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In case there was ever any question that Sue Bird is a basketball legend, she’s just broken new ground with a statue.
A bronze replica of the former Seattle Storm point guard now sits outside of the city’s Climate Pledge Arena. Although several other WNBA players have been honored with statues at their colleges, this makes Bird the first WNBA player to have a statue outside of a WNBA arena.
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“People keep asking me what it feels like to be the first,” she said during the unveiling ceremony over the weekend. “The truth is that I never set out to be the first at anything, but if being the first means I won’t be the last, if this statue means that 20 years from now there will be statues of other WNBA greats — some who are in the audience and players whose names you don’t even know yet — then I’m proud to be the first.”
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Bird played in the WNBA for 20 years, sticking with the Storm for her entire run before retiring in 2022. She had a truly iconic career, playing on 13 All-Star teams, winning five gold medals in the Olympics, and scoring four WNBA championships during her time with the team.
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Earlier this year, she was inducted to the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, and is scheduled to be inducted to the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in September. Her team also retired her jersey, No. 10. If there’s anyone deserving of this permanent honor in the form of a bronze statue, it certainly seems to be Bird.
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“I hope it tells a simple story,” she said. “That greatness isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being persistent. That you can be true to yourself and still achieve extraordinary things.”
This article originally appeared on Pride: Sue Bird makes history as the first WNBA player honored with a bronze statue
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