Lauren Jackson#Honours

Jackson, whose nicknames include "Loz", "Jacko" and "LJ",{{cite journal |title=The weight of the world |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |first=Ian |last=Cockerill |page=46}}{{cite web |url=http://corporate.olympics.com.au/athlete/lauren-jackson |title=Lauren Jackson |publisher=Australian Olympic Committee |access-date=5 May 2012 |first=Harry |last=Gordon |year=2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120509044237/http://corporate.olympics.com.au/athlete/lauren-jackson |archive-date=9 May 2012 |url-status=dead}} was born in Albury, New South Wales,{{cite journal |title=The weight of the world |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |first=Ian |last=Cockerill |page=48}} on 11 May 1981,{{cite web |url=http://www.wnba.com/playerfile/lauren_jackson/bio.html |title=Lauren Jackson Playerfile |publisher=WNBA |access-date=2 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120420043309/http://www.wnba.com/playerfile/lauren_jackson/bio.html |archive-date=20 April 2012}}{{Cite book |title=Raising champions : a parents' perspective |first=Philippa |last=Coates |location=South Melbourne, Vic. |publisher=Lothian Books |year=2005 |isbn=0734407785 |oclc=224360464 |chapter=Maree and Gary Jackson (Lauren) |pages=53–57}}{{cite book |title=2006 Australian Commonwealth Games team handbook |publisher=Australian Commonwealth Games Association 2006 |location=Melbourne, Vic. |chapter=Basketball |pages=88–89}}{{cite web |url=http://london2012.olympics.com.au/news/2012-australian-opals-squad-named |title=London 2012–2012 Australian Opals squad named |work=Official Site of the 2012 Australian Olympic Team |publisher=Australian Olympic Committee |date=16 February 2012 |access-date=2 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120424214515/http://london2012.olympics.com.au/news/2012-australian-opals-squad-named |archive-date=24 April 2012 |url-status=dead}} the older of two children of Gary Jackson and his wife Maree Bennie. Both her parents played for Australia's national basketball teams and Jackson inherited her height from both parents. Jackson was 196 cm by the time she turned 16, after she gained 15 cm in height when she was 15 years old. Her father, Gary, played for the Boomers in 1975, while her {{convert|6|ft|2|inch|abbr=off}} mother, Maree,{{cite web | url=https://vault.si.com/vault/2000/09/11/wizardess-of-oz | title=Wizardess of Oz }} played for the Opals from 1974 to 1982.{{cite journal |issn=1443-1823 |journal=Sports Woman |location=Brisbane, Aust. |issue=3 |volume=1 |date=July 2000 |title=Having a Ball! |first=Stephen |last=Schaefer |pages=26–27}}{{cite journal |issn=1443-1823 |journal=Sports Woman |location=Brisbane, Aust. |issue=2 |volume=1 |year=2000 |title=Sky is the Limit |page=45}} Bennie played in two World Championships,{{cite journal |title=The weight of the world |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |first=Ian |last=Cockerill |page=49}} and for the women's basketball team at Louisiana State in the late 1980s, wearing the number 15, the number Jackson wears in her mother's honour.{{cite web |url=http://travelinsider.qantas.com.au/qa_with_qantas_ambassador_lauren_jackson_olympic_basketballer.htm |title=Q&A with Qantas ambassador Lauren Jackson: Olympic basketballer |publisher=Travel Insider |access-date=4 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120523224904/http://travelinsider.qantas.com.au/qa_with_qantas_ambassador_lauren_jackson_olympic_basketballer.htm |archive-date=23 May 2012 |url-status=dead}} Bennie was one of the first Australians to play in the American collegiate system, where she was known for her aggressive style of play and was nicknamed "the assassin".{{cite journal |title=The weight of the world |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |first=Ian |last=Cockerill |page=50}} Her parents continued to play basketball locally on a social level when Lauren and her brother were young, and her family had a basketball court in their backyard when Jackson was growing up. Her grandfather played for the Western Suburbs Magpies.{{cite web |url=http://blogs.foxsports.com.au/basketball/index.php/foxsports/comments/question_and_answer_time_with_australias_wnba_and_opals_star_lauren_jackson/ |title=Q&A with Australia's WNBA and Opals star Lauren Jackson |last=Gregory |first=Andrew |date=2 October 2007 |access-date=3 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080810152059/http://blogs.foxsports.com.au/basketball/index.php/foxsports/comments/question_and_answer_time_with_australias_wnba_and_opals_star_lauren_jackson |archive-date=10 August 2008 |url-status=dead}}

Jackson grew up in Albury,{{Cite magazine |author1=Anderson, Kelli |title=How Lauren Got Her Groove Back.(Pro Basketball; Lauren Jackson) |magazine=Sports Illustrated |date=23 July 2007 |volume=107 |issue=3 |page=50 |issn=0038-822X}} where she attended Murray High School.

Jackson started playing basketball at the Albury Sports Centre when she was four years old. As a six-year-old, she told others that she would one day play for the Australian national team in Basketball. Her mother taught her how to play. She first played competitive basketball as a six-year-old she played on a local under-10 side. Her mother was her coach for two years. This was difficult for both mother and daughter in order to change their personal dynamics. As an 11-year-old, Jackson was not the best player in Albury, but she played in the under-14 Australian Country Championships. Her team made it to the Grand Final one year, and she played in the match despite having hurt her knee. She was upset after the event. In response to this, her parents sat down with her and explained she did not need to continue to play if she did not want to. Following this conversation, she went to her room and typed a message on her computer that said "from this day on, nothing will stand in my way..."

When she was 14 years old, Jackson led her New South Wales side to a national championship gold. Her performance in the tournament attracted the attention of the national team selectors. Tom Maher said of the game: "Right then and there, I said, 'Is this the best thing I've ever seen?' It was just unbelievable. Those old guys had seen a lot of basketball, and they were drooling." As a competitor at the 1999 Australian Under-20 national championships, she won the Bob Staunton Award for the tournament MVP.{{cite journal |journal=Play up (Official Event Program) |publisher=Basketball Australia |edition=19–25 February |year=2012 |title=The Bob Staunton Award |page=8 |location=South Melbourne, Australia |editor=Brad Graham Creative}} She was described as a basketball prodigy by the time she was seventeen years old.{{cite web |first=Michelle |last=Smith |url=http://espn.go.com/espnw/news-opinion/6959684/wnba-playoffs-lauren-jackson-relishing-every-moment |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130124115901/http://espn.go.com/espnw/news-opinion/6959684/wnba-playoffs-lauren-jackson-relishing-every-moment |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 January 2013 |title=WNBA playoffs — Lauren Jackson relishing every moment |publisher=ESPN |date=1 January 2008 |access-date=4 May 2012}}

Jackson was active in other sports growing up, competing in athletics at school as well as tennis and netball. At the age 14, basketball commitments led to her giving up the other sports.

Jackson was recognised as one of the world's best basketball players by the time she was 21.{{cite journal |title=The weight of the world |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |pages=44–53 |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |first=Ian |last=Cockerill}} She has been described as Australia's best female player{{cite journal |title=Action Jackson |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |page=122}} and the best female basketball player in the world.{{cite news |url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/09/19/1063625218382.html |title=Jackson returns on top of the world |newspaper=The Age |date=20 September 2003 |access-date=5 May 2012}} She has said regarding being the best female basketball player in the world: "I don't really think about it. Nobody really talks to me like that. It's not something I'm conscious of. My family and people who have known me all my life, they see me for who I am, and crack open a beer or a bottle of wine with me. They know I have to train, but the rest of it is really laid-back."

Jackson plays two positions, power forward and centre, and has the ability to make jump shots and spinning bank shots.{{cite journal |last=Kallam |first=Clay |year=2007 |title=The WNBA vs. the guys at the playground: who would win? |journal=Women's Basketball |edition=7 |page=26 |url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=32781724&site=ehost-live |issue=3}}

Jackson had a rivalry with American basketball player Lisa Leslie. The rivalry reportedly started when Jackson was on tour in the United States with the Opals as a 16-year-old. The rivalry intensified in 2000 at the Olympics in the gold medal match when Jackson purposely pulled off Leslie's hair extension while both were trying to grab a rebound. Jackson treated the incident as a joke, saying "It was something to joke about even though we lost the gold medal." Leslie did not feel the same way about the extension pulling incident.{{cite web |url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/wnba/2002-08-16-sparks-storm_x.htm |title=Sparks spank Storm in opener |work=USA Today |date=16 August 2002 |access-date=5 May 2012}} The rivalry continued when Jackson transitioned to the WNBA and her Seattle Storm team played Leslie's Los Angeles Sparks, who at the time were the best team in the league. The rivalry was so intense that their coaches had to coach around it, sometimes choosing to keep one off the floor when the other was on. The coaches feared if they left the players on the floor together, their own player would foul out in an attempt to get the best of the other player. Leslie and Jackson have played together as team members in the WNBA's All-Star game. Their rivalry thawed somewhat by 2007 but they did not become friends.

Jackson was offered a scholarship with the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in 1996, when she was just 15, but her parents said no to this, as it required her to move from Albury to Canberra. The next year, she accepted a scholarship{{cite book |page=62 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} and joined the AIS basketball team in the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) for the 1997 season. The programme considers her one of its success stories.{{cite book |page=41 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} With Jackson leading a side composed of the best 16- to 17-year-old development players in the country, the AIS won the WNBL championship in the 1998–99 season.

Jackson joined the Canberra Capitals for the 1999–2000 season and helped them win the championship, recording 15 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks in a 67–50 win over the Adelaide Lightning in the grand final.{{cite news|url=https://wnbl.basketball/blog/news/last-time-they-met-2000-grand-final-throwback/|title=LAST TIME THEY MET: 2000 GRAND FINAL THROWBACK|work=wnbl.basketball|date=7 February 2019|access-date=17 March 2024}} She helped the Capitals return to the grand final in 2000–01, where they lost to the Sydney Panthers despite her 22 points and 20 rebounds.{{cite web|url=https://www.theage.com.au/sport/basketball/jackson-shows-her-true-worth-20020318-gdu23i.html|title=Jackson shows her true worth|work=theage.com.au|date=18 March 2002|access-date=17 March 2024|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20240317133632/https://www.theage.com.au/sport/basketball/jackson-shows-her-true-worth-20020318-gdu23i.html|archive-date=17 March 2024}} She won her third championship in 2001–02 with a victory over Sydney in the grand final. She was named grand final MVP for the first time after recording 29 points and 21 rebounds.

