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2008 WNBA Draft
The WNBA draft is the league's annual process for determining which Women's National Basketball Association teams receive the rights to negotiate with players entering the league. The 2008 draft was held on April 9. A lottery was held on October 23, 2007. The Los Angeles Sparks received the first overall selection of the upcoming 2008 draft. The Chicago Sky received the number two selection. The Minnesota Lynx came up with the third overall selection, followed by the Atlanta Dream expansion franchise at four, the Houston Comets at number five, and the Washington Mystics at number six. Some of the top draftees were Candace Parker, Sylvia Fowles, Candice Wiggins, Crystal Langhorne, and Tasha Humphrey. Top pick Candace Parker went on to become the first WNBA player to be the league's Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same season. Fourth pick Alexis Hornbuckle became the first person to win a national championship in college (with the University of Tennessee) and a WNBA title (with t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the County seat, seat of Hillsborough County, Florida, Hillsborough County. With a population of 384,959 according to the 2020 census, Tampa is the third-most populated city in Florida after Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville and Miami and is the List of United States cities by population, 52nd most populated city in the United States. Tampa functioned as a military center during the 19th century with the establishment of Fort Brooke. The cigar industry was also brought to the city by Vicente Martinez Ybor, Vincente Martinez Ybor, after whom Ybor City is named. Tampa was formally reincorporated as a city in 1887, following the American Civil War, Civil War. Today, Tampa's economy is driven by tourism, health care, finance, insurance, tec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Candice Wiggins
Candice Dana Wiggins (born February 14, 1987) is an American former professional basketball player. Wiggins played college basketball at Stanford University, where she graduated as the all-time leading scorer in Stanford and Pac-10 women's basketball history. Throughout her playing career, Wiggins played for the Minnesota Lynx, Tulsa Shock, Los Angeles Sparks and New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and has played overseas in Spain and Greece. Wiggins has won a WNBA championship (2011) and a WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year (2008). Early life Candice Wiggins was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1987 where her father, Alan Wiggins, played Major League Baseball for the Baltimore Orioles. After playing for the Orioles, her father, with wife Angela, son Alan Jr., and daughters Cassandra and Candice moved back to the San Diego, California area, where he had previously played for the San Diego Padres. When Wiggins was three years of age, she was hit by a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iziane Castro Marques
Iziane "Izi" Castro Marques (born March 13, 1982) is a retired Brazilian professional basketball player. Castro Marques played for the Brazil women's national basketball team and played for the Miami Sol, Phoenix Mercury, Seattle Storm, Atlanta Dream, Washington Mystics and the Connecticut Sun of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Castro Marques also played overseas in France, Brazil, Spain, Latvia, Turkey, Poland and Russia. Following her retirement, Castro Marques became the technical director of Sampaio Basquete of the Brazilian Women's Basketball League. WNBA career After playing in the Paulista League in Brazil for BCN Osasco in 2001 and leading the league in scoring, Castro Marques was invited to the Miami Sol's training camp. After training camp, she would make the final cut for team and signed with the Sol. In her rookie season, Castro Marques was the second-youngest player in the WNBA at the time (20 years, 1 month, 12 days). At the end of 2002 season ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Roneeka Hodges
Roneeka Hodges (born July 19, 1982) is an American professional basketball coach for the New York Liberty of the WNBA (WNBA) and a former player. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, she is the twin sister of former WNBA player Doneeka Hodges. A 5'11" guard, Hodges played for three seasons with the Houston Comets, who selected her from the 2005 WNBA Draft in the second round, 15th overall. After the Comets folded in the fall of 2008, the Lynx selected Hodges as the fourth pick in the dispersal draft for former Comets players. On February 6, 2008, Hodges was selected by the Atlanta Dream in the expansion draft. She was then traded to the Seattle Storm with the fourth pick for Seattle's eighth pick and Iziane Castro Marques. She was signed a contract once again to the Houston Comets. Through three seasons with the Comets, Hodges scored 382 points, collected 112 rebounds, 66 assists, 32 steals, and 4 blocks. In 2006, she scored a career high 247 points, with her career high of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seattle Storm
The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The Storm competes in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded by Ginger Ackerley and her husband Barry ahead of the 2000 season. The team is currently owned by Force 10 Hoops LLC, which is composed of three Seattle businesswomen: Dawn Trudeau, Lisa Brummel, and Ginny Gilder. The Storm have qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in sixteen of its twenty-one years in Seattle. The franchise has been home to many high-quality players such as former UConn stars Sue Bird, Swin Cash, and Breanna Stewart; 2004 Finals MVP Betty Lennox; and Australian power forward Lauren Jackson, a three-time league MVP. The Storm are four-time WNBA Champions, with victories in 2004, 2010, 2018, and 2020. They are one of two teams who have never lost a WNBA Finals, the defunct Houston Comets being the other. The team cultivates a fan-frien ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Becky Hammon
Rebecca Lynn Hammon ( rus, links=no, Бекки Хэммон; born March 11, 1977) is an American-Russian professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the Las Vegas Aces of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). She previously served as an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A three-time All-American basketball player for the Colorado State Rams, Hammon went on to play for the San Antonio Stars and New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for several other teams outside the United States. Hammon, who was born and raised in the United States, became a naturalized Russian citizen in 2008 and represented the Russian national team in the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. Hammon was hired by the San Antonio Spurs as an assistant coach in 2014. She became the first Russian assistant coach and the second female assistant coach in NBA history.< ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New York Liberty
