Two-time WNBA champion Kara Braxton dies at 43 after car crash in Georgia

Two-time WNBA champion Kara Braxton died Saturday following a car crash in Cobb County, Ga., according to police. She was 43.

Braxton was traveling northbound on Interstate 285 south of Cobb Parkway, late Saturday afternoon, when she failed to maintain her lane, and her 2023 Ford Mustang struck a concrete median wall, Cobb County Police said. Her vehicle continued before stopping on the left shoulder. She was transported to a local hospital and later pronounced dead. The crash remains under investigation.

“It is with profound sadness that we mourn the passing of 2x WNBA Champion Kara Braxton,” the WNBA posted to X in a statement. “Our thoughts are with her family, friends, and former teammates at this time.”

Jelani Thurman, Braxton’s son and a tight end at North Carolina, posted an Instagram photo of himself and his mother from when he was a toddler, a teenager and a college football player. Thurman played for Ohio State’s 2024 national title team and recently transferred to North Carolina. Thurman’s father is Odell Thurman, the former Georgia and NFL linebacker.

Braxton, at 6-foot-6, was one of the league’s most physical post players, carving out a career as a rugged interior scorer and rebounder. She thrived in Detroit’s bruising system but was later traded to multiple teams during 2010 and 2011. She was drafted No. 7 by the Detroit Shock in the 2005 WNBA Draft and quickly became a key front-court reserve.

Braxton was named to the All-Rookie team that season, averaging 6.9 points and 3.0 rebounds. She later helped the Shock win WNBA titles in 2006 and 2008, playing key rotational minutes behind stars Cheryl Ford and Swin Cash.

Braxton played in Detroit until 2009, when the team announced its plans to move to Tulsa, Okla., and spent part of the 2010 season with the Tulsa Shock before being traded to the Phoenix Mercury. She spent the next five seasons with the Mercury, Atlanta Dream and New York Liberty, averaging a career-best 7.6 points and 4.7 rebounds. Her best seasons came with Phoenix, when she averaged 11.1 points and 4.8 rebounds and 10.6 points and 4.9 rebounds in 2010 and 2011.

Braxton became the Bulldogs’ anchor at Georgia when she led the team to a Sweet 16 run in 2002. She was named SEC Freshman of the Year and averaged 16.3 points and 2.0 blocks per game. Her dominant freshman year was overshadowed by the following seasons, though, when she was suspended for an undisclosed reason. Georgia suspended her for two regular-season games during her sophomore year before her third suspension shut down her season. She was dismissed for violating team rules during her junior season.

Braxton also played overseas in Poland, Turkey, China and Italy through the 2017-18 season. During her time overseas, she won a pair of Polish league championships and, in 2010, was the Chinese league MVP while leading her team to a championship. She retired from basketball in 2019.