University of Georgia Athletics
Around The World With Deanna 'Tweety' Nolan
July 17, 2009 | Women's Basketball
A series of articles catching up with former Georgia Lady Bulldogs will appear on georgiadogs.com this summer on a weekly basis. This week's focuses on Deanna "Tweety" Nolan, who is one of the most explosive players in the WNBA. Links to previous stories can be found below.
June 5 – Kelly Miller returns to Minnesota
June 12 - Angie Ball now in golf universe
June 19 – Brandi (Decker) Hunter still a familiar face
July 3 – Rebecca Rowsey enjoys first year of marriage, medical school
July 10 – Henderson happy abour life at and after UGA
A game of Around the World against Deanna “Tweety” Nolan would not be pretty for any average Joe or Joann. Nolan has excelled on the court all over the world; originally from Flint, Mich., Nolan played for the Lady Bulldogs from 1997-2001.
No stranger to success, Nolan is a three-time WNBA Champion and perennial WNBA All-Star with the Detroit Shock, but her success started at Northern High School in Flint, where she led the Vikings to two state championships. Today, Nolan stars at the Palace at Auburn Hills, less than an hour from Flint Northern where she first made her mark on the basketball court. Since high school, however, Nolan has taken her game all over the world, playing at UGA and professionally in the Czech Republic, Israel, Italy, Poland, Spain and most recently in Russia during the past two off-seasons.
Nolan, who was ranked as the nation's No. 75 prospect coming out of high school, developed and flourished at Georgia under Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Andy Landers. Landers played a big role in helping Nolan become the well-rounded player that she is today.
“Coach Landers taught me to be more of a defensive minded player; he supplied me with a greater defensive mentality," Nolan said. "He also taught me to not just rely on my jump shot. I learned how to be more of a slasher and drive to the basket.”
In her days at UGA, she was a member of the 1999 team that reached the Final Four, the 2000 team that won the SEC Championship and reached the Elite Eight and the 2001 squad that captured the SEC Tournament title. Nolan's senior season was interrupted by a fractured finger during much of the conference campaign.
Nolan had this to say about their success, “We enjoyed playing together and working hard to reach that level. Our coaches recruited great players that formed a great team. While we did well, we still feel that we could have done better.”
After four years at UGA Nolan entered the WNBA Draft in 2001, where she was selected as the No. 6 overall pick of the first round by her hometown team, the Detroit Shock.
“It means a lot to me being back home and playing in front of the hometown crowd," Nolan said. "I really enjoyed my four years at UGA, but being home and playing for my hometown team is special.”
Nolan has taken this opportunity and made the best of it. Since her arrival, Detroit has won three WNBA Championships, while Nolan has been noted as a top player in the league. She has represented Detroit in the WNBA All-Star game three years, while also being named first-team All-WNBA in 2005 and 2007, as well as MVP of the 2006 WNBA Finals.
Great career already, right? She hasn’t stopped there. In the past two off-seasons, Nolan has taken her game oversees to play in Russia. Playing for the Ekaterinburg club, she has used this opportunity to work on some different aspects of her game and her life.
“It has been really interesting trying to learn their culture and to see their way of life," Nolan said. "As for basketball, I have continued to work on my offensive side of the game while in Russia. They tend to allow the Americans to score the points and do most of the offensive work.”
From Michigan to Georgia to Russia and all points in between, Nolan has taken her abilities worldwide and excelled at each stop along the way. Taking advantage of each opportunity, Deanna “Tweety” Nolan and her around the world career has made a childhood game of Around the World sound not so appealing to the average Joe and Joann.