In December 2002, a Capitals' game against the Townsville Fire in Townsville was moved to the Townsville Entertainment and Convention Centre, which seated 5,000 people instead of at the Fire's normal 800-seat stadium, because it was felt Jackson would draw that large a crowd. She did, with 4,110 people showing up to the game and setting a regular season attendance record for the Fire. Canberra lost the match despite 23 points from Jackson, which was six below her average of 29 points per game at that point in the season.{{cite web |url=http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2002/12/01/1038712827391.html |title=Townsville rout Jackson threat |work=The Age |location=Melbourne, Australia |date=1 December 2002 |access-date=5 May 2012}} At the time, the attendance was the best ever for a regular season WNBL game, with only two Grand Finals games in the post season having more people in attendance. Jackson went on to lead the Capitals to the 2002–03 championship where she was named grand final MVP for the second time. She played with the Capitals in the 2003 FIBA Club World Cup for Women where she averaged 30.6 points and 11.4 rebounds per game.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2003-10-15/capitals-open-world-cup-account/1493430|title=Capitals open World Cup account|work=abc.net.au|date=15 October 2023|access-date=17 March 2024}}

In October of the 2003–04 season, Jackson had a 48-point game. This was her highest individual game point total at the time and is her single highest WNBL point scoring game.

At the conclusion of the 2005–06 season, Jackson had played 154 WNBL games and won five championships.

In November 2006, Jackson indicated to the media that she might be interested in playing in the men's National Basketball League (NBL). The NBL confirmed that the competition's rules would not stop Jackson, or any other female, from participating in the league should a club wish to sign her.{{cite web|url=http://www.nbl.com.au/default.aspx?s=newsdisplay&aid=4295|title=NBL would welcome Jackson|work=NBL.com.au|date=30 November 2006|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070915101045/http://www.nbl.com.au/default.aspx?s=newsdisplay&aid=4295|archive-date=15 September 2007|access-date=31 August 2024}}

Jackson returned to the Capitals for the second half of the 2009–10 WNBL season{{cite web |url=http://www.theage.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-heading-back-to-the-wnbl-20091125-jr1j.html |title=Lauren Jackson heading back to the WNBL |work=The Age |date=25 November 2009 |access-date=3 May 2012}} and helped them win another championship.{{cite web |url=http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8220786 |title=Canberra Capitals eyeing Lauren Jackson |work=Channel Nine |location=Melbourne, Australia |access-date=5 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140311152527/http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8220786 |archive-date=11 March 2014 |url-status=dead}}

File:Lauren Jackson.jpg

In 2011, Jackson signed a unique $1 million three-season, five-year deal to play with the Capitals.{{cite web |url=http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/battle-for-fair-wages-begins-with-the-remote-20111017-1ltcm.html |title=Lauren Jackson In $1 million Deal To Play Basketball |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |location=Sydney, Australia |date=18 October 2011 |access-date=4 May 2012}} This was the most an Australian woman had ever been offered to play for a domestic side in the country. Injuries prevented Jackson from playing in the 2012–13 WNBL season.[http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/basketball/jackson-in-holding-pattern-as-capitals-sweat-on-decision-20130501-2ithe.html Jackson in holding pattern as Capitals sweat on decision], The Canberra Times For the 2013–14 season, the Capitals missed the deadline date to sign Jackson and led her to play in China instead.

Jackson re-joined the Capitals for the 2014–15 WNBL season[http://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-confident-of-playing-in-world-cup-canberra-capitals-season-20140808-10211n.html Lauren Jackson confident of playing in World Cup, Canberra Capitals season], The Sydney Morning Herald but did not join the team until December 2014 after undergoing hip surgery in September.{{cite web |title=Lauren Jackson solid in injury return as Canberra Capitals hold off Adelaide |date=19 December 2014 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210619181928/https://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-solid-in-injury-return-as-canberra-capitals-hold-off-adelaide-20141219-12am61.html |archive-date=19 June 2021 |url-status=live |url=http://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-solid-in-injury-return-as-canberra-capitals-hold-off-adelaide-20141219-12am61.html}} Jackson appeared in six games, losing only one as she averaged 13 points and seven rebounds.[http://www.foxsportspulse.com/team_info.cgi?c=1-4478-56411-320638-21310622&a=STATS Statistics for UC Capitals playing in 2014/15], Canberra Capitals. Retrieved 8 February 2015. She required weekly drainings of synovial fluid out of her knee and eventually her knee gave in.Dutton, Chris. [http://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-wants-to-end-her-career-on-my-terms-after-another-injury-setback-20150204-135jrs.html Lauren Jackson wants to end her career 'on my terms' after another injury setback]. The Sydney Morning Herald (9 February 2015) A subsequent MRI scan showed further damage to her knee that required new surgeries, forcing Jackson to sit out the rest of the season.[http://www.wnbl.com.au/index.php?id=377&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=5493&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=137&cHash=6594de940f Jackson Ruled Out for Remainder Of Season] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208081601/http://www.wnbl.com.au/index.php?id=377&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=5493&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=137&cHash=6594de940f |date=8 February 2015 }}, Canberra Capitals She did not play for the Capitals in 2015–16 and the team released her from her contract in January 2016.

Jackson came out of retirement at the age of 40 to play for the Albury Wodonga Bandits of the NBL1 East in the 2022 NBL1 season.{{Cite web |date=2022-04-23 |title=Lauren Jackson makes stunning return to basketball after coming out of retirement |url=https://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/lauren-jackson-makes-stunning-return-to-basketball-after-coming-out-of-retirement/news-story/1ca0af5469443726cce545613700081a |access-date=2022-04-23 |website=Fox Sports |language=en}} She was named league MVP{{cite web|url=https://www.bnsw.com.au/news/2022-coles-express-nbl1-east-spalding-waratah-league-mvp-awards/|title=2022 COLES EXPRESS NBL1 EAST & SPALDING WARATAH LEAGUE | MVP AWARDS|work=BNSW.com.au|date=26 August 2022|access-date=6 September 2022}} and helped the Bandits win the NBL1 East championship.{{cite web|url=https://nbl1.com.au/news/nbl1-east-recap-or-womens-grand-final/east/|title=NBL1 East Recap | Women's Grand Final|work=NBL1.com.au|date=28 August 2022|access-date=8 September 2023}}

In August 2022, Jackson signed with the Southside Flyers for the 2022–23 WNBL season.{{Cite news |url=https://wnbl.basketball/southside/news/lauren-jackson-joins-southside-flyers/ |title=LAUREN JACKSON JOINS SOUTHSIDE FLYERS | newspaper=Southside Flyers |date=24 August 2022 |access-date=2023-02-19 |author1=Iancoutts }} A February 2023 game against the Sydney Flames set a WNBL record crowd of 7,681 spectators due to the interest in Jackson's participation; however during the game an Achilles injury put Jackson out for the rest of the season.{{Cite news |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-05/lauren-jackson-out-for-rest-of-wnbl-season/101933374 |title=Lauren Jackson out for rest of WNBL season with Achilles tear | website=ABC News |date=5 February 2023 |access-date=2023-02-19}}

With the Flyers in the 2023–24 season, Jackson helped the team win the grand final series against the Perth Lynx.{{cite news|url=https://wnbl.basketball/blog/news/wnbl24-southside-flyers-cygnett-wnbl-champions/|title=WNBL24 SOUTHSIDE FLYERS CYGNETT WNBL CHAMPIONS|work=wnbl.basketball|date=17 March 2024|access-date=17 March 2024}} It marked her seventh WNBL championship.{{cite web|last=Randall|first=Michael|url=https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/basketball/womens-basketball/southside-flyers-storm-home-in-the-final-term-of-the-season-to-take-out-wnbl-title/news-story/819cad0891c2a2a6b8260e09f608a548?amp|title=Southside Flyers storm home in the final term of the season to take out WNBL title|work=Herald Sun|date=17 March 2024|access-date=17 March 2024|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20240317152153/https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/basketball/womens-basketball/southside-flyers-storm-home-in-the-final-term-of-the-season-to-take-out-wnbl-title/news-story/819cad0891c2a2a6b8260e09f608a548?amp&nk=6170025809cbb0a1909e96857ac48270-1710688922|archive-date=17 March 2024|quote=Make it a seventh WNBL title for the GOAT Lauren Jackson, 25 years after her first, and it looks increasingly likely she'll look to go on for another season in the domestic competition — and perhaps the Opals' Paris Olympic campaign.}}

Jackson joined the Albury Wodonga Bandits for the 2024 NBL1 East season.{{cite news|last=Woods|first=Dan|url=https://nbl1.com.au/news/jackson-this-is-the-roses-for-me/|title=Jackson: "This is the roses for me"|work=NBL1.com.au|date=8 April 2024|access-date=12 April 2024|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20240412113754/https://nbl1.com.au/news/jackson-this-is-the-roses-for-me/|archive-date=12 April 2024}} In May 2024, she had a game with 43 points and 22 rebounds{{cite news|last=Everett|first=Lachlan|url=https://nbl1.com.au/article/jackson-ages-like-fine-wine/|title=Jackson ages like fine wine|work=NBL1.com.au|date=7 May 2024|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240611105105/https://nbl1.com.au/article/jackson-ages-like-fine-wine|archive-date=11 June 2024}}{{cite news|last=Badkin|first=Liam|url=https://central.rookieme.com/basketball/nbl1-scorching-scorers-may-7/|title=NBL1 Scorching Scorers – May 7|work=central.rookieme.com|date=7 May 2024|access-date=9 May 2024}} and a game with 50 points and 19 rebounds.{{cite web|last=Pike|first=Chris|url=https://nbl1.com.au/article/recap-nbl1-east-or-round-7-saturday|title=Recap NBL1 East | Round 7 Saturday|work=NBL1.com.au|date=18 May 2024|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240611105242/https://nbl1.com.au/article/recap-nbl1-east-or-round-7-saturday|archive-date=11 June 2024}} She had another 50-point game in June.{{cite web|last=Pike|first=Chris|url=https://nbl1.com.au/article/recap-nbl1-east-or-round-11-sunday|title=Recap NBL1 East | Round 11 Sunday|work=NBL1.com.au|date=23 June 2024|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240624111453/https://nbl1.com.au/article/recap-nbl1-east-or-round-11-sunday|archive-date=24 June 2024}}

After undergoing a knee replacement following the 2024 Paris Olympics, Jackson once again retired from basketball.{{cite news |title=Basketball great Jackson reveals she needed a knee replacement while winning bronze for Australia at Olympics |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-19/basketball-great-lauren-jackson-reveals-paris-olympic-knee-pain/104617270 |access-date=19 November 2024 |work=ABC News |date=18 November 2024 |language=en-AU}}{{cite news |title=Lauren Jackson officially retires |url=https://nbl1.com.au/article/lauren-jackson-officially-retires |access-date=10 February 2025 |work=nbl1.com.au |date=10 February 2025}}

Seattle viewed Jackson as a franchise player. On the court in the WNBA, she was known for her sharp and stinging comments directed at other players. Opposition players knew they could get at Jackson by giving her sneaky fouls and nettling her back with some trash talk. While playing in the WNBA, she has dyed her hair different colours several times. She ranks 35th in the league for total played games with 308. She has played 9,958 minutes in the league and ranks 16th all time in this category. In her career, she has made 2056 field goals, ranking third all time in this category. She ranked fifth all time in the league with 4,456 field goal attempts. She ranked 34th overall career wise in the league with a field goal percentage of 46.1%. Career wise, she ranks 10th overall for three-point field goals with 430. She attempted 1219 three-point field goals in her career, ranking 10th on the league's all time leaderboard. She was ranked second all time in the league for turnover percentage with 9.4.

