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Before there was Caitlin Clark, there was Sue Bird.
The four-time WNBA champion and 13-time All-Star played her entire 19-year career with the Seattle Storm, a team of which she is now a part owner.
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The newest member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, Bird made only $72,000 during the last season of her playing career in 2022.
She is now part of an ownership group with the franchise that is worth north of $150million.
Not too bad for the basketball great turned savvy businesswoman.
As Bird gets more and more comfortable in her role off the court, it’s important to note just how great she was on it.
Her resume is endless, but what really stands out is her longevity.
Bird played in more wins (332) than any other player in WNBA history, and is the all-time leader in career starts, with 580.
She overcame injuries throughout her storied career to capture titles in 2004, 2010, 2018 and 2020.
The gap from her first title in 2004 to her last one in 2020 is the longest between titles for any player in league history.
Oh, and she also won five gold medals during that stretch.
A dominant two-decade stretch where Bird unequivocally placed herself on the WNBA’s Mount Rushmore.
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Bird is the league’s all-time leader in assists with 3,234, a number that seems untouchable.
That is of course if Clark goes on to have the 20-year career we all expect her to have.
Until that happens, Bird will remain the greatest point guard in WNBA history.
Her No.10 has since been retired and hung in the rafters at Climate Pledge Arena in downtown Seattle.
It was a retirement ceremony in which Bird gave an emotional and reflective speech during her time in the Pacific Northwest.
“It almost has nothing to do with basketball in so many ways,” Bird said back in June of 2023.
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“The connection I have with the city, with the fans, with this franchise and, again, like I said out there, what they’ve given me.
“I think a lot was made of what I’ve given them in my final year, but I really wanted to emphasize what all the people I named have given me and what I’ll take.”
Bird will forever be woven within the fabric of basketball in Seattle.
“I will forever miss it, and that’s okay,” she said.
“I think some people try to avoid missing it when they’re in my seat up here, and the reality is I’m always going to miss it.
“There’s going to be days — tomorrow, a year from now, five years from now — where I’ll probably even cry because I miss it and get emotional because I miss it. That’s just a part of it.”
She may no longer be on the court, but she’ll still have a pretty good view of it from the owner’s suite.
