Michelle Plouffe

Biography

Since switching her focus to 3×3 basketball in 2019, Michelle Plouffe has consistently been among the world’s top players as Canada achieved many highlights, including back-to-back FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series titles in 2022 and 2023, a silver medal at the 2022 FIBA 3×3 World Cup, and qualifying Canada for Paris 2024.

Plouffe made her Olympic debut at London 2012 as a member of Canada’s five-on-five basketball team. In her second Olympic appearance at Rio 2016, she played alongside her twin sister Katherine, now a teammate on the 3×3 national team. They had both been members of Canada’s gold medal-winning teams at the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games and the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship. The Plouffe sisters also competed at the 2014 FIBA World Cup where Canada’s fifth-place finish was the country’s best result since 1986.

In her first season on the FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series in 2019, Plouffe helped Canada win four tournaments, including the final stop in her hometown of Edmonton.

Plouffe and the 3×3 team had a particularly memorable year in 2022. They won silver in the first ever appearance for a Canadian women’s team at the FIBA 3×3 World Cup. She was with them for four victories on the FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series, including the Series Final in Constanta, Romania where Plouffe was named MVP after dominating almost ever statistical category. They then won gold at the 2022 FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup.

In 2023, Plouffe helped Canada to five wins on the FIBA 3×3 Women’s Series, including Canadian stops in Edmonton, Quebec City, and Montreal, before they claimed their second straight Series Final crown in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Though sidelined with an injury in the final game, Plouffe was again the MVP of the Series Final.

Plouffe was second only to her sister in points scored at the 2024 FIBA 3×3 Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Hungary where Canada finished third to earn its first ever Olympic berth in 3×3 basketball.

At the University of Utah, Plouffe was a three-time All-Pac 12 selection and a Pac-12 All-Defensive Team selection in her senior year. As a freshman she was named the Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year. Plouffe finished her collegiate career with 2100 points and a school record 1155 rebounds.

Selected in the second round (19th overall) of the 2014 WNBA Draft by the Seattle Storm, Plouffe instead went overseas to play in France.

A Little More About Michelle

Getting into the Sport: Started playing basketball at age 8… It was something she could play with her siblings and challenged her to develop new skills…Older sister Andrea Mwumba played basketball at University of Washington and became her role model as the first in the family to receive an NCAA scholarship… Twin sister Katherine also plays for the 3×3 national team… Outside Interests: Graduated from the University of Utah in 2014 (Bachelor in Communications)… Enjoys reading, cooking and spending time with family somewhere warm… Odds and Ends: Favourite quote: “We cannot become what we need to be by remaining what we are” – John Maxwell… Nickname: Plouffey…