In 2001, Jackson was drafted first when she entered the WNBA draft in the fifth year of the league having a draft and was selected by the Seattle Storm. Her parents stayed with her in Seattle for the first month she played in the WNBA in 2001. Jackson's first season included 32 games played over the course of 11 weeks, a much more difficult competition in terms of total games compared to Australia's domestic league.{{cite journal |title=The weight of the world |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |pages=44–53 [53] |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |first=Ian |last=Cockerill}} She played in 21 games.{{cite web |url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/wnba/players/j/jacksla01w.html |title=Lauren Jackson WNBA Statistics |publisher=Basketball-Reference.com |access-date=4 May 2012}} Jackson ranked eighth in the league with 406 field goal attempts. In her debut game with the team, she scored 21 points. On 3 July 2001, Jackson set a WNBA record for most minutes played in a single game with 55 in a game against Washington that had four overtime periods. That season, she averaged 15.2 points per game, came in second for the WNBA's Rookie of the Year award. At the end of the first season with the Storm, Jackson required surgery on her right shoulder. She attempted 129 three-point field goals this season, ranking eighth in the league. She had a player efficiency rating of 22.5. Jackson ranked seventh in the league in this category for the season, and was a WNBA All Star.

Jackson was a WNBA All Star again in 2002, and played in the All Star Game. She averaged 17.2 points per game. She was the team's captain, the youngest in the WNBA at the time. During one game which was attended by 11,000 fans, the fans loudly chanted her name. In 2002, Carrie Graf, who had been an assistant coach on the Australian national team from when Jackson for played for it, changed coaching positions in the WNBA from Phoenix to Seattle specifically to make Jackson feel more comfortable playing for the team. She was estimated to have earned $200,000 to play for the Storm in 2002.

In the second game of the 2002 final series against the Los Angeles Sparks, Jackson scored only four points in a loss by her team, after being kneed in the groin by Lisa Leslie. In 2002, she only earned one technical foul the whole season. Jackson's mother spent two weeks in Seattle with her during this season. At the end of the second season with the Storm, she had severe pain as a result of shin splints. Jackson and Sue Bird first played together this season and would continue to play together for the Storm into the 2010 season. During the 2002 season, Jackson's team got into a fight when they played the Los Angeles Sparks.

In the 2002 season, Jackson played in 28 games, averaging 31.5 minutes per game.{{cite web |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/wnba/players/415/career;_ylt=AnKv71zu1DztegIH7IR2AcJbcLoF |title=Lauren Jackson — Seattle Storm — Career Statistics — WNBA |publisher=Yahoo! Sports |access-date=4 May 2012}} She averaged 2.9 blocks per game,. and attempted 120 three-point field goals this season, ranking 10th in the league. Jackson ranked second in the league with 462 field goal attempts, and made 186 field goals, ranking sixth in the league in this category. She had a player efficiency of 24.5. Jackson ranked fourth in the league in this category this season. She was ranked first in the league for turnover percentage with 8.6.

Jackson was a WNBA All Star again in 2003, and was named to the 2003 All-WNBA First Team. This season, she averaged 21.2 points per game. By the end of the season, she had scored 1,000 points in the league, the youngest player to date to score that many points in the league. She was named the league's MVP, and was one of the top five women in the league for average number of rebounds per games and blocks per game. She called Tom Maher and her Seattle Storm coach Anne Donovan after winning the award, and cried for an hour after learning she won. She was the first non-American to be named the league's MVP and the youngest player to earn this honour.

In the 2003 season, Jackson played in 33 games, averaging 33.6 minutes per game. She averaged 1.9 blocks per game. She ranked first in the league for field goals, with 254, for total points with 698, for field goal attempts with 526, and for win shares with 9.2, and offensive win shares with 6.7. She also ranked first in the league with 21.2 points per game average, and had a player efficiency of 32.1, likewise ranking first in the league, and led the league with win share per 48 minutes with 40.0%. She ranked third in the league with a field goal percentage of 48.3%, and for total minutes played with 1,109.

In 2004, her Seattle Storm team won the WNBA Championship. She was again named to the 2004 All-WNBA First Team. This season, she averaged 20.5 points per game. She played in 31 games, averaging 34.5 minutes per game. She averaged 2.0 blocks per game. She made 220 field goals and ranked second in the league in this category. She ranked fourth in the league with 460 field goal attempts. She ranked seventh in the league with a field goal percentage of 47.8%, and her three-point field goal shooting percentage was 45.2%, ranking third in the league. She ranked first in the league for total points with 634, and for points per game with 20.52 points on average, and had a player efficiency of 28.0, second in the league in this category. She ranked third in the league with a true shooting percentage of 59.0%, and ranked first in the league for offensive win shares with 6.1.

Jackson was a WNBA All Star again in 2005, and was named to the 2005 All-WNBA First Team. This season, she played in 34 games, averaging 34.6 minutes per game. She averaged 17.6 points per game, and 2.0 blocks per game. She ranked third in the league for her 34 total games, and for her 206 field goals. She ranked fifth in the league for total minutes played with 1,176, and for field goal attempts, with 450. She attempted 118 three-point field goals this season, ranking eighth in the league, and was ranked first for total defensive rebounds with 217. She had a player efficiency of 26.7. She ranked first in the league in this category this season. She was also ranked first in the league for turnover percentage with 10.0, in the offensive rating category with 117.6, for offensive win shares with 6.0, for win shares with 8.2, and with win share per 48 minutes with 33.3%.

File:Lauren Jackson 2.JPG

Jackson was still with the Seattle Storm in 2006, coached by Anne Donovan. She was a WNBA All Star again in 2006, and was named to the 2006 All-WNBA First Team. In 2006, she was named to the WNBA All-Decade Team. Jackson of this said "That was cool. It was brilliant to be recognised like that in America. It's a tough, emotionally draining lifestyle there but it's fun." She ranked first in the league with the number of free throws with 170.

This season, she averaged 19.5 points per game, she played in 30 games, averaging 28.4 minutes per game. She averaged 1.7 blocks per game. She made 193 field goals and ranked seventh in the league. She ranked second in the league with a field goal percentage of 53.5% She had a player efficiency of 34.9, and ranked first in the league in that category that season.

She ranked first in the league with a true shooting percentage of 65.8%. In effective field goal percentage, she finished first in the league with 57.5%. She ranked first in the league in the offensive rating category with 135.3. She ranked first in the league for offensive win shares with 7.4. She ranked first in the league for win shares with 8.8. She ranked first in the league with win share per 48 minutes with 50.0%. At the end of the season, she had stress fractures in both of her shins, and her team exited the post season before making it to the league championship series.

In 2006, she was also inducted into the AIS's 25 Best of the Best program.{{cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/basketball/jackson-pays-tribute-as-ais-marks-25-years-at-top/2006/08/31/1156817033241.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060903031000/http://www.smh.com.au/news/basketball/jackson-pays-tribute-as-ais-marks-25-years-at-top/2006/08/31/1156817033241.html |url-status=live |title=Jackson pays tribute as AIS marks 25 years at top |first=Jacquelin |last=Magnay |date=1 September 2006 |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |archive-date=3 September 2006 |access-date=30 January 2017}}

Jackson was a WNBA All Star for the sixth time in 2007. On 24 July 2007, she scored 47 points in a game against Washington and set a league high single game scoring total that she currently shares.{{cite news |url=http://news.theage.com.au/sport/lauren-jackson-ties-wnba-47point-record-20070725-po1.html |title=Lauren Jackson ties WNBA 47-point record |newspaper=The Age |location=Melbourne, Australia |date=25 July 2007 |access-date=3 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203104609/http://news.theage.com.au/sport/lauren-jackson-ties-wnba-47point-record-20070725-po1.html |archive-date=3 December 2013 |url-status=dead}} In 2007, she was named the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year. She was also named to the 2007 All-WNBA First Team. She averaged 23.8 points per game, the most points she had averaged per game for a season in the WNBA. She was also named the league's Most Valuable Player.{{cite book |title=30 Australian sports legends |first1=Loretta |last1=Barnard |first2=Gregory |last2=Rogers |location=North Sydney, N.S.W. |publisher=Random House Australia |year=2008 |isbn=9781741662863 |oclc=271421922 |chapter=Basketball: Lauren Jackson, gem of a player |pages=7–11}}{{cite news |last=James |first=By |url=http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/lauren-jackson-worlds-best/story-e6frg1wu-1111114358114 |title=Aussie basketballer Lauren Jackson is world's best |newspaper=Perth Now |date=5 September 2007 |access-date=5 May 2012}} In voting, she received 473 points, with her nearest vote-getting competitor, Becky Hammon, getting only 254. In 2007, she became the first WNBA player to score 4,000 total points the youngest player, as well as the fastest woman to reach the milestone; being named the league MVP gave her a $18,238 bonus and a Tiffany & Co. designed trophy.

