JCA and DePaul graduate Allie Quigley almost gave up, now she's one of top players in the WNBA

To look at Allie Quigley's career over the last two years, it is hard to believe the former Joliet Catholic Academy and DePaul University standout almost walked away from the WNBA.

But she did.

After being drafted by Seattle with the 22nd pick in the 2008 draft, Quigley bounced around, playing in only 34 games total and was out of the league in 2012.

She got the call to play for the Chicago Sky, which was a call that had it come with a different area code may not have gone the same way.

"Chicago is my fifth team and when I got the call to come to Chicago, I only came because it is my hometown and it was one more shot," Quigley said. "I was tired of doing the journey thing and I did lose confidence in myself. I had thought about giving it up, but those days are behind me."

Far behind.

In her first season with the Sky, Quigley matched the number of games played in her entire career to that point, and all she has done from there is go from winning the WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year award in 2014 and 2015 to becoming an All-Star the past two seasons.

This year, Quigley is the Sky's scoring leader, averaging 15.9 points per game. Quigley leads the WNBA in three-point percentage with all players averaging more than 3.5 attempts per game with a 43% clip and is second in the league with 2.3 triples made per game.

She again showed off her shooting ability at halftime of the WNBA All-Star game in Minnesota where she won her second consecutive 3-point contest, this time setting the nets on fire with a final round score of 29 points – the highest total by a competitor in the WNBA or NBA in the history of the contest.

With the win, she also earned a $10,000 donation to the Patrick Quigley Memorial Scholarship Fund, a fund honoring her late father that provides assistance each year to a student at JCA.

Overall in the game, she tallied 18 points with four from behind the arc in the 119-112 Team Parker victory.

So, what is it that has sent the 32-year-old guard from anonymity to all-star?

"I think a combination of hard work and experience have caught up with each other," Quigley said. "Going overseas and being more of a focal player over there in my early years and bringing that confidence here. Then when the opportunity came, performing the way I can."

Along with her role as a leader on the stat sheet, as a veteran on a young Sky team, Quigley finds herself as a leader in the locker room as well – a role she understands comes with responsibility.

"I have always been the player to look to the older player, now I have players looking at me, so I have to be more accountable for your actions and being more vocal and try and stay even keel and not get too high or too low," she said.

A WBCA All-American at Joliet Catholic, Quigley finished up her DePaul career in 2008 as the third all-time leading scorer with 2,078 points and led the Blue Demons to four NCAA tournament appearances including a Sweet 16 berth in 2006 and Second Round spot in 2005.

She is third in career field goals and three-pointers, tied for third in free throw percentage, seventh in scoring average and assists and eighth in three-point percentage.