On Sunday, Candace Parker announced on social media she is retiring from the WNBA after 16 seasons, she is a three-time WNBA champion and a two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player.
Breaking: Candace Parker announced she is retiring from basketball after 16 seasons in the WNBA
What a career from one of the BEST to ever do it 👏 @HighlightHER pic.twitter.com/ePz0wLCcRu
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 28, 2024
The two-time Olympic gold medalist Parker wrote in an Instagram post,
“I promised I’d never cheat the game & that I’d leave it in a better place than I came into it. The competitor in me always wants 1 more, but it’s time. My HEART & body knew, but I needed to give my mind time to accept it. I’m grateful that for 16 years I PLAYED A GAME for a living and DESPITE all the injuries, I hooped. I’m grateful for family, friends, teammates, coaches, doctors, trainers, and fans who made this journey so special.”
In her retirement post, Parker said she wouldn’t be leaving the game of basketball or sports in general, she would be,
“Attacking business, private equity, ownership (I will own both an NBA & WNBA team), broadcasting, with the same intensity & focus I played basketball.”
Spent her first 13 seasons in the league with the Los Angeles Sparks, in 2008, was the first in WNBA history to be named Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player in the same season.
Parker averaged 18.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 3.4 assists while helping the Sparks to a 10-win improvement in 2008.
A seven-time All-Star who won three championships with three different teams, the Sparks in 2016, the Chicago Sky in 2021, and the Las Vegas Aces in 2023, the first WNBA player in history.
She was also a two-time Olympic gold medalist as part of the U.S. squad at the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics.
