The WNBA has named its cream of the crop.
On Sunday, the league released its official “W25? list of the 25 best and most influential players in its 25-year history. Included are the Liberty’s own former greats: Swin Cash, Tina Charles, Becky Hammon, Cappie Pondexter and Katie Smith.
“Salute To You All… Appreciated the opportunity to do something I Loved for 15yrs,” Cash wrote on Twitter.
Only 72 players were included in the pool of players eligible to be voted into the list. And eligibility was based on players who competed for at least two seasons and fulfilled four or seven criteria — such as being the winner of at least one post-season basketball-related award, being selected to the All-WNBA First Team, being named a WNBA All-Star and being on a WNBA championship-winning team.
The 25 were then voted on by a panel of media members and women’s basketball advocates.
“Together, [the W25 athletes] have transformed the way the game is played, changed the way athletes are viewed, become incredible role models, and inspired generations of young, diverse athletes,” league commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement.
Charles, who the Liberty traded
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to the Washington Mystics in 2020, is one of 10 current players on the list. The other nine are Sue Bird, Diana Taurasi, Breanna Stewart, Angel McCoughtry, Nneka Ogwumike, Candace Parker, Brittney Griner and Sylvia Fowles.
To give a bigger picture of just how elite the W25 is: the 25 have a combined total of 167 All-Star selections (and counting) with 22 combining for 53 WNBA championships — Charles and McCoughtry are still vying for their first. But just 10 on the list have won an NCAA title, a WNBA chip and an Olympic gold medal — including Cash, Bird, Griner, Parker and Stewart.
Here’s the full list:
Seimone Augustus — Minnesota Lynx (2006-19), Los Angeles Sparks (2020)
Sue Bird — Seattle Storm (2002-present)
Swin Cash — Detroit Shock (2002-07), Seattle Storm (2008-11), Chicago Sky (2012-13), Atlanta Dream (2014), New York Liberty (2014-16)
Tamika Catchings — Indiana Fever (2002-16)
Tina Charles — Connecticut Sun (2010-13), New York Liberty (2014-19), Washington Mystics (Current)
Cynthia Cooper — Houston Comets (1997-2000, 2003)
Elena Delle Donne — Chicago Sky (2013-2016), Washington Mystics (2017-Current)
Sylvia Fowles — Chicago Sky (2008-14), Minnesota Lynx (2015-present)
Yolanda Griffith — Sacramento Monarchs (1999-2007), Seattle Storm (2008), Indiana Fever (2009)
Brittney Griner — Phoenix Mercury (2013-present)
Becky Hammon — New York Liberty (1999-2006), San Antonio Stars (2007-2014)
Lauren Jackson — Seattle Storm (2001-12)
Lisa Leslie — Los Angeles Sparks (1997-2006, 2008-09)
Angel McCoughtry — Atlanta Dream (2009-2016, 2018-19), Las Vegas Aces (2020-present)
Maya Moore — Minnesota Lynx (2011-18)
Nneka Ogwumike — Los Angeles Sparks (2012-present)
Candace Parker — Los Angeles Sparks (2008-20), Chicago Sky (Current)
Ticha Penicheiro — Sacramento Monarchs (1998-2009), Los Angeles Sparks (2010-11), Chicago Sky (2012)
Cappie Pondexter — Phoenix Mercury (2006-09), New York Liberty (2010-14), Chicago Sky (2015-17), Los Angeles/Indiana (2018)
Katie Smith — Minnesota Lynx (1999-2005), Detroit Shock (2005-2009), Washington Mystics (2010), Seattle Storm (2011-12), New York Liberty (2013)
Breanna Stewart — Seattle Storm (2016-present)
Sheryl Swoopes — Houston Comets (1997-2000, 2002-2007), Seattle Storm (2008), Tulsa Shock (2011)
Diana Taurasi — Phoenix Mercury (2004-2014, 2016-Current)
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Tina Thompson — Houston Comets (1997-2008), Los Angeles Sparks (2009-11), Seattle Storm (2012-13)
Lindsay Whalen — Connecticut Sun (2004-09), Minnesota Lynx (2010-18)