Jackson played in 31 games in 2007.{{cite web |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/wnba/players/415 |title=Lauren Jackson — Seattle Storm — WNBA |publisher=Yahoo! Sports |access-date=4 May 2012}} She averaged 32.9 minutes per game. Her field goal percentage was 51.9%. She averaged 22.4 points, 2.16 blocks, and 9.3 rebounds per game at the time of the All-Star Break, leading the league in points and blocks, and was second for rebounds. At the All-Star break, she had a three-point shooting percentage of 40.5%. At the end of the season, she expressed an interest in ending her WNBA career with the Storm as she could not see herself playing elsewhere. Her three-point field goal percentage was 40.2%. She had a free throw shooting percentage of 88.3%. She averaged 2.0 blocks per game. She made 258 field goals, ranking second in the league in this category. She ranked third in the league with 497 field goal attempts. She ranked third in the league, with a field goal percentage of 51.9%. She ranked first in the league in defensive rebounds, with 220, for total rebounds, with 300, and for total average number of rebounds per game, with 9.7.

Jackson had a player efficiency rating of 35.0, ranking first in the league in this category this season. She ranked first in the league with a true shooting percentage of 63.3%. In effective field goal percentage, she finished first in the league, with 56.8%. She was also ranked first in the league for turnover percentage, with 8.8, for her offensive rating category of 127.7, for offensive win shares with 7.9, win shares with 9.5, and win share per 48 minutes with 44.6%. In all, she finished the season ranked in the top ten players in no less than twenty-eight different statistical categories.

In 2008, Jackson averaged 20.2 points per game.{{cite web |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/08/24/2344692.htm?site=olympics/2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080824182350/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/08/24/2344692.htm?site=olympics/2008 |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 August 2008 |title=Opals humbled in gold medal match – 2008 Beijing Olympic Games |work=ABC Grandstand |publisher=ABC |date=24 August 2008 |access-date=2 May 2012}} In July 2008, she scored 33 points for the Seattle Storm in an 84–71 win against Washington. This was her season-high scoring high. On the same day she was officially named to the 2008 Australian Olympic squad,{{cite web |url=http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/topstrength-opals-set-for-last-frontier-20080704-31k6.html |title=Top-strength Opals set for last frontier |work=The Canberra Times |date=4 July 2008 |access-date=1 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315222030/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/topstrength-opals-set-for-last-frontier-20080704-31k6.html |archive-date=15 March 2014}} and the Seattle Storm went out of the post season in the first round.{{cite journal |last=Kallam |first=Clay |date=November 2008 |title=The Sun and the Storm quickly eclipsed |journal=Women's Basketball |edition=8 |page=22 |publisher=University of Canberra |issue=6}} In 2008, she played in 21 games. She averaged 33.1 minutes per game. Her field goal percentage was 45.2%, and her three-point field goal percentage was 29.5%. She had a free throw shooting percentage of 93.4%, averaged 1.6 blocks per game, and had a player efficiency of 26.7, ranking third in the league in this category this season.

In 2009, Jackson became a WNBA All Star for the seventh time and was named to the 2009 All-WNBA First Team. This season, she averaged 19.4 points per game. She played in 26 games, in which she averaged 32.3 minutes per game. Her field goal percentage was 46.3%. Her three-point field goal percentage was 43.0%, she had a free throw shooting percentage of 79.7%, and her three-point field goal shooting percentage was 43.0%, ranking fifth in the league. Her player efficiency was 26.1, the highest efficiency of any player that season, and her win share of 33.3% per 48 minutes was the highest also.

Jackson played for the WNBA All-Stars at the Stars at the Sun game in 2010, and her Seattle Storm team won the WNBA Championship. She was named to the 2010 All-WNBA First Team. This season, she averaged 20.5 points per game. On 2 September 2010, Jackson was presented her third MVP Award at the Seattle Storm's Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the Phoenix Mercury. On 17 September 2010, the Storm beat the Atlanta Dream to win the WNBA championship for the second time. Jackson was named the finals MVP.{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/wnba/columns/story?columnist=voepel_mechelle&id=5582104 |title=Second title even sweeter for Storm |last=Voepel |first=Mechelle |date=16 September 2010 |publisher=ESPN |access-date=17 September 2010}} In 2011, she was voted in by fans as one of the Top 15 players in the fifteen-year history of the WNBA.{{cite web |last=Stanchak |first=Scott |url=http://www.wnba.com/allstar/2011/top15_072311.html |title=Roundtable Discussion: WNBA Top 15 Players of All Time |publisher=WNBA |date=24 July 2011 |access-date=1 May 2012}}

Jackson played in 32 games. She averaged 31.0 minutes per game, with a field goal percentage of 46.2%, and a three-point field goal percentage of 34.6%. She had a free throw shooting percentage of 91.0%, She made 220 field goals, ranking sixth in the league, and ranked fifth in the league with 476 field goal attempts. She attempted 156 three-point field goals this season, ranking eighth in the league. She had a player efficiency of 27.9, ranking first in the league in this category this season. She also ranked first in the league in the offensive rating category with 126.3, for offensive win shares with 6.1, for win shares with 8.3, and for win share per 48 minutes with 40.0%. In the locker room, Jackson would talk to her teammates about topics like women's rights and Lady Gaga.

In 2011, Jackson had to deal with a number of injuries that kept her out for most of the season. She injured her hip in a game against the Tulsa Shock, and had surgery for it on 30 June. That season, Jackson played in only 13 games. She missed 20 games in a season that is 34 games long. After Jackson came back from her surgery, her team won eight out of her first nine games. She averaged 24.9 minutes per game. Jackson's field goal percentage was 39.6%, her three-point field goal percentage was 31.1%, and had a free throw shooting percentage of 88.4%. In June 2011, she signed a three-year contract with the team.

Jackson opted to sit out the early part of the 2012 season as she wanted to concentrate on making the national team and competing in the Olympics. She returned in September and helped the Storm in two blowout wins against the Tulsa Shock, but then an injury sustained during the Olympic preparations sidelined Jackson for three games. Upon her return on 21 September, Jackson became the fourth WNBA player to reach 6,000 points. Jackson wound up playing just 167 minutes on the regular season.[http://www.wnba.com/storm/news/playoffs120927.html Not Finished: 2012 Playoff Preview]. Kevin Pelton, StormBasketball.com[http://www.wnba.com/storm/news/jackson_6000.html?rss=true Lauren Jackson Reaches 6,000 Career Points], WNBA.com The Storm saw an early playoff exit in their series against the Minnesota Lynx, with Jackson attempting a buzzer beater in the third game but falling short.[http://www.wnba.com/storm/news/glance121002.html?rss=true Game at a Glance: Minnesota 73, Storm 72 (Game 3)], WNBA.com This turned out to be Jackson's final game in the WNBA.

A hamstring surgery forced Jackson out of the 2013 season,[http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-finally-discovers-cause-of-hamstring-problems/story-fnanosvn-1226537034035 Lauren Jackson finally discovers cause of hamstring problems], Herald Sun and she also missed the 2014 season after operating both her right knee and left Achilles in February.{{cite web |url=http://www.wnba.com/archive/wnba/storm/news/jackson_out_140212.html/ |title=Lauren Jackson to Miss 2014 Storm Season |access-date=2016-01-29 |date=12 February 2014 |publisher=WNBA.com (archived) |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115124319/http://www.wnba.com/archive/wnba/storm/news/jackson_out_140212.html |archive-date=15 January 2016 |url-status=dead}} The final year of her Storm contract was suspended in 2013 and dissolved under the new collective-bargaining agreement signed in 2014, but Seattle still retained Jackson's rights.{{cite web |url=http://seattletimes.com/html/storm/2024445722_storm03xml.html/ |title=Lauren Jackson has hip surgery, still wants to return to Storm |last=Evans |first=Jayda |access-date=2016-01-29 |date=2 September 2014 |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer}} During her 2014 recovery, Jackson expressed interest in returning to Seattle in 2015, saying that despite so much time sidelined by injury, "I've just had too good of a career there to let that fall by the wayside." However, these hopes of returning to the WNBA and the Storm for the 2015 season were sidelined when Jackson had further surgery on her right knee in the spring of 2015.{{cite web |url=http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlesports/2015/05/12/seattle-storm-lauren-jackson-to-miss-third-straight-season-in-2015/ |title=Seattle Storm: Lauren Jackson to miss third straight season in 2015 |last=Cohen |first=Stephen |access-date=2016-01-29 |date=12 May 2015 |work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer}} Her attentions turned to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. However, in November 2015, Jackson announced that her rehabilitation had suffered a setback that would keep her from practising until January 2016. Upon taking the court again, she stated she would decide in February 2016 if she would participate in what would be her fifth Olympic games or retire from the sport.{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/14218490/lauren-jackson-seattle-storm-hits-setback-recovery-knee-surgery |title=Lauren Jackson hits knee setback, will decide on retiring in February |access-date=2016-01-29 |date=24 November 2015 |publisher=ESPN (AP)}} Her retirement was announced one month later.{{Cite web |url=http://storm.wnba.com/thank-you-lj/ |title=Seattle Storm: Thank You LJ |access-date=13 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160410005549/http://storm.wnba.com/thank-you-lj/ |archive-date=10 April 2016 |url-status=dead}}

{{WNBA player statistics legend}}

{{WNBA player statistics start}}

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2001

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 29 || 29 || 34.5 || .367 || .310 || .727 || 6.7 || 1.5 || 1.9 || 2.2 || 1.83 || 15.2

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2002

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 28 || 28 || 31.5 || .403 || .350 || .756 || 6.8 || 1.5 || 1.1 || 2.9 || 1.68 || 17.2

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2003

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 33 || 33 || 33.6 || .483 || .317 || .825 || 9.3 || 1.9 || 1.2 || 1.9 || 2.09 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|21.2°

|-

|style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;"| 2004{{sup|†}}

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 31 || 31 || 34.5 || .478 || .452 || .811 || 6.7 || 1.6 || 1.0 || 2.0 || 2.06 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|20.5°

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2005

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 34 || 34 || 34.6 || .458 || .288 || .834 || 9.2 || 1.7 || 1.1 || 2.0 || 1.74 || 17.6

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2006

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 30 || 30 || 28.3 || .535 || .377 || .899 || 7.7 || 1.6 || 0.8 || 1.7 || 1.33 || 19.5

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2007

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 31 || 31 || 32.9 || .519 || .402 || .883 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|9.7° || 1.3 || 1.0 || 2.0 || 1.81 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|23.8°

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2008

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 21 || 21 || 33.0 || .452 || .295 || .934 || 7.0 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 1.6 || 1.90 || 20.2

