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The WNBA playoffs begin this weekend. It’s the latest in a string of glitzy moments for the league, which recently has seen the rise of Indiana’s Caitlin Clark and her rivalry with Chicago’s Angel Reese, along with skyrocketing revenue and the news of expansion into new markets. But as a bright future unfolds, we wanted to dive into the past to remember seven hoopers who helped make this all possible.
Nancy Lieberman
If you learn only one thing about Nancy Lieberman, let it be this: her nickname on the court was “Lady Magic.” A sublime point guard, her passing was on par with the likes of the five-time champion Los Angeles Lakers floor general. A member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, Lieberman remains a steward of the game today. But while she was only able to play in the WNBA for a total of 26 games – 25 during the league’s inaugural season in 1997 and one remarkable tilt at 49 years old in 2008 – she remains one of the sport’s most important names. During her career, she even played in the USBL (a top men’s league). Since then, she’s coached both in the W and the NBA. Today, she’s a broadcaster for the OKC Thunder. See more.
Cheryl Miller
It’s not every day that a hall of famer weeps on a podcast talking about his sister. But not every hall of famer has a sibling like Cheryl Miller. Growing up with Cheryl taught her brother, Reggie, how to be competitive and win (albeit rarely on the family hoop growing up). Today, Cheryl remains probably the best women’s basketball player of all time. Sadly, though, her career ended without her playing in the WNBA – the league just wasn’t around during her prime. But that didn’t stop her from coaching the Phoenix Mercury in the W and earning a 70-52 record. Phoenix even made it to the WNBA finals in 1998. But as a player? Cheryl is a hall of famer, like her brother, and scored an incredible 105 points in a single high school game. See more.
Sheryl Swoopes
A hall of famer and former three-time MVP in the WNBA, Swoopes was also a two-time scoring champ and three-time defensive player of the year. Oh and she won a whopping four titles in the W. That’s a stunning legacy. But since she retired from the game, Swoopes has largely been out of the public eye. (Today, her son Jordan Jackson is a pro hooper with the Maine Celtics.) Swoopes, who was the first signee the WNBA ever had, also boasted her own groundbreaking signature Nike sneaker in the early 2000s, the Air Swoopes. See more.
Lauren Jackson
The Seattle Storm are one of the most valuable franchises in the WNBA, valued at around $150m. The team is known for players like Sue Bird, Breanna Stewart and Jewell Loyd. But there is another key figure in the franchise’s history: the sweet-shooting Lauren Jackson. The Australian frontcourt player is a hall of famer, a three-time MVP and two-time WNBA champ, among many other accolades. Where would the Storm be without their first great star? Jackson, who was the top pick in the league’s 2001 draft, played a dozen years in the W and helped to put Seattle on the basketball map. See more.
Lusia Harris
A center from Delta State University, where she was the only Black player on the roster, Harris was drafted by the New Orleans Jazz in the seventh round with the 137th pick in the 1977 NBA draft (she later revealed she declined to attend training camp as she was pregnant). She remains the only woman ever to be drafted by an NBA team (Denise Long was taken years earlier in 1969 by the San Francisco Warriors, but the NBA later voided that pick). Harris, who played in one of the first-ever women’s basketball games at Madison Square Garden, scoring 47 points as a senior in 1976-77, is also the first Black woman ever inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. And while she never played in the NBA or WNBA, she did suit up for one season with the Houston Angels of the Women’s Professional Basketball League in 1979-80. See more.
Ann Meyers
Ann Meyers boasts a lot of firsts. The first woman to sign a four-year college athletic scholarship, She was also the first woman to sign a contract with the NBA, doing so in 1979 with the Indiana Pacers for $50,000. She participated in tryouts for the team but did not make the final roster. One of the first women inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, Meyers was also a member of the Houston Angels, drafted to the WBL in 1978 with the top pick. Eight years later, she married LA Dodgers pitcher Don Drysdale and the two became the first married couple to be hall of famers in their chosen sports. As a player, though, Meyers was unmatched. Today, her No 15 jersey hangs from the UCLA rafters, one of the first four numbers ever to be retired by the school, along with Denise Curry, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton. See more.
Lynette Woodard
While Lynette Woodard did play two seasons in the W, they came toward the very end of her career when she was in her late 30s. Prior to that, she was a standout at the University of Kansas. Later, she was the first female member of the Harlem Globetrotters, making her also the first woman to play for a men’s pro team. During her college years, though, Kansas was not part of the NCAA, instead the school was part of the AIAW, or the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women. So, when people talk about Clark being the all-time NCAA scorer for men’s or women’s basketball, the news often neglects to cite Woodard’s contributions. Clark scored 3,951 points but Woodard is second in women’s hoops history with 3,649. See more.
