2009 Los Angeles Sparks Season
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2009 Los Angeles Sparks Season
The 2009 Los Angeles Sparks season is the 13th season for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association. Lisa Leslie announced that the 2009 season would be her last. On June 5, the Sparks and Farmers Insurance Group of Companies announced a multi-year marketing partnership that includes a branded jersey sponsorship. The Farmers Insurance branded jersey will be worn by the players for the first time on June 6. As part of this alliance, the Farmers Insurance name and logo will appear on the front of the Sparks jerseys and will have considerable visibility in the Staples Center during home games. Los Angeles became only the second WNBA team to finalize such an agreement. The Sparks attempted to reach the playoffs and were successful. Offseason *On May 13, Sparks star Candace Parker gave birth to a baby girl. It is the first child for the WNBA’s reigning MVP and rookie of the year and husband Shelden Williams of the Boston Celtics. Goodwin Sports Manageme ...
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Michael Cooper
Michael Jerome Cooper (born April 15, 1956) is an American basketball coach and former player who is the boys varsity coach at Culver City High School. He played for the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning five NBA championships with the Lakers during their Showtime era. He was an eight-time selection to the NBA All-Defensive Team, including five times on the first team. He was named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 1987. Cooper's previous coaching jobs include leading the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) to two championships and the Albuquerque Thunderbirds to one NBA G League title. He has also coached in the NBA, WNBA, and the NBA Development League. Early life Cooper was born in Los Angeles. When he was three years old, he cut one of his knees severely, requiring 100 stitches to close. At the time the doctor said that he would never be able to walk. College career Cooper attended Pasade ...
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Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money to establish a college of science, technology, and agriculture in his name. The first classes were held on September 16, 1874, with six instructors and 39 students. It has been ranked as among the best public universities in the United States by major institutional rankings, and is renowned for its engineering program. The main campus in West Lafayette offers more than 200 majors for undergraduates, over 70 masters and doctoral programs, and professional degrees in pharmacy, veterinary medicine, and doctor of nursing practice. In addition, Purdue has 18 intercollegiate sports teams and more than 900 student organizations. Purdue is the founding member of the Big Ten Conference and enrolls the largest student body of any individual univer ...
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Tina Thompson
Tina Marie Thompson (born February 10, 1975) is an American former WNBA professional basketball player who served as the head coach of the Virginia Cavaliers women's basketball team from 2018-2022. Thompson was inducted into both the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018. The first college draft pick in WNBA history, Thompson was selected first by the Houston Comets. She helped lead the Comets to four consecutive WNBA Championships in 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000. She won two Olympic gold medals and made nine WNBA All-Star Game appearances. Until 2017 she was the WNBA's all-time leading scorer and, as of 2019, she ranks second in WNBA history. Early years Thompson was born in Los Angeles, California. She grew up playing basketball with her brother TJ and his friends at Robertson Park in West Los Angeles, California. She recorded more than 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds in her high school career at Morningside High School in In ...
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Sidney Spencer
Sidney Spencer (born March 7, 1985) is an American professional basketball who most recently played for the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA. Born in Hoover, Alabama, Spencer attended the University of Tennessee, and in April 2007 led the team to the national championship. That same month, she was selected in the second round of the WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks The Los Angeles Sparks (LA Sparks) are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Sparks compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was foun .... She got off to an exceptional start in her rookie season, and as a fan favorite quickly worked her way into the team's starting line-up. Early life Sidney Spencer was born March 7, 1985, to Stephen and Janice Spencer. She has two brothers, Brad, 27 and Scott, 25. High school career Spencer received the 2003 Alabama Miss Basketball award. A product of Hoover, ...
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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 ...
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Temeka Johnson
Temeka Rochelle Johnson (born September 6, 1982) is a former American professional basketball player. Her primary position was point guard. High school years Johnson attended Bonnabel High School in Kenner, Louisiana. College years Johnson played for the LSU Lady Tigers from 2001 to 2005, graduating from the school in 2005. She broke LSU's career assist record. She was also teammates with Seimone Augustus. * AP All-American honorable mention (2004, 2003, 2002) * All-SEC First Team (2005, 2004) * All-SEC Third Team (2003) * SEC Tournament MVP (2003) * SEC All-Tournament Team (2003, 2002) LSU statistics Source WNBA career Johnson was selected 6th overall in the 2005 WNBA Draft. Upon joining the Mystics she was doubted for being too short to play professional basketball. That same year she would walk away with the 2005 WNBA Rookie of the Year award. In addition, she ranked 2nd in the league in assists. At the beginning of the 2006 season, she was traded to the Los Angeles Sp ...
