Four-time WNBA champion, five-time Olympic gold medalist, and all-time WNBA assists leader Sue Bird, who just announced retirement last week, got the opportunity to speak out about what made her career special.
Bird was drafted in 2002 and had been playing and winning titles for three decades, winning a state and a national title in high school, two at UConn, and four championships with Seattle. For Bird, it’s been more than winning that’s made her proud; but it’s been her ability to play the game for so long.
“I think for me, what I’ll always represent it’s not the points or assists. It’s the winning, and it’s the longevity. The winning in different decades, it speaks to being able to stay on top of your game. Something Richard Jefferson said on ESPN recently that is the hard part,” Bird said.
Over the past couple of years, questions have arisen on when exactly Sue Bird would retire. Bird herself didn’t know until looking at this season’s Seattle Storms schedule.
“It was really heading into this training camp, heading into the season. I saw our last game against New York was June 19th. And I thought, ‘oh, man. That’s going to put a little pressure on this.’ And as that inched closer, I realized, being from New York, I wanted to share that with my friends. I wanted to share that with my family,” Bird explained.
That night against the Liberty was filled with respect, honor, and applause for legend Sue Bird. During pre-game, a video was dedicated to Bird with staff and players from the Liberty, family, and friends. Leaving Bird with a beautiful memory as she continues to finish out this season.