The New York Liberty are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Liberty compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as part of the league's Eastern Conference. The team was founded in 1997 and is one of the eight original franchises of the league. The team is owned by Joe Tsai, the majority owner of the Brooklyn Nets. The team's home games are played at Barclays Center. The Liberty have qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in seventeen of its twenty-six years. The franchise has been home to many well-known players such as Teresa Weatherspoon, Rebecca Lobo, Becky Hammon, Leilani Mitchell, Essence Carson, Cappie Pondexter, Tina Charles, and the team's first-ever No.1 overall Draft pick Sabrina Ionescu. The Liberty have three conference championships and have played in the WNBA Finals four times, falling to the Houston Comets in 1997, 1999, and 2000, and losing to the Los Angeles Sparks in 2002. They have the m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
San Antonio Stars
The San Antonio Stars were a professional basketball team based in San Antonio, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded in Salt Lake City, Utah, as the Utah Starzz before the league's inaugural 1997 season began; then moved to San Antonio before the 2003 season and became the San Antonio Silver Stars, then simply the San Antonio Stars in 2014. The team was owned by Spurs Sports & Entertainment, which also owned the San Antonio Spurs of the NBA. The team was sold to MGM Resorts International in 2017 and became the Las Vegas Aces for the 2018 season. The Stars qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in seven of their fourteen years in San Antonio. The franchise has been home to many high-quality players such as all-star point guard Becky Hammon, solid power-forward Sophia Young, former first-overall draft pick Ann Wauters, and seven-foot-two-inch center Margo Dydek. In 2008, the Silver Stars went to the WNBA Finals ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ruth Riley
Ruth Ellen Riley Hunter (born August 28, 1979) is a retired American professional basketball player (a center), playing most recently for the Atlanta Dream in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Her Notre Dame team won the NCAA women's championship in 2001, and her Detroit Shock team won the WNBA championship in 2003 and 2006. Riley was the Most Valuable Player in the 2001 and 2003 championship series, becoming the first person to win the MVP awards in both the NCAA and the WNBA championships. She has also played on teams that won the National Women's Basketball League (NWBL) championship, the gold medal at the Olympic Games, and the 2010 EuroCup Championship. In 2019, Riley was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. In March 2016, Riley participated in Mogul's IAmAMogul campaign for inspiring women to believe that they have the "power to shape the world through their voices and actions." She was the general manager for the San Antonio Stars from Ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Katie Feenstra
Katharen Ruth Mattera ( Feenstra; born November 17, 1982) is an American college basketball coach and former player for the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Mattera is one of the tallest players in WNBA history. At 6 feet 7.5 inches (2.02 m) tall, she is the eighth-tallest person to have played professionally in the WNBA. Only Margo Dydek, at 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m), Han Xu, at 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), and Lindsay Taylor, Zheng Haixia, Maria Stepanova, Liz Cambage, and Brittney Griner, each at 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m), are taller than she. College years Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Mattera went on to star on the women's basketball team while attending Liberty University, where she majored in physical education. She was a three-time Big South Conference Player of the Year, a Wade Trophy, John R. Wooden and Naismith Award nominee. She also became the Big South Conference's all-time shot-blocker on February 14, 2005. Feenstra was the tallest player in L ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Detroit Shock
The Detroit Shock were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. They were the 2003, 2006, and 2008 WNBA champions. Debuting in 1998, the Shock were one of the league's first expansion franchises. They were also the first WNBA expansion franchise to win a WNBA Championship. The team was the sister team of the Detroit Pistons and from 2002 to the 2009 season was coached by Pistons legend Bill Laimbeer. On October 20, 2009, it was announced that the Shock would be moving to Tulsa, Oklahoma to play in the new downtown arena, the BOK Center. Former men's college coach Nolan Richardson was named the team's new head coach. The Shock roster and history was retained along with the Shock name, but the team colors were changed to black, red, and gold. The franchise is currently known as Dallas Wings. Franchise history The early years (1998–2002) The Detroit Shock were one of the first WNBA expansion teams and began play in 1998. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2008 Detroit Shock Season
The 2008 WNBA season was the 11th for the Detroit Shock, an American women's professional basketball team. The Shock attempted to return to the WNBA Finals for the third consecutive year. They won the WNBA Finals for the third time in franchise history. During the finals, Katie Smith averaged a team high 21.7 points per game to be named WNBA Finals MVP. Similar to Kevin Garnett with the 2008 Boston Celtics, Taj McWilliams-Franklin won her first championship after 10 years in the league. Offseason The following player was lost in the Atlanta Dream expansion draft: * Katie Feenstra WNBA Draft Transactions *September 4: The Shock signed Ashley Shields. *August 19: The Shock signed Ashley Shields to a seven-day contract. *August 12: The Shock traded Tasha Humphrey, Eshaya Murphy and a second-round pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft to the Washington Mystics for Taj McWilliams-Franklin. *August 8: The Shock waived Stacey Lovelace. *July 26: The Shock signed Kelly Schumacher. *July 25: Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
