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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 founded before the league's inaugural 1997 season began. Like some other WNBA teams, the Sparks have the distinction of not being affiliated with an NBA counterpart, even though the market is shared with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers. As of 2020, the Sparks are the most recent franchise to win back-to-back titles. Lakers owner Jerry Buss owned the Sparks from 1997 to 2006 when Williams Group Holdings purchased the team. It was previously the sister team of the Los Angeles Lakers. As of 2014, the Sparks are owned by Sparks LA Sports, LLC. The Sparks have qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in twenty of their twenty-four years in Los Angeles, more than any other team in the league. The franchise has been home to many high-q ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is an American professional basketball league. It is composed of twelve teams, all based in the United States. The league was founded on April 22, 1996, as the women's counterpart to the National Basketball Association (NBA), and league play started in 1997. The regular season is played from May to September, with the All Star game being played midway through the season in July (except in Olympic years) and the WNBA Finals at the end of September until the beginning of October. Five WNBA teams have direct NBA counterparts and normally play in the same arena. They play in the same arena as funding is sparse due to lack of spectators. Indiana Fever, Los Angeles Sparks, Minnesota Lynx, New York Liberty, and Phoenix Mercury. The Atlanta Dream, Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Dallas Wings, Las Vegas Aces, Seattle Storm, and Washington Mystics do not share an arena with a direct NBA counterpart, although four of the seven (t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. It is the premier men's professional basketball league in the world. The league was founded in New York City on June 6, 1946, as the Basketball Association of America (BAA). It changed its name to the National Basketball Association on August 3, 1949, after merging with the competing National Basketball League (NBL). In 1976, the NBA and the American Basketball Association (ABA) merged, adding four franchises to the NBA. The NBA's regular season runs from October to April, with each team playing 82 games. The league's playoff tournament extends into June. , NBA players are the world's best paid athletes by average annual salary per player. The NBA is an active member of USA Basketball (USAB), which is recognized by t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
WNBA Finals
The WNBA Finals are the championship series of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the conclusion of the league's postseason each fall. The series was named the WNBA Championship until 2002. Starting 2016 Verizon is the official sponsor. The series is played between the winners of the playoff semifinals. At the conclusion of the championship round, the winner of the WNBA Finals is presented the championship trophy. The WNBA Finals has been played at the conclusion of every WNBA season in history, the first being held in 1997. Since 2005, the winner of the WNBA Finals has been determined through a 2–2–1 format. The first, second, and fifth games of the series are played at the arena of the team who earned home court advantage by having the better record during the regular season. History The WNBA's playoff format has changed several times in the league's history. From 1997 to 1998, a single championship game was held to decide the champion. In 1998, afte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2017 WNBA Finals
The 2017 WNBA Finals was the best-of-five championship series for the 2017 season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), tipping off on September 24. It was a rematch of the previous year's finals matchup. The top-seeded Minnesota Lynx held home court advantage in the Finals, and won three games to two against the second-seeded . The Sparks [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2003 WNBA Finals
The 2003 WNBA Finals was the championship series of the 2003 WNBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Detroit Shock, top-seeded champions of the Eastern Conference, defeated the Los Angeles Sparks, top-seeded champions of the Western Conference, two games to one in a best-of-three series. This was Detroit's first title. The Shock made their first appearance in the Finals in franchise history. The Sparks made their third straight Finals appearance. Going into the series, the Sparks had won two WNBA championships ( 2001, 2002). The Houston Comets hold the record with four championships won. The Shock had a 25–9 record (.735), good enough to receive home-court advantage over the Sparks (24–10). Road to the finals Regular season series The Shock won the regular season series: Game summaries All times listed below are Eastern Daylight Time. Game 1 Lisa Leslie collected 23 points and 12 rebounds as the two-time defending champion Sparks used a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lisa Leslie
