Gabby Williams earns epic French nickname from $195,226 teammate in glowing praise

Gabby Williams is in the middle of her best season of her seven-year WNBA career. She earned her first All-Star selection and is recording career-high averages in points, assists, steals and blocks per game. Her Seattle Storm teammates have made the memorable year even more special by rewarding her with a nickname.

During an episode of Mariah Rose’s Full Circle Podcast, Lexie Brown, who is under a two-year, $195,226 contract, praised Williams’ versatility and athleticism. Due to the French forward’s two-way impact and ability to fill the stat sheet, Brown revealed that the members of the Seattle Storm affectionately refer to her as the “French Army Knife.”

“Her athleticism is insane,” Brown told Rose (timestamp 51:23 onwards). “Some of the rebounds she grabs, some of the steals she gets, some of the passes she catches are just I'm like, "What the hell, Gabby?" So, she's a silent assassin. “You might not notice that she's on the court and then she'll do something amazing and you'll be like, "Oh, there's Gabby." And then you'll look up and she'll have like 10 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and you're like, "What did she do all of that?" So, she's our what do we call our French Army Knife. You know, it's a Swiss Army Knife, but she's French.”

Williams is averaging 12.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game, making her the only player on the Storm roster to rank among the top three in all four major statistical categories. Her contributions play a vital role in Seattle’s impressive 15-11 record, mid-way into the 2025 season.

Teammate previously corrected Gabby Williams after calling herself “Swiss Army Knife”

Toward the end of the 2024 season, Gabby Williams reflected on her sixth professional campaign, speaking about the role assigned to her. At one point in the press conference, she described herself as a "Swiss Army Knife."

Nneka Ogwumike instantly interrupted her, making a slight adjustment to the nickname.

“(Defensively) I always have to kind of like set the tone, so I know that's my role,” Williams said. “On offense, Noelle’s just been, since I got here, “you're the Swiss Army Knife, you got to be what we need.” “French,” Ogwumike politely reminded Williams.

Gabby Williams and the Storm have had an inconsistent production since the conclusion of the All-Star weekend, losing two out of their three games. The team will aim to conclude its ongoing three-game road trip with a win against the Connecticut Sun on Monday before flying back to Washington for a three-game homestand.

Edited by Krutik Jain