 games this season, Ejim averaged 19.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.0 blocks, while shooting 60.1% from the field and 81.5% on free-throws. She was recently named West Coast Conference (WCC) Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, and received an AP All-American Honourable Mention.

Ejim led the Bulldogs to the Sweet 16 of March Madness, Gonzaga’s deepest March Madness run in the NCAA Division 1 women’s basketball tournament 2015.

Growing up in Calgary, Ejim spent several years involved with ABA provincial team programming. She suited up for Team Alberta at the Basketball Canada National Championships in 2016 (U15), 2018 and 2019 (U17), and represented her province at the 2017 Canada Summer Games. Ejim was a three-time tournament All-Star at the Canada Basketball national championships (U17 Second Team in 2019 and 2018, U15 Second Team in 2016).

“Congratulations to Yvonne on this incredible honour,” says Dave Drabiuk, Executive Director of ABA. “We’ve watched her college career with great pride, and she continues to be a tremendous role model and source of inspiration for athletes across our province and beyond.”

To be eligible for Becky Hammon Player of the Year, players must compete in one of the 26 NCAA Division 1 conferences deemed to be "mid-major." The award is named for Becky Hammon, who was a three-time All-American at Colorado State before going on to a storied career in the WNBA.