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On Saturday, the Connecticut Sun beat the Chicago Sky, 94-84, moving the Sun up to 94-84, putting them in a tie with Chicago for the second-worst record in the WNBA, ahead of the last-place Dallas Wings. The team was led in scoring by two former Phoenix Mercury players, Tina Charles and Bria Hartley, who both scored 23 points and shot a combined 17-for-25 from the floor. Charles added 10 boards, and became the first player in league history to record 200 double-doubles in her career.
Despite being on a team sitting at the bottom of the league standings, more concerned with high draft picks than a playoff push (and that is also reportedly up for sale), the 36-year-old Charles has been a pro’s pro this season, and a big part of the reason the team has been competitive in a lot of games against better teams.
Incredibly, in her 14th WNBA season, she still leads her team in scoring, with 16.3 points per game, one of just two Sun players averaging double figures for the season. She’s also doing this while playing as a big while on a team with limited playmaking — Connecticut is dead last in the league in assists per game.
Charles’ Legacy
Charles, the league’s number two all-time scorer, two-time scoring champ, and former MVP, has shown this year that she still has a lot to give, and she’s doing it with the franchise she began her storied career with.
She had a brief stint with the Mercury in the 2022 season, appearing in just 16 games for the team, averaging 17.3 points (second on the team, behind Skylar Diggins) and 7.3 rebounds (first, ahead of Brianna Turner). She also picked up three of her 200 double-doubles in a Phoenix jersey. Things didn’t work out between her and the team though, and she finished out the year as a member of the Seattle Storm.
It’s not clear how long she’ll continue to lace up her sneakers in the WNBA, but Charles is still an excellent player, and a good example for her team’s younger players to follow as they look to establish their careers in the W. Whoever signs her next season will still be getting one of the game’s premier scorers, an experienced defensive ace, and a strong, physical rebounder.
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