Gabby Williams, Tiffany Hayes heading to 2024 Paris Olympics

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Two more former UConn women’s basketball players are heading to the 2024 Paris Olympics. Gabby Williams will be on France’s 5x5 squad while Tiffany Hayes will represent Azerbaijan in the 3x3 competition.

Williams will compete in her second summer games after helping France claim bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics (held in 2021 due to Covid). Though a native of Sparks, Nevada, Williams holds dual-citizenship with France through her mother.

The two-time national champion earned MVP honors at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament after putting up 16.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 steals while shooting 30 percent from three across three games. With the Olympics coming up in Paris, Williams chose not to play in the WNBA this season to prioritize her international career. She plans on returning return to the league in 2025, though.

“The focus is the Olympics for now because this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing that can happen in France,” she told Nevada SportsNet. “But after that, yeah, the goal is definitely to get back to the WNBA.”

Meanwhile, Hayes guided Azerbaijan to the Olympics by helping them win gold at the first 2024 FIBA 3×3 Universality Tournament in Hong Kong back in April. She brought home MVP honors after averaging 6.5 points per game — the top mark on her squad and fifth-best in the tournament.

Although Hayes was born in Florida, she became an Azerbaijani citizen in 2015 so she could play 3x3 basketball in the 2015 European Games. Azerbaijan is located along the Caspian Sea on the boundary of Europe and Asian, where it borders Russia to the north, Iran to the South, then both Georgia and Armenia to the west.

Introduced to the Olympics in 2020, 3x3 basketball is played on a half court with a 10-minute game clock and 12-second shot clock. Baskets inside the arc count for one point while baskets behind it count for two. The first team to 21 points or the team leading after 10 minutes is the winner.

During the Tokyo Olympics, UConn’s Stefanie Dolson won gold with the US 3x3 team.

With Williams and Hayes locked in, that brings the total number of Huskies competing at the summer games to seven: Napheesa Collier, Breanna Stewart and Diana Taurasi will represent the USA; Aaliyah Edwards and Kia Nurse are on Team Canada; Williams will play for host France; and Hayes is on Azerbaijan’s 3x3 squad. Jen Rizzotti will also be in Paris as the head coach of USA’s 3x3 women’s team.

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