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2009

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 26 || 26 || 32.4 || .463 || .430 || .797 || 7.0 || 0.8 || 1.5 || 1.7 || 1.65 || 19.2

|-

|style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;"| 2010^†

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 32 || 32 || 31.0 || .462 || .346 || .910 || 8.3 || 1.2 || 0.9 || 1.2 || 1.44 || 20.5

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2011

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 13 || 13 || 24.8 || .396 || .311 || .884 || 4.9 || 0.3 || 1.0 || 0.8 || 1.31 || 12.2

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2012

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 9 || 9 || 24.8 || .425 || .311 || .720 || 4.9 || 0.3 || 1.0 || 0.8 || 1.30 || 12.2

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| Career

| style="text-align:left;"|12 years, 1 team

| 317 || 317 || 31.9 || .460 || .351 || .842 || 7.7 || 1.4 || 1.1 || 1.8 || 1.74 || 18.9

{{S-end}}

{{WNBA player statistics start}}

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2002

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 2 || 2 || 34.0 || .346 || .000 || .714 || 5.0 || 1.5 || 1.5 || 3.0 || 2.00 || 11.5

|-

|style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;"| 2004^†

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 8 || 8 || 35.9 || .469 || .727 || .897 || 7.5 || 1.4 || 1.0 || 1.1 || 2.00 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|19.6°

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2005

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 3 || 3 || 34.0 || .436 || .308 || .833 || 8.0 || 0.7 || 1.3 || 1.3 || 2.67 || 14.3

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2006

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 3 || 3 || 30.3 || .536 || .286 || .917 || 8.0 || 0.7 || 0.7 || 2.3 || 1.67 || 18.0

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2007

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 2 || 2 || 34.0 || .565 || .300 || 1.000 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|11.5° || 0.5 || 1.0 || 1.5 || 2.50 || 19.0

|-

|style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;"| 2010^†

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 7 || 7 || 36.1 || .465 || .314 || .836 || style="background:#D3D3D3"|9.6° || 1.1 || 1.7 || 1.4 || 1.86 || 21.6

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2011

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 3 || 3 || 27.3 || .382 || .385 || .700 || 3.7 || 0.3 || 0.3 || 1.3 || 1.33 || 15.0

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| 2012

| style="text-align:left;"| Seattle

| 3|| 3 || 30.3 || .278 || .273 || .700 || 7.7 || 1.0 || 1.1 || 1.5 || 0.33 || 10.0

|-

| style="text-align:left;"| Career

| style="text-align:left;"|8 years, 1 team

| 31|| 31 || 33.6 || .443 || .376 || .841 || 7.8 || 1.0 || 1.1 || 1.5 || 1.81 || 17.5

{{s-end}}

In December 2006, Jackson moved to South Korea to play for Samsung Bichumi of the Women's Korean Basketball League. In February 2007, she was named Most Valuable Player of the league's all-star game.{{cite news |url=http://news.theage.com.au/sport/lauren-jackson-bags-56-points-in-korea-20070312-1td.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20121230171429/http://news.theage.com.au/sport/lauren-jackson-bags-56-points-in-korea-20070312-1td.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 December 2012 |title=Lauren Jackson bags 56 points in Korea |newspaper=The Age |location=Melbourne, Australia |date=12 March 2007 |access-date=3 May 2012}} In March, she set a league record with 56 points in a game against Kumho Redwings. It eclipsed her previous personal record of 48 points in a game for Canberra in the WNBL in October 2003. She was named the league's Most Valuable Player after averaging 30.2 points per game.

Immediately following her season in Korea, Jackson moved to Russia where she was paid six figures for a one-month stint with WBC Spartak Moscow Region.{{cite journal |journal=Play up |publisher=Basketball Australia |edition=19–25 February |year=2012 |title=The Next Step |first=Davin |last=Sgargetta |page=24 |location=South Melbourne, Australia |editor=Brad Graham Creative}} The team had just won the 2006–07 EuroLeague.{{cite web|url=https://www.fibaeurope.com/compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2007.roundID_5085.gameID_5099-16-A-1.html|title=SPARTAK TOO STRONG FOR VALENCIA|work=fibaeurope.com|date=1 April 2007|access-date=17 March 2024}} Her teammates included Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, and Tina Thompson. Jackson helped Spartak win the 2006–07 Russian Superleague title.

Jackson continued playing for Spartak in 2007–08 and 2008–09.{{cite web |url=http://www.wbcs.ru/team/player/main/59/2009 |script-title=ru:Джексон Лорен |publisher=WBC Spartak Moscow Region |language=ru |access-date=13 May 2012}}{{Dead link|date=July 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The team won the 2007–08 Russian Superleague title as well as the 2007–08 EuroLeague and 2008–09 EuroLeague. She scored 35 points in a EuroLeague game on 11 April 2008 against UMMC Ekaterinburg. It was her highest single-game scoring total in a Euroleague game. She averaged 23.6 points and 7.1 rebounds per game in 2007–08.

In 2009, Jackson had an option of extending her contract with Spartak for two more years. However, following the assassination of team owner Shabtai Kalmanovich, she decided against extending her contract.{{cite web |url=http://www.sports.ru/basketball/50269578.html |script-title=ru:Лорен Джексон покинет подмосковный "Спартак" и продолжит карьеру в Австралии |publisher=Sports.ru |language=ru |access-date=13 May 2012 |date=25 November 2009 }} She later returned to Spartak for the 2010–11 season. On 3 December 2010, she was named the EuroLeague Women Player of the Week after recording 28 points and 14 rebounds against VICI Aistes.{{cite web |url=http://fibaeurope.com/euroleaguewomen/cid_-tmRPCfrIrYRSO2M5V49E1.playerID_27860.compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2012.roundID_8592.teamID_1494.coid_WOY0whEHHJs6v4tVxyWYE1.articleMode_on.html |title=Lauren Jackson Is Player of the Week | EuroLeague Women |publisher=FIBA Europe |date=3 December 2010 |access-date=4 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304030101/http://www.fibaeurope.com/compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2012.roundID_8592.teamID_1494.playerID_27860.coid_%7B818880EA-B391-453D-86E4-4DDFEFC82239%7D.articleMode_on.html |archive-date=4 March 2016}}{{cite web |url=http://fibaeurope.com/euroleaguewomen/cid_-tmRPCfrIrYRSO2M5V49E1.playerID_27860.compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2012.roundID_8592.teamID_1494.coid_J-0Ei9SJIxghtR24rg1Cp2.articleMode_on.html |title=Sparta&K Hammer VICI Aistes | EuroLeague Women |publisher=FIBA Europe |date=1 December 2010 |access-date=4 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303215825/http://www.fibaeurope.com/compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2012.roundID_8592.teamID_1494.playerID_27860.coid_%7B4FE00EB0-9713-4BBA-ABDD-B084D6A04CCE%7D.articleMode_on.html |archive-date=3 March 2016}} She averaged 17.3 points and 8.4 rebounds per game prior to leaving the team in early January 2011 because of an injury, returning to Australia for her recovery.{{cite web |url=http://fibaeurope.com/euroleaguewomen/cid_-tmRPCfrIrYRSO2M5V49E1.playerID_27860.compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2012.roundID_8592.teamID_1494.coid_LANDk8mjHt2f9K39HUgOh3.articleMode_on.html |title=Out-Of-Action Jackson | EuroLeague Women |publisher=FIBA Europe |date=17 May 2010 |access-date=4 May 2012}} Part of her treatment involved getting an MRI. According to Jackson, she left Russia for Australia because "I couldn't move, the swelling was very obvious, and the pain was just a little bit too painful. That's when I got home to all these messages and e-mails from people back in Australia who had seen the scans and said 'you need to come back (to Australia) and start your rehab right away'."

File:LAUREN JACKSON ROS2012.JPG in April 2012|alt=A basketball player lines up a penalty throw. She is wearing a blue top and baggy shorts.]]

For the 2011–12 season, Jackson joined Ros Casares Valencia in Spain,{{cite web |url=http://fibaeurope.com/euroleaguewomen/cid_-tmRPCfrIrYRSO2M5V49E1.playerID_27860.compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2012.roundID_8592.teamID_1494.html |title=Lauren Jackson | EuroLeague Women |publisher=FIBA Europe |access-date=4 May 2012}}{{cite web |url=http://fibaeurope.com/euroleaguewomen/cid_-tmRPCfrIrYRSO2M5V49E1.playerID_27860.compID_jr6ZiXqeGhMBtfq1yxqV83.season_2012.roundID_8592.teamID_1494.coid_N0c1mSBEG1YrcI-Ce2AsK3.articleMode_on.html |title=USK Sign Penicheiro; Jackson in Valencia | EuroLeague Women |publisher=FIBA Europe |date=22 March 2012 |access-date=4 May 2012}} playing in the Liga Femenina and the EuroLeague. She ranked 16th in the league for three-point field goal shooting percentage at 41.5% and 17th in the league for three-point field goals made per game at 1.4. She scored 16 points on 29 March 2012 against Sparta&K M.R. Vidnoje, her highest total number of points in a single game in the 2011–12 season. She helped the team win the 2011–12 EuroLeague championship.{{cite web|url=https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ros-casares-wins-debut-euroleague-women-title-17467|title=Ros Casares wins debut Euroleague Women title|work=hurriyetdailynews.com|date=2 April 2012|access-date=17 March 2024}}

For the 2013–14 season, Jackson joined the Heilongjiang Shenda of the Women's Chinese Basketball Association.{{cite web |url=http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/1765672/lauren-jackson-signs-on-with-chinese-team/ |title=Lauren Jackson signs on with Chinese team |author=Smith, Steve |date=10 September 2013 |work=The Border Mail |access-date=11 March 2014}} She helped Heilongjiang qualify for the playoffs with averages of 22 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game, but a heel injury saw Jackson miss the post-season.[http://www.basketball.net.au/lauren-jackson-in-recovery-following-successful-surgery/ LAUREN JACKSON IN RECOVERY FOLLOWING SUCCESSFUL SURGERY], Basketball Australia During the season, she injured her meniscus. It was not deemed too grave at the time, but the knee problems would escalate during the following years.

