ATLANTA — Veteran WNBA player Renee Montgomery is hanging up her jersey for good. The 11-year guard announced she is retiring from the league on Tuesday.
“I bought a home in Georgia nine years ago and I retired as a member of the Atlanta Dream,” Montgomery said in a statement announcing her retirement. “I’ve always known I wanted to be here and now I feel intertwined in the Atlanta fabric and culture. Blessed to call this home. True to Atlanta.”
Montgomery played with the Atlanta Dream during the 2018 and 2019 seasons. She helped lead the 2018 team to a franchise-record 23 regular season wins - and one game away from reaching the WNBA Finals, according to the team.
“Renee will always have a special place in my heart because she was the very first player to say yes to me as a head coach,” explained Atlanta Dream head coach Nicki Collen.
“Her energy, enthusiasm and leadership helped transform the Dream along with her 3-point shot. She prepared the right way and never cheated the game," Collen added. "It is that same work ethic and enthusiasm that will make her a success in everything she does."
Early last year, Montgomery made the choice to sit out the 2020 WNBA season to focus her attention on the social justice movement. It was a bold move that Collen said paid off for Montgomery.
"She bet on herself in the middle of a pandemic and has thrived," Collen said. "I wish her nothing but success in retirement.”
Dream President and General Manager Chris Sienko echoed that sentiment, saying that while she excelled as an athlete, she "really hit her stride as an advocate for those in need and for our under-served communities."
"She has become a powerful voice of change and her opportunities outside of basketball are limitless - we wish her the best!" Sienko said.
Montgomery was drafted by the Minnesota Lynx from UConn, fourth overall, during the 2009 WNBA Draft. She went on to play 364 games for the Lynx, Connecticut, Seattle and the Dream. Montgomery’s 532 career three-pointers made ranks 12th all-time in WNBA history, according to the Dream.
Montgomery, a West Virginia native, won two WNBA Championships as a member of the Lynx in 2015 and 2017.
Montgomery's post-retirement plans were not immediately shared.