Lisa Deshaun Leslie (born July 7, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player. She is currently the head coach for Triplets in the BIG3 professional basketball league, as well as a studio analyst for Orlando Magic broadcasts on Fox Sports Florida. Leslie played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is a three-time WNBA MVP and a four-time Olympic gold medal winner. The number-seven pick in the 1997 inaugural WNBA draft, she followed her career at the University of Southern California with eight WNBA All-Star selections and two WNBA championships over the course of 11 seasons with the Los Angeles Sparks, before retiring in 2009. Leslie was the first player to dunk in a WNBA game. In 2011, she was voted in by fans as one of the Top 15 players in WNBA history. All throughout her WNBA career, Leslie also played for USA Basketball in international competition, winning four Olympic gold medals (1996, 2000, 2004, 2008) and two FIBA World Championsh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
USC Trojans Women's Basketball
The USC Trojans women's basketball team, or the Women of Troy, is the collegiate women's basketball team that represents the University of Southern California, in the Pac-12 Conference. The team rose to prominence in 1976, at which time scholarships became available to female basketball players. They were the first Division I team to give these scholarships. History The Women of Troy made their first appearance in the Final Four in the 1981 AIAW Tournament. Following the successful 1982 season, in which USC reached the Elite Eight of the first NCAA tournament, the Trojans went on to win national championships in 1983 and 1984. The 1983 championship team included three All-Americans, Paula McGee, Cheryl Miller, and Rhonda Windham. The 1983 team went 31–2 in the regular and post-season combined. The 1983 team bested their opponent, Louisiana Tech, by a mere 2 points. The final score was 69–67. The 1984 championship team went 29–4 in the regular and post season. The 1984 team ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nikki Teasley
Nikki Teasley (born March 22, 1979) is a former basketball player in the WNBA. Born in Washington, D.C., she played college basketball at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In the 2002 WNBA Draft, Teasley was selected as the #5 overall pick by the Portland Fire. But shortly afterwards, she was traded with Sophia Witherspoon to the Los Angeles Sparks for Ukari Figgs and second-round pick Gergana Slavtcheva. Teasley helped the Sparks win their second consecutive title by hitting a series-winning three-pointer in the final seconds. On March 24, 2008, Teasley was waived by the Washington Mystics. The Atlanta Dream signed Teasley in 2008 and she suited up for the 2009 season. Teasley was then waived for Ivory Latta Ivory Latta (born September 25, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. She was drafted 11th overall by the Detroit Shock in the 2007 WNBA Draft. A 5'6" (1.68 m) guard noted for her three-point shooting .... ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Candace Parker
Candace Nicole Parker (born April 19, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Chicago Sky of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was selected as the first overall pick in the 2008 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks. A versatile player, Parker mainly plays the forward and center positions. In high school, Parker won the 2003 and 2004 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year awards, becoming just the second junior and the only woman to receive the award twice. As a college player for Tennessee, she led the team to two consecutive national championships ( 2007, 2008), was named the Final Four's most outstanding player in both occasions, and was a two-time consensus national player of the year. As a redshirt freshman, she became the first woman to dunk in an NCAA tournament game and the first woman to dunk twice in a college game. After being selected in the WNBA Draft, Parker signed long-term endorsement deals with Adidas an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tennessee Volunteers Women's Basketball
The Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team represents the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee in NCAA women's basketball competition. The team has been a contender for national titles for over thirty years, having made every NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship tournament since the NCAA began sanctioning women's sports in the 1981–82 season. The team is frequently referred to as the Lady Vols; the formal "Volunteers" nickname is regularly shortened by many fans of both men's and women's teams to "Vols." The university considers either "Lady Volunteers" or "Lady Vols" acceptable. The Lady Vols have won at least a share of the SEC regular season championship 17 times (with the most recent occurrence being in 2015), won 17 SEC tournament championships (with the most recent occurrence being in 2014), made 18 Final Four appearances (with the most recent occurrence being in 2008), and won 8 national championships (with the most recent being in 2008). Over ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
