“Every time I come out on the court, I want to compete against the best. I take no mercy on anyone.” Elite players fire on all cylinders when they’re hooping, and Jewell Loyd is nothing if not elite. The five-foot-eleven guard from Las Vegas was the first overall pick in 2015, and has had a fruitful career in the W thus far. But her success goes far beyond being the All-Star Game MVP, or winning a scoring title. After all, Loyd has won two consecutive Olympic golds in the 2020 and 2024 games.
But behind such an illustrious career, there is always bound to be a great support system. So who does Loyd have rooting for her? Let’s find out more about her childhood support system–her father Calvin Loyd, and mother Gwendolyn Davis-Loyd
Who are Jewell Loyd’s parents?
Loyd is the epitome of what a first-overall pick is supposed to be. She can score, she can defend, and her motor is simply insane! But what’s her family history like? Well, Jewell Loyd was born on October 5, 1993 to Calvin Loyd and Gwendolyn Davis-Loyd. Her father, Calvin, was a former tennis instructor and entrepreneur. He ran a commercial cleaning business in Lincolnwood, Illinois, and was instrumental in instilling good work ethic into Jewell and Jarryd.
On the other hand, her mother, Gwendolyn, is a retired educator from Mississippi, and was in the corporate world as well. She has been one of Jewell’s biggest supporters through her childhood, and was key in Loyd managing dyslexia growing up. After retiring from her work, Gwendolyn authored the ‘Invisible Disability’ which was a book detailing her journey with Jewell and her learning disability. The aim of the book was to clear out some of the stigma behind dyslexia, and advocate for the condition freely.
What is the ethnicity of Jewell Loyd’s parents?
Calvin Loyd and Gwendolyn-Davis Loyd are both African Americans, and their nationality is American. According to NBC, Calvin hails from Georgia, while Gwendolyn hails from Mississippi. Their southern roots are integral to their family identity, however, we don’t know many more details about it.
Inside Jewell Loyd’s relationship with her parents
It is hard to be as great as Jewell is without a lot of support growing up, especially considering her dyslexia. Combating a learning disability, and managing to excel in sports, is a tough task, and it requires a lot of effort from the surrounding support system. Luckily for the Aces star, both Calvin and Gwendolyn are big on family, and gave a tremendous amount of time and energy towards Loyd’s success growing up.
Jewell’s parents were a frequent presence at her AAU and high school games growing up, and Gwendolyn took it a step further when her daughter reached the WNBA. Back when she was in Seattle, Gwendolyn made sure that she advocated for WNBA visibility as much as possible, rocking up to games with shirts that read, “Support the WNBA”, and “Bring a friend!”. But even though she was very supportive of her daughter’s basketball career, academics still was the top priority for Gwen. “Academics first, playtime later,” was her motto, and she had to work around Jewell’s dyslexia. To do that, the mother-daughter duo took many steps, and even made homework into a bunch of competitive games!
Calvin, on the other hand, was where Jewell got her love of sports from. As a tennis instructor’s daughter, it was her very first sport, and the one she nearly excelled in. One of her first athletic goals was to win a Wimbledon title, but basketball soon piqued her interest. He helped her transition from his sport to basketball, where she found her groove.
The Loyd family are big on entrepreneurship and philanthropy, and have taken great strides in these fields ever since Jewell has joined the WNBA. Her elder brother Jarryd, and her parents are an active part of Jewell’s off-court business ventures, and that’s the way it should be! The Las Vegas Aces star is lucky to be blessed with such a strong and nurturing family, and there’s no doubt that they’re a huge factor behind her success!
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