Ashley Shields better known as ‘’Real Deal’’ was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee. She graduated from University of Phoenix and is known as a basketball legend, Hall of Famer, WNBA Champion, and a great mother of two.
She was the first player to ever be drafted to the WNBA from a junior college in 2007, where she was drafted in the first round, eighth pick to the Houston Comets. Ashley finished her high school career at Melrose High School, where she scored over 4,000 career points and became the second all-time leading scorer in Tennessee behind the Great Nikki McCray, and was also the first Memphis City player to receive Tennessee's Miss Basketball Award.
Ashley became a WNBA Champion in 2008 with the Detroit Shock. Her professional basketball career overseas spans over 15 years and she has received several awards such as League MVP, Player of the Year, Scoring leader, Import Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Championship MVP, along with 5 overseas championships.
Ashley was inducted into the Memphis Amateur Sports Hall of Fame in 2018 and also inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tenn., in 2008. Ashley still holds the all time JUCO scoring record with 69 points in one single game as of today. Ashley has been coaching since 2017. She started off with her own AAU program known as TEAM REAL DEAL and also coached under TEAM THAD ORGANIZATION.
She coached at Mitchell High School 2016-2018 and Houston High School from 2018-2019. Ashley was head coach at Arlington High School from 2020-2023.
Ashley is in her second as an assistant coach at Mississippi Valley State University. Not only does she love the game, but she loves being a mentor of the game. She is passionate about empowering and uplifting the youth on and off the court.
Ashley Shields has overcome all odds and keeps excelling and being a positive role model for the game.