File:Opals press conference at AIS with Lauren Jackson, Carrie Graf and Jenna O'Hea (part 1).ogv, and Jenna O'Hea at a 14 May 2012 press conference at the Australian Institute of Sport ]]

Jackson made the Australian under-20 team when she was only 14 years old. She was first called up to the senior national team when she was 16 years old. Her national team coaches Tom Maher and Carrie Graf say positive things about Jackson to the press and others but they rarely have said those things to Jackson. This is a strategy designed to help motivate Jackson to play better. Tom Maher who was the coach that called her up said, "She's so good she could be the greatest sportswoman in the world. She's that extraordinary." Graf has described Jackson as one of the superstars of the game.{{cite web |url=http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/olympics-2012/opals-star-taylor-out-of-the-olympics-20120411-1wpe9.html |title=Opals star Taylor out of the Olympics |work=The Canberra Times |date=11 April 2012 |access-date=1 May 2012 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304075017/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/olympics-2012/opals-star-taylor-out-of-the-olympics-20120411-1wpe9.html |url-status=dead }}

Jackson was a member of the 1997 Australian Junior Women's Team that won a silver medal at the World Championships in Brazil.{{cite book |page=52 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} (This is a booklet published by the Australian Sport Commission; has a copyright notice on the page following the cover page.) At the time, she was 16 years old. She averaged 14.3 points per game and 9.9 rebounds per game. She was also a member of the 1998 Australian Senior Women's Team that won a bronze medal at the World Championships in Germany.{{cite book |page=51 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} At the time, she was 16 years old and the youngest Australian woman ever to be named to the team. In the tournament, she averaged 10.9 points per game and 3.9 rebounds per game. She was a key part of the team's success. She was coached in the tournament by Tom Maher. She came off the bench to play.

In the Olympic test tournament in the lead up to the 2000 Summer Olympics, Jackson scored 18 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. She was a member of the 2000 Summer Olympics team that won a silver medal. At the 2000 Games, she scored 127 total points, had 23 total blocked shots, 12 steals and 67 rebounds. She averaged 15.9 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. In the 76–54 loss in the gold medal game, she scored 24 points and had 13 rebounds. She led the team in points scored and total rebounds. Going into the Olympics, her team was ranked third in the world. At the Sydney Games, she was coached by Tom Maher. The gold medal final was against the United States.

Jackson was a member of the Australian Senior Women's Team that won a silver medal in the World Championships in China in 2002.{{cite book |page=50 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} She averaged 23.1 points a game in the competition and was named to the All-Star team for the tournament. She averaged 5.4 rebounds per game. In a semi-final match against the United States, Jackson fouled Lisa Leslie three times in the first six minutes of the game. The team lost while Jackson spent most of the time on the bench. By January 2003, Jackson had played over 100 games with Australia's senior side. She competed in the 2003 World Championships and was named the International Basketball Federation's Most Valuable Player. At the FIBA Diamond Ball Tournament for Women 2004, she averaged 22.7 points and 14.0 rebounds per game.

Jackson was a member of the Australian senior team that won a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics,{{cite book |page=49 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} where she averaged 22.9 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. The gold medal final was against the United States. In 2006, she was a co-captain with Jenny Whittle of the Australian women's senior team that won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games.{{cite book |page=48 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}}{{cite book |title=Australia at the Commonwealth Games 1911–2006 : XVIII Commonwealth Games, 15–26 March, Melbourne 2006 |editor-last=Gallagher |editor-first=D. |first=Marion |last=Stewart-Hudson |publisher=Australian Commonwealth Games Association Inc. |year=2006 |isbn=9780958019019 |page=42 |chapter=Basketball — Women}}{{cite journal |page=7 |title=defensejobs Opals |year=2006 |publisher=Basketball Australia |location=Melbourne, Australia |journal=Basketball Australia Annual Report |edition=2006}} She played in the preliminary final against the Mozambique women's national basketball team,{{cite book |title=Australia at the Commonwealth Games 1911–2006 : XVIII Commonwealth Games, 15–26 March, Melbourne 2006 |editor-last=Gallagher |editor-first=D. |first=Marion |last=Stewart-Hudson |publisher=Australian Commonwealth Games Association Inc. |year=2006 |isbn=9780958019019 |page=43 |chapter=Basketball — Women}} and the gold deal match against New Zealand. Jackson was the captain of the Australian women's senior team that won a gold medal at the World Championships in Brazil in 2006 that beat Russia in the Gold Medal match. This was the first time Australia had ever earned gold in the event.{{cite web |url=http://www.foxsports.com.au/other-sports/basketball/jackson-reveals-all/story-e6frf3f3-1111112809352 |title=Jackson reveals all | Other Sports |work=Fox Sports |date=10 January 2007 |access-date=4 May 2012}} Jackson averaged 21.3 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. While the national team is called The Opals, Jackson asked Basketball Australia if they were to make rings for team members in honour of their win, if they would use diamonds instead of opals.

As captain of the 2008 Summer Olympics Australian women's team that won a silver medal at the Olympics,{{cite book |page=46 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} Jackson averaged 17.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. In the FIBA Diamond Ball Tournament for Women 2008, Jackson averaged 20.3 points per game and 5.0 rebounds per game. In 2010, she was a member of the senior women's national team that competed at the World Championships in the Czech Republic.{{cite book |page=45 |title=AIS Basketball 2011 |publisher=Australian Sports Commission |author1=Australian Institute of Sport |year=2011 |author2=Basketball Australia |location=Canberra}} She averaged 13.4 points per game and 7.9 rebounds per game.

File:Lauren Jackson at day two of the Opals camp.jpg

Jackson missed the first training camp for the 2012 Summer Olympics squad in March,{{cite web |url=http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/basketball/cambages-tall-order-20120323-1vpq4.html |title=Cambage's tall order |work=The Canberra Times |date=24 March 2012 |access-date=1 May 2012 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304040423/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/basketball/cambages-tall-order-20120323-1vpq4.html |url-status=dead}} but was back by April to train with the team.{{cite web |last=Evans |first=Jayda |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/womenshoopsblog/2017892535_lauren_jackson_wins_euroleague.html |title=Lauren Jackson wins EuroLeague title |work=The Seattle Times |location=Seattle, Washington |date=2 April 2012 |access-date=4 May 2012}} In June, Jackson tore her adductor magnus muscle during the Australian training camp in the Czech Republic. She was one of the models for the 2012 Australian Olympic team uniforms,{{cite news |agency=Getty Images |first=Cameron |last=Spencer |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/3_May_2012/lauren-jackson-models-australia27s-opening-ceremony-uniform/3989144 |title=Lauren Jackson models Australia's opening ceremony uniform |work=ABC News |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=4 May 2012}} and chosen to carry the Australian flag during the Opening Ceremony for the 2012 Olympic Games.{{cite news |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |title=Jackson to carry Australian flag |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-07-27/jackson-to-carry-australian-flag/4158060 |access-date=27 July 2012}} The hamstring injury prevented Jackson from getting much play during the Olympic tournament, having only had significant court time in the matches against USA and the bronze medal play-off with Russia.

After flying to Australia in February 2014 to operate on her heel and knee, Jackson committed to return to the Opals in time for the 2014 FIBA World Championship for Women. However, the delayed recovery of Jackson's knee led her to give up on the tournament to have her right hip operated on to fix a torn labrum in September 2014. She had gotten the tear while playing for Ros Casares Valencia in 2012 but went without surgery to not miss the then-upcoming Olympics. Jackson would later express interest in attending her fifth Olympic tournament during the 2016 Summer Olympics as a way to close her career, while also pursuing her long-standing dream of a gold medal. However, while attending the Opals training camp in Canberra, she announced her retirement saying her conditions were not improved enough and she needed an "absolute miracle" to get into shape.

Jackson returned to the Australia squad in 2022 for the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Sydney.{{cite press release |url=https://australia.basketball/2022-fiba-wwc-opals-team-bound-for-sydney/ |title=2022 FIBA WWC Opals Team Bound for Sydney |publisher=Basketball Australia |date=10 August 2022 |access-date=11 August 2022 |archive-date=10 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810095323/https://australia.basketball/2022-fiba-wwc-opals-team-bound-for-sydney/ |url-status=dead }} Australia went on to win the bronze medal, with Jackson recording 30 points and 7 rebounds in their victory over Canada.{{Cite web |url=https://www.fiba.basketball/womensbasketballworldcup/2022/news/fairytale-finish-for-legendary-jackson-as-she-carries-the-opals-to-bronze |title=Fairytale finish for Lauren Jackson: 30 points and the bronze | website=FIBA Basketball |access-date=2022-10-01}}

In February 2024, Jackson helped the Opals qualify for the 2024 Summer Olympics.{{cite web|url=https://olympics.com/en/news/lauren-jackson-announces-retirement-after-australia-secure-paris-2024-quota|title=Lauren Jackson announces retirement after helping Australia secure Paris 2024 quota spot: "I'm done"|work=olympics.com|date=11 February 2024|access-date=17 March 2024}} She initially intended to retire for a third time after the qualifying tournament, but the following month she was named in the Opals Olympic squad, who accepted her request to bring her children to the Olympics.{{cite web|last=Gates|first=Zachary|url=https://wwos.nine.com.au/olympics/games-paris-2024-basketball-lauren-jackson-retirement-opals-squad/86353fe1-c4c1-492b-a5fb-f38807f8bbb1|title=Aussie icon Lauren Jackson backflips on retirement after Basketball Australia fixes 'horrible' situation|work=wwos.nine.com.au|date=27 March 2024|access-date=27 March 2024}} Jackson had a reduced participation, with only twenty minutes and six points through the tournament, but became the first Australian athlete to win medals in five editions of the Olympic Games once she earned the bronze.{{cite web|url=https://olympics.com/en/news/paris-2024-olympics-australia-basketball-lauren-jackson-fifth-olympic-medal|title=With Paris 2024 bronze, Lauren Jackson becomes first Australian to win medals in five Olympic Games|work=IOC|author=Roy, Anjishnu |date=12 August 2024|access-date=15 August 2024}}{{cite web|url=https://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/no-action-jackson-legend-s-fifth-medal-comes-the-ezi-way-as-opals-claim-bronze-20240811-p5k1jw.html|title=No-action Jackson: Legend's fifth medal comes the Ezi way as Opals claim bronze|author=Baum, Greg|work=Sydney Morning Herald|date=12 August 2024|access-date=15 August 2024}}

A month after the 2024 Olympics, Jackson underwent a knee replacement. She subsequently retired from international duties for the final time.

