HBCU Basketball: Norfolk State's Diamond Johnson Is Mid-Major Award Semifinalist

The Spartans guard is a candidate for a prestigious mid-major basketball honor.

Diamond Johnson - Norfolk State - Guard / Credit: Norfolk State Athletics

Norfolk State graduate guard Diamond Johnson was announced as a semifinalist for the 2025 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award announced by Her Hoop Stats on Wednesday morning.

The Becky Hammon award was first given out in 2020, with South Dakota's Ciara Duffy being named the inaugural winner. This year's semifinalists include representatives from 10 teams and seven conferences.

Diamond Johnson Becky Hamman Mid-Major Semifinalist / MEAC

Johnson is averaging 18.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 3.3 steals per game this season. She also currently ranks fifth in the nation for steals this season (80) and sixth in steals per game (3.3).

Johnson leads the MEAC in points per game (18.7) and steals (3.3), while sitting second in assists (4.3) and fourth in FG percentage (.455) and 3-PT FG percentage (.359). She has been named the MEAC Player of the Week six times this season.

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Award Eligibility & Schedule

To be eligible for this award, players must compete in one of the 26 conferences deemed to be mid-major. The following conferences are considered high-major for the purposes of this award and thus ineligible: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, and SEC. Additionally, players from Oregon State and Washington State are ineligible this year as membership in the Pac-12 evolves.

The 25-player preseason watch list was announced in October, and 15 midseason watch list members were announced in January. The five finalists will be announced in early March, with the winner announced around the Final Four. The list is fluid, and players may play their way on or off it over the course of the season.

About Becky Hammon

Hammon was a three-time All-American at Colorado State and led the Rams to the Sweet 16 in 1999, the program’s only appearance to date. She was signed by the New York Liberty in 1999 and traded to the San Antonio Stars in 2007, where she played the rest of her career. Hammon retired in 2014 as a six-time All-Star and a two-time All-WNBA First Team honoree. In 2016 she was named one of the top 20 players in WNBA history and was recently named to the W25.

Hammon became the second female coach in NBA history when she began coaching for the San Antonio Spurs in 2014. Additionally, Hammon is the only woman to be a head coach in the NBA Summer League and the only woman to be a member of an NBA All-Star coaching staff. Currently, Hammon is the head coach of the Las Vegas Aces and won the 2022 and 2023 WNBA Championships.

About Her Hoop Stats

Her Hoop Stats was founded in 2017 to unlock better insight about women's basketball at all levels. We began as a statistics site focused on providing consistent, reliable, and easy-to-access data about women's basketball for both mobile and desktop environments. Her Hoop Stats has expanded to become a leading independent voice in the women's game providing content through our newsletter, podcast network, YouTube channel, and social media accounts (Twitter, Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram).

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ICYMI: DIAMOND JOHNSON IS A LEGIT WNBA PROSPECT

With her exceptional all-around play, Norfolk State University's women's basketball star Diamond Johnson has been making waves in the 2024-25 season.

After the Las Vegas Aces drafted Jackson State's Angel Jackson in the 2024 WNBA Draft, could Diamond Johnson follow in her footsteps in April's upcoming draft?

Johnson's 2024-25

The 5-5 graduate guard currently holds the distinction of having the most 20-point, 5-assist, 5-steal game performances in women's college basketball this season.

Johnson's outstanding performance has been crucial to Norfolk State's impressive 20-4 record and perfect 6-0 standing in conference play.

Her ability to affect the game in various ways has made her a challenge for opponents and a delight for Spartan fans.

Read The Diamond Johnson Article

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