Chantelle Handy is announcing her retirement from playing professional basketball, following an illustrious 14-year career playing across Europe, including her final two with Caledonia Gladiators as player-coach domestically and continentally, recently leading the Women’s British Basketball League side on a coaching front. She’s now going to focus on developing a career in coaching.
The 36-year-old forward first attended High School in her locality, Prudhoe (Prudhoe Community High School), being born around 20 minutes away in Consett. During her time in England, she competed in the youth national ranks, and for Tyne & Wear Northumbria in WNBL Division 1 and 2. Then, she made the move across the pond, to attend the all-girls school of Mount de Chantal in West Virginia.
The County Durham-born player moved on to college in 2006. She studied at Marshall University, playing with their ‘Thundering Herd’ women’s basketball team in the NCAA Division I competition. The school had previously been attended by Mike D’Antoni (Former NBA Head Coach) and Hassan Whiteside (NBA Player). Whiteside attended the college in Handy’s final year: the 2009-10 season.
During her time in further education, aged only 19, she made her debut with the Great Britain national team. During the 2006/07 EuroBasket Division B campaign, the English player averaged 2.5 points per game in only 13 minutes of game time. She went on to represent the country at the 2012 London Olympics, before going on to make a top career with GB and England, winning a silver medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Starting her professional career with Greek side, Athinaikos in the 2011-12 season in the EuroCup and Greek league, Handy went on to continue her exciting play throughout Europe. She competed in Slovakia, Turkey, Sweden, Greece, Hungary, France, Poland, Italy, Belgium, Spain and most recently with EuroLeague side, TTT Riga in Latvia (21/22 season).
Amongst her European ventures, she returned to the Women’s British Basketball League in the 2017-18 campaign for a stint with her local franchise, Team Northumbria. There, the 6’2″ star averaged 17 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2 assists across 6 games.
Since her time with Caledonia – joining the club in 2022, Chan has stood out as a three-point threat, leading from the front both domestically and in EuroCup Women this campaign. Last year, in the Women’s British Basketball League, Handy put up a solid 12.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 2.6 APG and 1.2 SPG. In EuroCup, in 16 minutes per game, she contributed 6.6 points and 2.4 rebounds a night, with a season-high 18 points against S.L. Benfica.
In recent weeks, Chantelle has been leading the coaching to gain experience as Caledonia’s Head Coach following leading the GB U20 Women’s side in the summer. Her first game in charge saw the team win 91-41 in a comfortable victory over Nottingham Wildcats.
Following a sensational career with club and country, Handy is set to retire immediately, and will focus on coaching as she continues her development on that front.