Jackson served as head coach of the Albury Wodonga Bandits women's team in the 2019 NBL1 season.{{cite news |title=NBL1 2019: Lauren Jackson officially opens the door to potential comeback to basketball court |url=https://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/nbl1-2019-lauren-jackson-officially-opens-the-door-to-potential-comeback-to-basketball-court/news-story/0f1266e310d25b16855c92b76c6bef12 |access-date=19 November 2024 |work=Fox Sports |date=25 March 2019 |language=en}}{{cite news |title=Lauren Jackson honoured at Sport Australia Hall of Fame |url=https://nbl1.com.au/article/lauren-jackson-honoured-at-sport-australia-hall-of-fame |access-date=19 November 2024 |work=nbl1.com.au |date=19 November 2024 |quote=...coaching the women's Albury-Wodonga Bandits during the inaugural NBL1 season in 2019...}}

Jackson has had multiple injuries. In 2008, after the Olympics, she had surgery to fix her ankle. In 2009, she had two stress fractures in her back. In December 2010, she had an Achilles injury. She sustained the injury playing in Australia. Between January 2011 and February 2012, she had surgeries to assist with Achilles and hip injuries.{{cite web |url=http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/arti.asp?newsid=50600 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214195845/http://www.fiba.com/pages/eng/fc/news/lateNews/arti.asp?newsid=50600 |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 February 2012 |title=AUS – Encouraging signs for Jackson |publisher=Fiba.com |access-date=5 May 2012}} She had surgery on her left hip acetabular labrum in June 2011{{cite news |url=http://www.theage.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-set-for-surgery-20110630-1grln.html |title=Lauren Jackson set for surgery |newspaper=The Age |location=Melbourne, Australia |date=30 June 2011 |access-date=3 May 2012}}{{cite web |url=http://www.king5.com/home/Storms-Lauren-Jackson-to-have-hip-surgery-124736204.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130127024200/http://www.king5.com/home/Storms-Lauren-Jackson-to-have-hip-surgery-124736204.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=27 January 2013 |title=Storm's Lauren Jackson to have hip surgery | KING5.com Seattle |publisher=King5.com |date=29 June 2011 |access-date=5 May 2012}} in Vail, Colorado at the Richard Steadman Clinic.{{cite web |first=Steve |last=Kelley |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/stevekelley/2015589444_kelley13.html |title=Steve Kelley | Storm star Lauren Jackson's rehab already far ahead of schedule |work=The Seattle Times |location=Seattle, Washington |access-date=5 May 2012}} She said of the surgery: "This is a really, really tough decision, but after talking with my doctors and my family, we felt that immediate surgery is the best course of action. With something painful like this hip injury, I want to be especially proactive. I plan to stay in Seattle to be here with my team and try my best to be back on the court as soon as possible. My goal is to be at full strength by the end of the season." She did rehabilitation twice a day in an attempt to speed her recovery. Afterwards, Jackson injured her right knee, requiring more surgery in 2012. Another knee injury while playing in China in 2014 degraded into arthritis, and her knee required much surgical intervention during the following years, including a long hospitalisation in January 2016 after her knee joint suffered a postsurgical infection. All the consequences of this knee problem led to Jackson's first retirement from pro basketball in March 2016.[https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/15100331/australia-opals-star-lauren-jackson-announces-retirement-international-basketball Australian legend, former WNBA MVP Lauren Jackson retires] During her WNBL return in 2022, Jackson played several games with a broken foot before a tear in her right Achilles ended her season in February 2023.

After retiring, Jackson went through a partial knee reconstruction,[https://www.espn.com.au/espnw/story/_/id/17724730/lauren-jackson-talks-exclusively-espn-pregnancy-liz-cambage-opals-wnba Lauren Jackson talks about pregnancy, Liz Cambage, Opals] and decided to quit the painkillers and sleeping pills that she had been taking since the age of 20 to deal with chronic pain, leading to drug withdrawal.[https://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/wnbl/lauren-jackson-fox-sports-documentary-great-australian-basketballer-explains-tough-period-postretirement/news-story/6f64dd6c469e7be5d2b8a3f93c42e576 Lauren Jackson Fox Sports documentary: Great Australian basketballer explains tough period post-retirement] Her unretirement in the 2020s had Jackson using medicinal cannabis to reduce her pain.[https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/storm/storm-legend-lauren-jackson-gets-second-chance-to-revive-career-and-looks-like-her-old-self/ Storm legend Lauren Jackson gets second chance to revive career, and looks like her old self]

By 2003, Jackson was being recognised around the world from countries like Portugal and Japan. She said of her private life: "I don't really have a private life. I've found it difficult as an athlete, to maintain a relationship. It's not one of my best points but I've got family and friends who compensate for that. When I was younger I went out and had a lot of fun, and there were moments when people criticised me for that, and you know what, I'm young, I'm going to do that, and anyone who is going to get on me for that ... I really didn't care."{{cite web |url=http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-in-her-own-words--20110128-1a89c.html |title=Lauren Jackson in her own words |work=Brisbane Times |date=29 January 2011 |access-date=5 May 2012}} She does not like to go out to clubs because she gets recognised by too many people, and everyone wants to comment on her height.{{cite journal |title=The weight of the world |issn=1447-4697 |journal=Sport Monthly |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |location=Sydney |issue=179 |date=January 2003 |first=Ian |last=Cockerill |page=52}} She partied a fair amount in her early 20s. By 2010, she was not able to stay out at night clubs until 5:30 am any more because she lacked the stamina.

In response to getting a hug from Yao Ming at the 2008 Summer Olympics during the closing ceremonies, internet rumours started that Jackson and the married Yao were romantically involved. These rumours were incorrect. Jackson said of them: "When we came across this Yao Ming thing it was like, 'Oh...My...God! When I tell you we were in hysterics...because anybody who knows me knows that would be the last thing on my mind. A 7-foot 6 Chinese man? That's just not my thing. I really respect him as a player. And people who know me know I can be wild and over-the-top. I'm affectionate and that night I guess I was affectionate with the wrong person. I guess the Chinese people don't do that stuff very often, so the cultural [differences] was a big thing. But I don't care. You have to laugh about things or you'll be crying, which I would probably have been doing anyway [because of the loss and surgery]. I made the most of my last night at the Olympics and had a great time."{{cite web |url=http://blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com/storm/2008/09/26/lauren_jackson_has_fun_with_internet.html |title=Lauren Jackson has fun with Internet |work=The Seattle Times |date=26 September 2008 |access-date=5 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201233700/http://blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com/storm/2008/09/26/lauren_jackson_has_fun_with_internet.html |archive-date=1 December 2008 |url-status=dead}}

When people google Jackson, some of the first search results feature her in the nude. Jackson said of this: "Instead of being known for my basketball skills, all of these nudie shots are always the first thing you see." She posed nude in an Australian magazine, Black+White, that featured Olympic athletes who were set to compete in Athens in the 2004 Summer Olympics. The expensively printed magazine/book has been produced for the last three Olympic Games and, by the 2004 edition, was considered uncontroversial in Australia with its "artistic" approach to nude photography, and its equal coverage of male and female athletes, although it did create a stir in the United States.{{cite journal |journal=Alpha |issn=1832-6838 |title=Lauren Jackson, basketballer |issue=19 |date=February 2007 |pages=44–46 [46]}}{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |title=Nude photos of Jackson may stir up a storm of controversy |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2001959032_storm18.html |access-date=14 August 2011 |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=18 June 2004}} She also posed for the 2005 edition of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Jayda |title=Jackson to pose in Sports Illustrated |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2002152669_storm17.html |access-date=14 August 2011 |newspaper=The Seattle Times |date=17 January 2005}} Of posing nude, she said, "if offered the opportunity, I think that it's a personal decision. Whether you do it for the money or whatever, again, I think it's a personal decision. I don't know whether I would say yes or no. I guess you cross that bridge when you come to it. I don't think it's a bad thing, I'm not against it."{{cite web |url=http://www.wnba.com/features/whatithink_020813.html |title=This is What I Think: Posing for Playboy |publisher=WNBA |access-date=5 May 2012}}

As Jackson got older, she took on a more activist role, working for domestic violence charities and helping children from Australia's outback get involved in sport.{{cite web |url=http://www.wnba.com/storm/news/lennox_jackson_chat_transcript_050605.html |title=Lennox and Jackson Chat Transcript |access-date=3 March 2010}} In December 2002, she helped launch the Smith Family Toy Drive at the Canberra Centre with the help of Ainslie school children. She is the patron for the NSW Rape Crisis Centre. She is passionate about preventing domestic abuse. In 2010, she visited young basketball players at Batemans Bay's Moruya Basketball.{{cite news |url=http://www.batemansbaypost.com.au/news/local/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-surprises-moruya-miniballers/1982109.aspx |title=Lauren Jackson surprises Moruya miniballers |newspaper=Batemans Bay Post |location=Batemans Bay, Australia |date=29 October 2010 |access-date=4 May 2012}}

Jackson was named the Australian International Player of the Year in 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006 and 2008.{{cite web|url=http://basketball.net.au/index.php?id=1410|title=Opals International Player of the Year - Maher Medal|work=Basketball Australia|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020012035/http://basketball.net.au/index.php?id=1410|archive-date=20 October 2012}} In 2005, she was inducted into the Australian Institute of Sport's 'Best of the Best'.{{cite web |url=http://fulltext.ausport.gov.au/fulltext/2006/ascmedia/2006.08.31.asp |title=Lauren Jackson Heads AIS Champions |publisher=Fulltext.ausport.gov.au |date=31 August 2006 |access-date=4 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140920155916/http://fulltext.ausport.gov.au/fulltext/2006/ascmedia/2006.08.31.asp |archive-date=20 September 2014 |url-status=dead}}{{cite web |url=http://www.ausport.gov.au/ais/history/awards/best_of_the_best |title=Best of the Best : Australian Institute of Sport : Australian Sports Commission |publisher=Australian Sport Commission |date=24 November 2011 |access-date=1 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121117224704/http://www.ausport.gov.au/ais/history/awards/best_of_the_best |archive-date=17 November 2012}}

In 2011, the Albury Sports Stadium was renamed the Lauren Jackson Sports Centre.{{cite web |url=http://basketball.net.au/index.php?id=1590 |title=Basketball Australia : Lauren Jackson Stadium |publisher=Basketball Australia |access-date=4 May 2012}}{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Steve |url=http://www.bordermail.com.au/news/local/news/general/lauren-jacksons-perfect-day-in-albury/2333218.aspx |title=Lauren Jackson's 'perfect' day in Albury |work=The Border Mail |date=24 October 2011 |access-date=4 May 2012}}{{cite web |first=Howard |last=Jones |url=http://www.bordermail.com.au/news/local/news/general/lauren-jackson-to-open-stadium/2263384.aspx |title=Lauren Jackson to open stadium |work=The Border Mail |date=19 August 2011 |access-date=5 May 2012}} A thousand people showed up at the renaming ceremony, at which Jackson was the guest of honour.

