Cheryl Ford

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American basketball player (born 1981)

title: "Cheryl Ford" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1981-births", "living-people", "american-women's-basketball-players", "basketball-players-from-louisiana", "centers-(basketball)", "detroit-shock-players", "louisiana-tech-lady-techsters-basketball-players", "people-from-homer,-louisiana", "wnba-all-stars", "united-states-women's-national-basketball-team-players", "national-women's-basketball-league-players", "21st-century-american-women", "detroit-shock-draft-picks"] description: "American basketball player (born 1981)" topic_path: "science/astronomy" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cheryl_Ford" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American basketball player (born 1981) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox basketball biography"]

Field	Value
name	Cheryl Ford
image	Cheryl and Plenette (633882629) (cropped).jpg
height_ft	6
height_in	3
weight_lbs	195
birth_date
birth_place	Homer, Louisiana, U.S.
high_school	Summerfield (Summerfield, Louisiana)
college	Louisiana Tech (1999–2003)
draft_league	WNBA
draft_year	2003
draft_round	1
draft_pick	3
draft_team	Detroit Shock
career_start	2003
career_end	2013
career_position	Forward
years1	2003–2009
team1	Detroit Shock
years2	2004–2005
team2	Dallas Fury
years3	2005–2006
team3	Anda Ramat Hasharon
years4	2006–2007
team4	UGMK Jekaterinburg
years5	2010
team5	CCC Aquapark Polkowice
years6	2010–2011
team6	Frisco SIKA Brno
years7	2011–2012
team7	Beretta Famila Schio
years8	2012–2013
team8	Canik Belediyespor
highlights	* 3× WNBA champion (2003, 2006, 2008)
medal_templates
wnba_profile	cheryl_ford
::

::callout[type=note] the WNBA player ::

4× WNBA All-Star (2003, 2005–2007)
2× All-WNBA Second Team (, )
WNBA All-Star Game MVP (2007)
WNBA Rookie of the Year Award (2003)
2× WNBA rebounding champion (2005, 2006)
WAC tournament MVP (2003)
2× WAC Player of the Year (2002, 2003)
2× First-team All-WAC team (2002, 2003) | medal_templates = | wnba_profile = cheryl_ford Cheryl Ford (born June 6, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player. As a member of the Detroit Shock, she won the WNBA championship three times.

Early life and education

Cheryl Ford is the daughter of Bonita Ford and former NBA player Karl Malone. She has a twin brother named Daryl and a half brother, former NFL offensive tackle Demetress Bell. Malone's paternity was established as the result of a drawn-out paternity suit.

Ford played for Summerfield High School in Summerfield, Louisiana, where she was named a WBCA All-American. She participated in the 1999 WBCA High School All-America Game, where she scored two points.

College career

Ford was a standout collegiate player at Louisiana Tech University. In 2003, she was named to the Associated Press' All-America Honorable Mention team. She was also named the Western Athletic Conference "Player of the Year" in 2002 and 2003.

Louisiana Tech statistics

::data[format=table]

Year	Team	GP	Points	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1999–2000	Louisiana Tech	34	222	58.0	–	66.7	5.2	0.1	0.6	0.9	6.5
2000–01	Louisiana Tech	35	287	52.7	–	60.0	5.1	0.5	0.7	0.7	8.2
2001–02	Louisiana Tech	30	338	46.5	–	58.6	8.7	0.4	0.9	1.8	11.3
2002–03	Louisiana Tech	34	533	48.0	–	63.0	12.9	0.9	1.6	1.9	15.7
Career	Louisiana Tech	133	1380	49.9	0.0	61.7	7.9	0.5	1.0	1.3	10.4
::

Professional career

In 2003, Ford was drafted as the No. 3 overall pick in the first round by the Detroit Shock in the WNBA draft.

In just her first year in the league, Ford led the Shock from worst to the best record and a WNBA championship in 2003. She is the first player to have won the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award and a WNBA championship in the same year. Afterwards, she played for the Dallas Fury in the National Women's Basketball League (NWBL) under Coach Nancy Lieberman.

Ford spent the 2005–06 season in Israel, playing for Anda Ramat Hasharon.

On July 15, 2007, Ford won the WNBA All-Star Game MVP Award in Washington, D.C. when the East beat the West 103–99.

Ford missed the rest of the 2008 WNBA season due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury in her right knee, sustained on July 22, 2008 during a game against the Los Angeles Sparks with 2:06 remaining in the fourth quarter. Though she returned to the game in the final minute, a brawl had broken out and Ford aggravated the injury further while attempting to restrain her teammate.

During the 2009 WNBA season, Ford averaged 7.4 rebounds per game and 8.6 points per game.

In January 2010, Ford signed a deal with Polish team CCC Aquapark Polkowice from 1st division league Ford Germaz Ekstraklasa (PLKK). Ford spent the 2011–12 season with Beretta Famila Schio, averaging 11.3 points and 11.9 rebounds per game. On September 12, 2012, The Canik Belediyesi basketball club was announced as having signed Ford, as well as New York Liberty veteran Janel McCarville.

