The WNBA is in the midst of its historic 25th season, and throughout the summer there have been a number of events and initiatives to celebrate the league reaching this milestone. The latest took place on Sunday, when the league announced the "W25," the 25 greatest players in WNBA history.
In order to be eligible for consideration, players had to meet at least four of seven criteria set out by the league:
- Won a major individual award
- Made an All-WNBA First Team or Second Team
- Made a WNBA All-Defensive First Team or Second Team
- Made an All-Star Game
- Won a championship
- Ranked in the top 40 all-time in at least one major statistical category
- Won the WNBA's season-long Community Assist Award
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An initial list of 72 players was compiled earlier this year, and from there, a panel of select media members, women's basketball pioneers and advocates narrowed it down to the 25 best players. There was no further ranking among the players selected, and the list was released in alphabetical order. However, fans will have an opportunity to "Vote for the GOAT," and the results of that fan choice will be unveiled during the WNBA Finals next month.
The WNBA's 25 greatest players
Player | Team(s) |
---|---|
Seimone Augustus | Lynx, Sparks |
Sue Bird* | Storm |
Swin Cash | Shock, Storm, Sky, Dream, Liberty |
Tamika Catchings | Fever |
Tina Charles* | Sun, Liberty, Mystics |
Cynthia Cooper | Comets |
Elena Delle Donne* | Sky, Mystics |
Sylvia Fowles* | Sky, Lynx |
Yolanda Griffith | Monarchs, Storm, Fever |
Brittney Griner* | Mercury |
Becky Hammon | Liberty, Stars |
Lauren Jackson | Storm |
Lisa Leslie | Sparks |
Angel McCoughtry* | Dream, Aces |
Maya Moore | Lynx |
Nneka Ogwumike* | Sparks |
Candace Parker* | Sparks, Sky |
Ticha Penicheiro | Monarchs, Sparks, Sky |
Cappie Pondexter | Mercury, Liberty, Sky, Sparks, Fever |
Katie Smith | Lynx, Shock, Mystics, Storm, Liberty |
Breanna Stewart* | Storm |
Sheryl Swoopes | Comets |
Diana Taurasi* | Mercury |
Tina Thompson | Comets, Sparks, Storm |
Lindsay Whalen | Lynx |
*Indicates active player
Here's a quick rundown of some notable facts about the list:
- Ten of the 25 are active players (Bird, Charles, Delle Donne, Fowles, Griner, McCoughtry, Ogwumike, Parker, Stewart, Taurasi)
- Every current franchise has at least one player on the list (there are no players on the list who have played for the Wings, but both Cash and Smith played for the franchise when it was known as the Shock)
- Fourteen of the players on the list have combined to win 23 of the 24 MVP Awards (the only MVP not on the list is A'ja Wilson, who is only in her fourth season)
- There are 10 former Rookie of the Year winners
- There are 12 former No. 1 overall picks
- Nine members of the All-Decade Team released in 2006 are still on the list (Bird, Catchings, Cooper, Griffith, Jackson, Leslie, Smith, Swoopes, Thompson)