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Phoenix Mercury
The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, playing in the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded before the league's inaugural 1997 WNBA season, 1997 season began; it is one of the eight original franchises. The team is owned by Robert Sarver, who also owns the NBA team Phoenix Suns. The Mercury have qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in fifteen of its twenty-four years in Phoenix. The franchise has been home to players such as former University of Connecticut, UConn Diana Taurasi, Rutgers University, Rutgers grad Cappie Pondexter, former Temple University, Temple power forward Candice Dupree, former Baylor University, Baylor center Brittney Griner, and Australian guard Penny Taylor. In 1998 WNBA season, 1998, 2007 WNBA season, 2007, 2009 WNBA season, 2009, 2014 WNBA season, 2014, and 2021 WNBA season, 2021 the Mercury went to the WNBA Finals; they lost ...
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Christi Thomas
Christi Michelle Thomas (born August 14, 1982) played professional basketball in the WNBA. She attended the University of Georgia where she played under coach Andy Landers. She has been a professional since 2004. Christi also played basketball at Buford High School in Buford, Georgia, where she led the Buford Wolves to a State Runner-Up finish in 1999. She's 6 ft 5 in (1.91 m) and weighs 185 lb (84 kg). On January 30, 2009 Thomas was traded to the Minnesota Lynx for Vanessa Hayden-Johnson. WNBA career statistics Regular season , - , align="left" , 2004 , align="left" , Los Angeles , 31 , , 8 , , 17.6 , , .462 , , .455 , , .683 , , 3.9 , , 0.7 , , 0.6 , , 0.5 , , 0.9 , , 5.3 , - , align="left" , 2005 , align="left" , Los Angeles , 32 , , 0 , , 16.3 , , .500 , , .333 , , .688 , , 3.3 , , 0.5 , , 0.3 , , 0.6 , , 0.8 , , 3.8 , - , align="left" , 2006 , align="left" , Los Angeles , 27 , , 1 , , 20.0 , , .489 , , .200 , , .638 ...
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Vanessa Hayden-Johnson
Vanessa L'asonya Hayden-Johnson (born June 5, 1982), née Vanessa L'asonya Hayden, is an American former college and professional basketball player who was a center in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) for five seasons in the 2000s. Hayden played college basketball for the University of Florida, and she played professionally for the Minnesota Lynx and Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA. Early years Hayden was born in Orlando, Florida. She attended William R. Boone High School in Orlando, and played high school basketball for the Boone Braves. College career Hayden accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where she played for the Florida Gators women's basketball team from 2000 to 2004. As a senior in 2004, she was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection, SEC Defensive Player of the year, and a second-team All-American. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in 2004. Florida statistics ...
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Minnesota Lynx
The Minnesota Lynx are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team won the WNBA title in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017. Founded prior to the 1999 season, the team is owned by Glen Taylor, who is also the majority owner of the Lynx' NBA counterpart, the Minnesota Timberwolves. The franchise has been home to players such as Katie Smith, Seimone Augustus, native Minnesotan Lindsay Whalen, Maya Moore, Rebekkah Brunson, and Sylvia Fowles. The Lynx have qualified for the WNBA playoffs in twelve of their twenty-one years. They currently hold a WNBA record ten consecutive playoff appearances. Franchise history Joining the league (1998–2004) On April 22, 1998, the WNBA announced they would add two expansion teams (Minnesota and the Orlando Miracle) for the 1999 season. The team was officially named the Minnesota Lynx on December 5, 1998. The Lynx started their inaug ...
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Chamique Holdsclaw
Chamique Shaunta Holdsclaw (born August 9, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) most recently under a contract with the San Antonio Silver Stars. She announced her retirement from the Los Angeles Sparks on June 11, 2007, though she eventually came out of retirement to play with the Atlanta Dream for the 2009 WNBA Season. Holdsclaw was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018. High school years Holdsclaw grew up playing basketball. While attending Christ the King Regional High School in Queens, New York, she played for the school's women's basketball team, and led them to four straight New York State Championships in basketball. Holdsclaw was named a High School All-American by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). She participated in the WBCA High School All-America Game in 1995, scoring eight points. College years Holdsclaw went to the University of Tennessee from 1995 to ...
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Atlanta Dream
The Atlanta Dream are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, playing in the Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded for the 2008 WNBA season. The team is owned by real estate investors Larry Gottesdiener, Suzanne Abair and former Dream player Renee Montgomery. Although the Dream share the Atlanta market with the National Basketball Association's Hawks, the Dream is not affiliated with its NBA counterpart. The Dream play at the Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Georgia. The Dream has qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in eight of its thirteen years in Atlanta and has reached the WNBA Finals three times. The franchise has been home to many high-quality players such as University of Louisville standouts Angel McCoughtry and Shoni Schimmel, former Finals MVP Betty Lennox, and Brazilian sharpshooter Izi Castro Marques. In 2010, the Dream went to the WNBA Finals but fell short to Seattle. They lost to the ...
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