Sue Bird

Infobox WNBA Player
name = Sue Bird


caption = Sue Bird (middle) is welcomed to Washington, D.C. in 2002 by Connecticut Senator Christopher Dodd
team = Seattle Storm
position = Guard
height_ft = 5 | height_in = 9
weight_lbs = 150
nationality = USA, Israel
birth_date = birth date and age|1980|10|16
birth_place = Syosset, New York
college = University of Connecticut
draft = 1^st overall
draft_year = 2002
draft_team = Seattle Storm
career_start = 2001
career_end =
former_teams =
awards = All-WNBA First Team (2002-2005)
Four-time WNBA All-Star

Suzanne Brigit Bird (born October 16, 1980) is a professional women's basketball player. A high school star from Christ The King RHS, she went on to become a key part of two national champion University of Connecticut teams, the first player to be picked in the 2002 WNBA Draft and an Olympic gold medalist. She currently plays for the WNBA's Seattle Storm, with whom she won a championship in 2004. She is also a member of the 2008 gold medal winning United States Women's Olympic basketball team.

Bird was born in Syosset, New York. Her father, Herschel Bird, is of Russian Jewish descent and her mother is Nancy Bird. She also has an older sister Jennifer.

University of Connecticut

Bird gained renown while playing as the starting point guard for the University of Connecticut women's basketball team from 1998 to 2002, and led them to NCAA titles in 2000 and 2002. While playing for the Huskies, Bird was feared most as a three-point shooter, and also at the free throw line, where she averaged over 90% of her free throws in her sophomore and senior seasons. At the conclusion of her college career, she was named the Naismith Award winner and College Player of the Year in 2002. She started in every game in which she appeared, and the team went 114-4 during that time.

WNBA

Bird was named the first pick in the 2002 WNBA Draft to the Seattle Storm and was also the first point guard to be drafted first in the league's history. In her rookie season, she led the Storm to their first playoff appearance, and was also named a starter to the WNBA Western Conference All-Star team, and was a member of the All-WNBA First team at the conclusion of the 2002 season. She was second in the team in scoring (14.4 ppg), led in assists (6 apg), steals (1.6 spg), and in three point shots (57). She and teammate Lauren Jackson form one of the league's most electric one-two punches, drawing frequent comparisons to the Utah Jazz's John Stockton and Karl Malone. Bird is second all-time in WNBA history in assists per game (5.6), trailing only Ticha Penicheiro.

Since the 2004 championship, the Storm has had disappointing losses in the first round of the Western Conference finals in three straight seasons. In 2005, the Storm opened with a win over the Houston Comets, but then lost consecutive games and were bounced out of the postseason. Bird averaged 12.1 points per game and led the WNBA in assists per game with 5.9 in 2005.

The following season, 2006, the Storm again won their opening playoff game, 84-72, over the Los Angeles Sparks before dropping two straight and being eliminated. In 2007, Bird missed five games due to arthroscopic knee surgery, but the Storm made the playoffs as the No. 4 seed in the West. In the first round the Storm was swept in two games by No. 1 seed Phoenix, led by Bird's good friend and former teammate Diana Taurasi.

Sue Bird is one of six women to receive an Olympic Gold Medal, an NCAA championship, and a WNBA Championship. The others are Ruth Riley, Sheryl Swoopes, and fellow Huskies Swin Cash, Kara Wolters, and Diana Taurasi.

International career

In the 2003-2004 off-season, Bird was named to the United States 2004 Women's Olympic Basketball Team's core roster. She was the youngest player on the core roster of nine players.

In the 2004-2005 WNBA off-season, she played in Russia, with Storm teammate Kamila Vodichkova on the "Dynamo Moscow". In the 2005-2006 WNBA off-season, she played on the same team, reaching the Russian championship and the Euroleague women’s playoffs.

In the 2006-2007 WNBA off-season, she joined Jackson and fellow UConn star Diana Taurasi on the Russian team Spartak Moscow to win the Russian Super League championship and the EuroLeague Women.

External links

* [http://www.usolympicteam.com/26_1119.htm U.S. Olympic Team bio]
*WNBA-profile
* [http://www.betterbasketball.com/basketball-moves-video/ Instructional Video with Player]