A WNBA icon, Leslie’s career comes to its end

Ever since I can remember, Lisa Leslie has been the face of women’s basketball. The star from Compton was one of those figures that never seemed to age. If there was a women’s basketball game on TV, be it a WNBA or an international game, chances were Leslie was right in the middle of it.

But those days will soon be nothing but memories and tape reels. Because tonight could be the last game the greatest women’s basketball player and one of the best USC athletes in history will play. Leslie has said she’ll retire at the end of this season, and with the Los Angeles Sparks facing playoff elimination from the Phoenix Mercury, it could be the last chance to see Leslie set up in the post or knock a jumper down from 15 feet.

Basketball pioneer · Former USC star Lisa Leslie (33) played an integral role in starting the WNBA and was the first woman to dunk. - Photo courtesy of USC Sports Information

It might surprise you to learn that the three-time WNBA MVP is only 37 years old. She’s been so dominant for so long, it feels like she came from the Paleolithic era. In an age when athletes are still competing as they reach their 40s (Dara Torres won an Olympic silver medal in swimming at the ripe age of 41 in Beijing last year), it sure seems plausible that Leslie could continue to play for a few more years. But the 6-foot-5 center has done so much in her career, it’d be a bit selfish to ask her to stay.

And why should she stay? She has won four Olympic gold medals, more than any women’s basketball player in history, and two WNBA championships. She is only one of four players left from the inaugural season of the WNBA in 1997, and she is the league’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder. While at USC, she became the first player in conference history to be named to the All-Pac-10 team all four years, and she was an All-American for three of those years. She also won the Naismith Award in 1994.

Oh yeah, she was also the first player to ever dunk in a WNBA game.

It was her play, as well as her attractive personality, that made her the perfect ambassador for the game. After 13 years in the league, the ambassador hasn’t lost her charm.

“Hi, my name is Lisa,” she said at a news conference following the Sparks’ win in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals last week. “I’m not sure if you guys had any questions for me, but I thought I’d come in.”

You cannot measure Leslie’s impact on women’s basketball. She was one of the first players to make of name for herself in high school, as she actively tried to break Cheryl Miller’s record of 105 points in a game (she scored 101 in the first half, then the opposing team failed to come out for the second half). She dominated at USC, but after graduating, she found there was no place for women basketball players in the States.

So she moved to Italy for a year and played there, but came back in 1996 to capture the gold medal in the Olympics in Atlanta. The United States was still without a league, and she thought her career was over before it even started.

“At that moment, I thought I had retired from basketball,” Leslie told The New York Times last month.

Thankfully, her retirement was postponed 13 years. Because after the Olympics, she played a big part in instituting the WNBA.

Ever since that inaugural season in 1997, Leslie has been scoring baskets and inspiring young players around the country. If it wasn’t for her, there might not even be a WNBA, and once-in-a-generation talents such as Candace Parker might be playing overseas, or not at all.

“I don’t think there’s an athlete on the court today or in this league or in youth leagues all around this country who don’t owe a debt of gratitude to Lisa Leslie, or don’t look up to her as an iconic figure in women’s basketball,” said Donna Orender, president of the WNBA, at this year’s All-Star Game. “She has been one of the great competitors, the most fierce competitor.”

Being the competitor that she is, Leslie is going out on her own terms. She had a baby two years ago and could have easily called it quits after that, but she decided to come back and play. She injured her knee early this season and could have made an excuse about being too old, and nobody would’ve questioned her.

But she’s here to win one last WNBA title. If she doesn’t, there are no plans to pull a Brett Favre or Michael Jordan. She’s done with her career and wants to spend time with her daughter and husband.

When she finally takes off her shoes for the last time, be it tonight or a few weeks down the road after her third WNBA championship, she will leave a void larger than Los Angeles in women’s basketball. There’s not a single player who can fill that void, and because of her long-lasting career and fame, she will continue to be the face of women’s basketball long after she takes off the No. 9 jersey.

She has arguably been the greatest Trojan ambassador in any sport. For that, Leslie deserves a standing ovation, and, maybe, just maybe, she could give us one last dunk.

“Spittin’ Sports” runs Fridays. To comment on this article, visit dailytrojan.com or email Kenny at [email protected].