Taj Cole

Personal: Graduating from Virginia Tech in 2021 with a master’s degree in leadership studies, Cole operates a basketball academy private school in Virginia. Beyond basketball, her interests span modeling and apparel/footwear design. She enjoys spending time with friends and family, engaging in hobbies like drawing comic books, reading, shopping, and watching sports. Virginia Tech head women’s basketball coach Kenny Brooks holds a special place in her life as someone who has made a significant difference. Cole envisions herself as a basketball coach if she were not actively playing the sport.

2023 Season: In her second AU Pro Basketball season, Cole finished with 2,733 leaderboard points. Notably, she achieved a season-high of 410 leaderboard points against Team Sims on March 4 in Week Two finale. Serving as a captain during Week One, Cole stood out as one of nine players to wear all four jersey colors during the season. She showcased her skills in all 15 games, securing five starts. With an average of 7.3 points and 1.9 rebounds per contest, she ranked 10th in the league with 39 assists, recording a season-high of six assists against Team Sims on March 4. Her standout performance came with a career-high 29 points against Team Smith on March 10. Cole's consistency was evident with strong showings, such as a 12-point performance against Team Cloud at the season's start and collecting 10 points in games against Team Sims on February 24 and March 24.

2022 Season: In the inaugural season, Cole closed in 10th place on the leaderboard with 4,415 points. Her season highlights included four games with 400 or more points, peaking at a remarkable 517 points in the season finale against Team Harrison. As the seventh-leading scorer in Athletes Unlimited with an average of 16.9, she showcased 12 double-digit scoring efforts, six of which exceeded 20 points. Cole stood third in the league with 91 assists, achieving a season-high of 12 assists against Team Cloud. Her versatility was evident, ranking among the top players in field goal attempts, field goals made, free throws made, and free throw attempts. She began the season impressively with back-to-back 20-point performances against Team Sims and Team Carrington and continued strong performances throughout the season.

Other Professional Experience: Outside Athletes Unlimited, Cole played in Malaga, Spain, in 2020 and was signed to a Training Camp contract by the Connecticut Sun in February 2022.

College Experience: Cole commenced her career at Louisville before transferring to Georgia, where she played three seasons. Her final year of eligibility led her to Virginia Tech, where she was an Atlantic Coast Conference All-Defensive Team selection. During her tenure with the Hokies, she started all 30 games in the 2019-20 season, leading the ACC with 194 assists while averaging 9.6 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. Notably, she secured four double-doubles during her time with the Hokies. Earlier, at Georgia, Cole demonstrated her skill, leading the SEC and ranking eighth nationally in total assists during the 2018-19 campaign. Her college career began at Louisville, where she played in all 34 games, aiding the team to a strong 26-8 record.