Diana Taurasi cemented her name in history when she passed Tina Thompson to become the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer in 2017.
The UConn legend also leads the league in all-time made field goals and 3-pointers. And with the retirement of fellow Husky Sue Bird following last season, Taurasi is the WNBA’s oldest active player at age 41.
Now the 6-foot guard is approaching another milestone: 10,000 career points. A feat no other player in league history has accomplished.
“Man, that’s hard to think about, 10,000 points is like really crazy. That’s insane,” Connecticut Sun forward DeWanna Bonner said over All-Star weekend. “She’s the GOAT, she’s been doing this at a high level for a very long time. So I’m excited to see her get that — hopefully it’s not on us.”
Taurasi’s tally currently stood at 9,914 career points entering a matchup between the Sun (15-5) and Phoenix Mercury (4-15) on Tuesday night.
While it’s safe to say Taurasi won’t reach the historic mark against Connecticut, the countdown is officially on with the former Husky just 86 points away. Taurasi is averaging 14.7 points, 5.3 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game so far this season, which puts her on track to reach the 10,000 point mark at some point over the next five to seven games, give or take.
“She’s obviously showed us the way,” Indiana Fever guard Kelsey Mitchell said at WNBA All-Star weekend. “She’s a pillar of what the W kind of stands for. And from a guard standpoint, obviously she’s been one of the best to do it for a long time. And so I wouldn’t say that I would be surprised (that’s she’s reaching 10,000 points). She’s just that amazing, and so hats off to her for that accomplishment.”
Taurasi had scored a total 9,693 career points entering the 2023 season, her 19th in the WNBA after leading UConn to three national championships and being selected as the No. 1 overall pick in 2004.
It didn’t take long for Taurasi to make her presence felt at the next level. She became the first player in WNBA history to start their career with three consecutive 20+ point games and would go on to be named the 2004 Rookie of the Year after averaging 17.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game that season. She won her first of five Olympic Gold medals that summer as well.
Taurasi won her first WNBA championship with the Mercury in 2007 as they defeated the Detroit Shock. The following year she became the fastest player to reach 3,000 points in league history, doing so in 151 games.
Then in 2009, Taurasi had arguably the best season of her career, named league MVP after averaging 20.4 points, 5.7 rebounds 3.5 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 40.7% from deep in the regular season. She was also named Finals MVP as Phoenix defeated the Indiana Fever 3-2.
Taurasi was again named Finals MVP in 2014 when she led the Mercury to their third championship against the Chicago Sky. She was also named an All-Star that season, one of her 10 appearances.
“She scored a lot of those (points) on me over the years, so, you know, she’s obviously one of the best ever do it,” said New York Liberty guard Courtney Vandersloot, who played for the Sky that season. “She’s still competing at a high level and I think she still loves the game.
“She’s done so much for this league, for the game, yeah, I hope she holds on for a little bit longer. She’s one of those players that I can’t see the WNBA without Diana Taurasi in it. And 10,000 is obviously a major accomplishment. If anybody, I think we all agreed that it was gonna be Diana.”
It was unclear what was in store for Taurasi as a free agent this past offseason, but she ended up signing a multi-year contract to stay with the Mercury. So now even after she inevitably eclipses the 10,000 point mark in the coming weeks, that number will only continue to climb.
“I want the number to be as big as it can be because when someone breaks it it’s gonna be even bigger and even better,” Taurasi said in a video produced by the Mercury. “The game of basketball is about scoring points but I think if you could do it organically and in a way where it doesn’t take away from what the team is trying to do, I think those become the people that are the best scorers.”
