Atkins Added as Assistant Coach for Player Development
10/27/2023 1:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Head Women's Basketball Coach Kim Barnes Arico announced the addition of Olympic gold medalist and two-time WNBA All-Star Ariel Atkins as the assistant coach for player development on Friday (Oct. 27).
"When coaching limits were increased across women's basketball, I thought it would be an incredible opportunity to bring in someone to work with our student-athletes every day who has lived their dream and been where they aspire to be," Barnes Arico said. "Ariel is a tremendous young woman who has impacted every program she has touched, from USA Basketball to Texas to the Washington Mystics. She is a hard-working, selfless and humble individual who has always done whatever her team needed.
"I have known Ariel for a long time after we were part of USA Basketball together and think she is the perfect fit for Michigan women's basketball. It says a lot about our program, our players and our coaches that someone like Ariel wants to be a part of it. She knows what it takes to get to the next level and can help our players understand that, both on and off the court. She is a winner who wants to help grow the game of basketball, and I am so excited that she chose to come to the University of Michigan."
"I'm excited to be joining the Michigan staff, working next to Coach Arico, being on the other side of the ball and sharing my knowledge and experience with the players," Atkins said.
Atkins has been part of the USA Basketball family since 2014, earning three gold medals during her time. She was part of the 2020 Olympic gold medal squad, seeing action in five games during the tournament as the United States won the gold. Atkins also has gold medals from the 2022 FIBA World Cup and the 2014 FIBA Americas U18 Championship. She teamed up with Barnes Arico at the latter, as KBA served as an assistant coach for that team.
Atkins currently plays for the Washington Mystics, helping them to the 2019 WNBA Championship. She is a two-time WNBA All-Star (2021, 2022) and grabbed a spot on the 2022 WNBA All-Defensive first team. She was named to the 2018 WNBA All-Rookie Team and has spent all five of her seasons in D.C. after being drafted No. 7 in the 2018 WNBA Draft. This past season, she helped the Mystics to the first round of the playoffs, averaging 11.5 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 25.2 minutes per game.
A graduate of the University of Texas, Atkins was a two-time all-conference first teamer. She helped the Longhorns to the 2016 Elite Eight and three NCAA Sweet 16 appearances (2015, 2017, 2018). Atkins is 20th all-time at Texas in scoring with 1,497 points after averaging 12.4 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game over her four-year career.
