Sports
Daedra Charles
1968–2018 · basketball player and coach
Detroit-born center who won two NCAA titles at Tennessee and an Olympic bronze medal in 1992, and later coached at the University of Detroit Mercy.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan- Died
Detroit, Michigan
aged 49- Birth name
- Daedra Janel Charles
- Also known as
- Daedra Charles-Furlow
- Detroit years
- 1968–1987, 2000s–2018
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Daedra Charles grew up in Detroit and starred at Saint Martin de Porres High School, a Catholic school on the city's west side that later closed, earning Parade All-American honors. She went on to the University of Tennessee, where coach Pat Summitt made her the anchor of teams that won the NCAA championship in 1989 and 1991; as a senior she won the Wade Trophy as the nation's best player. In 1992 she won a bronze medal with the United States at the Barcelona Olympics, then played professionally overseas. Charles later returned to coaching, including as an assistant at the University of Detroit Mercy before rejoining Tennessee's staff. She was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2007. She died in Detroit in 2018, at 49.
Highlights
- NCAA champion with Tennessee in 1989 and 1991
- Wade Trophy winner, 1991
- Olympic bronze medal, Barcelona 1992
- Assistant coach at the University of Detroit Mercy
- Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, 2007
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 2
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Studied here · 1980s
Saint Martin de Porres High School
Closed · 2005
Her Catholic high school in Detroit, where she was a Parade All-American; it closed in 2005.
Worked here · 2000s
Calihan Hall, University of Detroit Mercy
Home arena of the Detroit Mercy Titans, whose women's team she coached as an assistant.