Jackson was the flag bearer for Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics.{{cite web |url=http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8506374 |title=Jackson to carry the flag for Australia |publisher=Nine MSN |date=19 October 2008 |access-date=27 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120728070550/http://wwos.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=8506374 |archive-date=28 July 2012 |url-status=dead}}{{cite web |url=http://au.news.yahoo.com/a/-/sport/14379691/jackson-to-carry-australian-flag/ |title=Jackson to carry Australian flag |publisher=Yahoo!7 |access-date=27 July 2012}}{{Dead link|date=July 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} On 8 June 2015, she was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia in the Queen's Birthday Honours.{{cite news |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |title=Australian basketball star Lauren Jackson surprised by Queen's Birthday AO honour |date=8 June 2015 |url=http://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/australian-basketball-star-lauren-jackson-surprised-by-queens-birthday-ao-honour-20150604-ghh5bc.html |access-date=8 June 2015}}

Jackson was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2020,{{cite web |url=https://www.bnsw.com.au/news_notices/lauren-jackson-inducted-into-womens-basketball-hall-of-fame/ |title=Lauren Jackson Inducted into Women's Basketball Hall of Fame |publisher=Basketball New South Wales |access-date=18 February 2020}} the same year in which she was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.{{Cite news |last=Colangelo |first=Anthony |date=4 December 2020 |title=Women's T20 side, Eales claim top honours at Sport Australia awards |work=The Sydney Morning Herald |url=https://www.smh.com.au/sport/women-s-t20-side-eales-claim-top-honours-at-sport-australia-awards-20201204-p56km7.html |access-date=5 December 2020}} The following year, she was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame{{cite web |url=https://www.hoophall.com/index.php/events/enshrinement-2021/the-class-awards |title=Enshrinement 2021: The Class & Awards |publisher=Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |access-date=22 November 2021}} and was named to the WNBA's 25th anniversary team.{{cite press release |url=https://www.wnba.com/news/wnba-continues-celebration-of-landmark-25th-season-names-greatest-players-in-league-history-the-w25/ |title=WNBA Continues Celebration Of Landmark 25th Season, Names Greatest Players In League History, "The W25" |publisher=WNBA |date=5 September 2021 |access-date=18 October 2021}} Jackson was an inaugural inductee to the University of Canberra Sport Walk of Fame in 2022.{{Cite web |date=18 November 2022 |title=Walk of Fame Members |url=https://www.canberra.edu.au/on-campus/sport/sport-walk-of-fame/inductees |access-date=18 November 2022 |website=University of Canberra}}

In November 2024, Jackson was honoured at the Sport Australia Hall of Fame Awards, receiving The Dawn Award. The award recognises an individual, team or organisation who "show courage and bravery and have changed sport for the better".{{cite news |title=Lauren Jackson, Liesl Tesch & Betty Watson acknowledged at Sport Australia Hall of Fame gala |url=https://www.australia.basketball/news/4171183/lauren-jackson-ao-oly-liesl-tesch-am-acknowledged-at-sport-australia-hall-of-fame-gala |access-date=19 November 2024 |work=www.australia.basketball |date=19 November 2024 |language=en}}

Jackson earned her Higher School Certificate in Canberra while she was training with the Australian Institute of Sport. Jackson studied for a psychology degree at Lomonosov Moscow State University and continued via correspondence from America.{{cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/basketball/plenty-of-fire-left-in-jacksons-belly/2007/05/11/1178390547951.html?page=fullpage |title=Plenty of fire left in Jackson's belly |last=Brown |first=Alex |date=12 May 2007 |access-date=3 March 2010 |work=The Sydney Morning Herald}} In 2007, she was working on a university course in business management.{{cite journal |journal=Alpha |issn=1832-6838 |title=Lauren Jackson, basketballer |issue=19 |date=February 2007 |pages=44–46 [45]}} In 2010, she was taking classes at Macquarie University in Sydney. Her coursework was centred in cultural studies and included topics like women's rights and racism. After injuries prevented her from studying, she was back working on her degree in 2012 and had aspirations on becoming a United Nations diplomat. She also considered becoming an advocate for women. Her interests regarding gender studies were inspired by a book regarding the rape during the Rwandan Genocide, and Jackson is even an ambassador of a foundation that seeks to empower the abused women of that war.{{cite web |url=http://www.mukomeze.nl/over-mukomeze/ambassadeur/?lang=en |title=Ambassador: Top basketball player Lauren Jackson is the ambassador of the Mukomeze foundation |publisher=Mukomeze foundation |access-date=11 March 2014 |archive-date=5 September 2013 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130905141053/http://www.mukomeze.nl/over-mukomeze/ambassadeur/?lang=en |url-status=dead }} By 2015, Jackson was trying to get a Bachelor of Gender and Diversity at the University of Canberra, mostly through distance education.

Jackson's first child was born in 2017.{{cite web |url=http://www.bordermail.com.au/story/4454049/lauren-jackson-gives-birth-to-boy/ |title=Basketball great Lauren Jackson has given birth to a 'perfect little creature' |work=The Border Mail |date=11 April 2017 |access-date=11 April 2017}} She had a second child in 2018.

In 2016, Jackson became the leader of the Australian Basketball Alliance{{Cite web |url=http://www.sbs.com.au/topics/zela/article/2016/05/10/ljs-lasting-legacy-whats-next-lauren-jackson |title=LJ's lasting legacy: what's next for Lauren Jackson? |access-date=17 August 2016 |archive-date=6 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220406072510/https://www.sbs.com.au/topics/zela/article/2016/05/10/ljs-lasting-legacy-whats-next-lauren-jackson |url-status=dead }} and joined the new ownership group of the Melbourne Boomers.{{cite web |title=Lauren Jackson to the rescue for Melbourne Boomers |date=25 May 2016 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211207102142/https://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-to-the-rescue-for-melbourne-boomers-20160524-gp2zdz.html |archive-date=7 December 2021 |url-status=live |url=http://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/lauren-jackson-to-the-rescue-for-melbourne-boomers-20160524-gp2zdz.html}} She served as a commentator for the Seven Network during the 2016 Olympics, on studio rather than travelling to the Games because of her pregnancy.

She released an autobiography, My Story: A Life in Basketball and Beyond, in October 2018.{{cite web |url=https://www.canberratimes.com.au/sport/basketball/retirement-pain-killers-and-being-a-mum-lauren-jackson-opens-up-20181009-p508p6.html |title=Retirement, pain-killers and being a mum: Lauren Jackson opens up |first=Chris |last=Dutton |date=14 October 2018 |work=The Canberra Times}}

{{Portal|Sports}}

• List of Australian WNBA players

{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Commons category|Lauren Jackson}}

• {{Official website|http://www.laurenjackson.org}}
• {{AOC|lauren-jackson}}
• {{Olympics.com profile|lauren-jackson}}
• {{Olympedia}}
• [https://www.basketball-reference.com/wnba/players/j/jacksla01w.html Lauren Jackson] at Basketball-Reference.com
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20121020165136/http://london2012.olympics.com.au/athlete/lauren-jackson 2012 Olympics profile]

{{Navboxes|title= Awards and achievements|list1=

{{s-start}}

{{s-sports|oly}}

{{succession box

| before = James Tomkins
Stephanie Rice

| title = Flagbearer for {{AUS}}

| years = London 2012

| after = Anna Meares

}}

{{s-end}}

{{2001 WNBA draft}}

{{WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award}}

{{WNBADec}}

{{WNBA Top 15 Team}}

{{WNBA Top 20 Team}}

{{The W25}}

{{WNBA First Overall Picks}}

{{WNBA MVP}}

{{WNBA Finals MVP}}

{{WNBA scoring champion}}

{{WNBA rebounding leaders}}

{{Seattle Storm 2004 WNBA Champions}}

{{Seattle Storm 2010 WNBA Champions}}

{{Australia Women Basketball Squad 2000 Summer Olympics}}

{{Australia Women Basketball Squad 2004 Summer Olympics}}

{{Australia Squad 2006 FIBA World Championship for Women}}

{{Australia Women Basketball Squad 2008 Summer Olympics}}

{{Australia Women Basketball Squad 2012 Summer Olympics}}

{{Australia Women Basketball Squad 2024 Summer Olympics}}

{{WBC Spartak Moscow Region 2007–08 Euroleague Women champions}}

{{WBC Spartak Moscow Region 2008–09 Euroleague Women champions}}

{{Ros Casares Valencia 2011–12 Euroleague Women champions}}

{{Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame members}}

{{2021 Basketball HOF}}

}}

{{Portal bar|Australia|Biography|Olympics|Sports}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Lauren}}

Category:1981 births

Category:Living people

Category:Articles containing video clips

Category:Australian expatriate basketball people in China

Category:Australian expatriate basketball people in Russia

Category:Australian expatriate basketball people in Spain

Category:Australian expatriate basketball people in the United States

Category:Australian expatriate basketball people in South Korea

Category:Australian Institute of Sport basketball (WNBL) players

Category:Australian women's basketball players

Category:Basketball players with retired numbers

Category:Basketball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics

Category:Basketball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics

Category:Basketball players at the 2006 Commonwealth Games

Category:Basketball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Category:Basketball players at the 2012 Summer Olympics

Category:Canberra Capitals players

Category:Centers (basketball)

Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia

Category:Commonwealth Games medallists in basketball

Category:Heilongjiang Dragons players

Category:Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics

Category:Officers of the Order of Australia

Category:Olympic basketball players for Australia

Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Australia

Category:Olympic medalists in basketball

Category:Olympic silver medalists for Australia

Category:People educated at Lake Ginninderra College

Category:Sportspeople from Albury

Category:Basketball players from New South Wales

Category:Ros Casares Valencia players

Category:Seattle Storm draft picks

Category:Seattle Storm players

Category:Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees

Category:Sportswomen from New South Wales

Category:Women's Korean Basketball League players

Category:WNBA All-Stars

Category:First overall WNBA draft picks

Category:University of Canberra alumni

Category:Medallists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games

Category:Southside Flyers players

Category:Basketball players at the 2024 Summer Olympics

Category:Medalists at the 2024 Summer Olympics

Category:21st-century Australian sportswomen