In March 2013, she signed with the New York Liberty. She missed most of the preseason due to a left knee injury, appearing in one preseason game before being released in June.

WNBA career statistics

Regular season

|- | align="left" | 2003 | align="left" | Detroit | 32 || 32 || 29.9 || .474 || .000 || .682 || 10.4 || 0.8 || 1.0 || 1.0 || 2.47 || 10.8 |- | align="left" | 2004 | align="left" | Detroit | 31 || 31 || 29.4 || .411 || .000 || .589 || 9.6 || 1.1 || 1.3 || 0.8 || 1.74 || 10.6 |- | align="left" | 2005 | align="left" | Detroit | 33 || 33 || 28.2 || .430 || .000 || .487 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|9.8° || 0.8 || 1.0 || 1.4 || 2.09 || 9.5 |- | align="left" | 2006 | align="left" | Detroit | 32 || 32 || 28.7 || .498 || .000 || .648 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|11.3° || 1.4 || 1.2 || 0.8 || 1.81 || 13.8 |- | align="left" | 2007 | align="left" | Detroit | 15 || 15 || 30.7 || .497 || .000 || .639 || 11.2 || 1.5 || 1.9 || 0.7 || 2.80 || 13.0 |- | align="left" | 2008 | align="left" | Detroit | 24 || 24 || 26.5 || .481 || .000 || .560 || 8.7 || 0.9 || 1.0 || 0.4 || 0.96 || 10.1 |- | align="left" | 2009 | align="left" | Detroit | 29 || 29 || 26.0 || .427 || .000 || .550 || 7.4 || 0.9 || 1.0 || 0.4 || 1.69 || 8.6 |- | align="left" | Career | align="left" |7 years, 1 team | 196 || 196 || 28.4 || .457 || .000 || .595 || 9.7 || 1.0 || 1.1 || 0.8 || 1.91 || 10.8

Playoffs

|- | align="left" | 2003 | align="left" | Detroit | 8 || 8 || 29.0 || .324 || .000 || .826 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|10.0° || 0.5 || 1.4 || 0.8 || 1.25 || 8.4 |- | align="left" | 2004 | align="left" | Detroit | 3 || 3 || 37.0 || .447 || .000 || .636 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|10.7° || 0.3 || 1.3 || 2.3 || 2.67 || 16.0 |- | align="left" | 2005 | align="left" | Detroit | 2 || 2 || 24.5 || .444 || .000 || .600 || 7.0 || 1.0 || 0.5 || 1.0 || 1.50 || 9.5 |- | align="left" | 2006 | align="left" | Detroit | 10 || 10 || 28.7 || .523 || .000 || .750 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|10.3° || 1.2 || 1.3 || 0.7 || 1.90 || 13.4 |- | align="left" | 2007 | align="left" | Detroit | 10 || 8 || 22.8 || .415 || .000 || .455 || 9.2 || 0.4 || 0.5 || 0.3 || 1.40 || 6.9 |- | align="left" | 2009 | align="left" | Detroit | 5 || 5 || 29.6 || .448 || .000 || .813 || 10.0 || 1.2 || 1.4 || 0.2 || 3.60 || 7.8 |- | align="left" | Career | align="left" |6 years, 1 team | 38 || 36 || 27.8 || .433 || .000 || .684 || 9.8 || 0.8 || 1.1 || 0.7 || 1.89 || 9.9

National team career

Ford was named to the National team representing the USA at the 2006 World Championships, held in Barueri and Sao Paulo, Brazil. The team won eight of their nine contests, but the lone loss came in the semifinal medal round to Russia. The USA beat Brazil in the final game to earn the bronze medal. Ford averaged 3.4 points per game.

References

Gee, Andre. (February 18, 2023). "The NBA Shouldn't Have Creepy Karl Malone at All-Star Weekend". [[Rolling Stone]].
(2012-07-10). "POSTAGE DUE".
(31 August 2006). "Former Anda Ramat Hasharon players prepare for WNBA Finals". [[The Jerusalem Post]].
(6 August 2008). "WNBA hands down suspensions for Shock-Sparks skirmish". [[ESPN.com]].
(11 September 2012). "Karl Malone'un kızı Canik Belediyesi'nde". hurriyet.com.
(13 March 2013). "Cheryl Ford returns to WNBA with New York Liberty". swishappeal.com.
(12 March 2013). "Ford returns, but Bird out for 2013". [[ESPN.com]].
(17 June 2013). "New York Liberty sign, free agent Avery Warley". [[WNBA.com]].
"Karl Malone falls short, as a father". ESPN.
"WBCA High School All-America Game Box Scores". Women's Basketball Coaches Association.
(June 10, 2010). "Fifteenth World Championship For Women – 2006". USA Basketball.
(July 23, 2008). "Ford tore ACL against Sparks before brawl broke out". ESPN.
"Cheryl Ford Playerfile". WNBA.

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