No. 17: Candace Parker
Ex-Naperville Central star is helping to revolutionize the women's game
She left the floor and began her ascent, rising above the long-held belief that the women's game is played below the rim. She soared through the air, surprising everyone but herself, before stuffing the basketball through the hoop, leaving mouths agape and changing her life and perhaps her sport forever.
The reverberations are still being felt throughout women's basketball.
(AP file)
''I'm sorry. I can't dunk a basketball,'' Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman said. ''I can shoot, pass and defend, but I can't do what Candace did. She has that extra skill. She's got something others don't have. Right now, she has the world's attention.''
Candace Parker has been so decorated during her high school and college career that she was voted one of the 25 greatest athletes in Chicago history by a Sun-Times panel before she led Tennessee to a second straight national title, before the Los Angeles Sparks made her the first pick in the WNBA draft and before she helped Team USA to Olympic gold at the Beijing Games.
Her professional career, which could end with her being considered the greatest women's player ever, has only just begun, but what separates Parker from the greats that preceded her is her ability to do what few women have ever done.
Parker is neither the first woman to dunk a basketball nor will she be the last. But from the moment the then-15-year-old became the first girl in Illinois and the second in the nation to dunk in a high school game, she became a symbol of what the women's game could become. Becoming the first girl to win the McDonald's All-American Game slam-dunk contest in 2004, delivering five straight-on, one-handed jams while future NBA first-round picks Josh Smith and J.R. Smith missed more elaborate dunks only solidified her reputation as the high-flying future of women's basketball.
''That's crazy,'' said current Purdue and former Neuqua star Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton, a rival of Parker's in high school. ''Doing that put women's basketball on the map. It was incredible what she did, not only for herself but for female athletes everywhere.''
Perhaps Parker's rarest and greatest dunk was witnessed, not by millions during a national television broadcast but by a fortunate few during a game of one-on-one with a member of Tennessee's men's team when Parker was 19. During one sequence, Parker drove to her right and leaped toward the basket as her opponent jumped high to contest her shot. What came next may have been a basketball first: Parker dunked over the outstretched hand of a major-college men's player.
''How many 6-5 players have you ever seen in the women's game play the way Candace Parker plays?'' Tennessee coach Pat Summitt asked. ''She brought a whole different dimension and package.''
Dunks launched Parker's fame -- her slam-dunk title landed her on the ''NBC Nightly News'' and the ''Today Show'' -- but they do not define her game. Her ability to post up, push the ball in transition, find the open teammate and hit the occasional three-pointer coupled with her rebounding and shot-blocking prowess make her the ultimate weapon and a nightmare for opposing coaches, who have made her the frequent target of double and triple teams.
Nothing seems to work. Many of those who thought Parker had reached her personal crescendo during the 2006-07 season acknowledge that she improved her decision-making, defense and face-up shooting in her final college season.
''I feel like when I came on the scene, people were like, 'Oh, that's the girl who can dunk,''' Parker said. ''Now, people recognize that my game is not just that. That was my whole intent coming to college, not to just be a one-dimensional player.''
After scoring a record 34 points, the most ever in a WNBA debut, Parker is averaging 18.8 points and 9.4 rebounds as a rookie. She also helped Team USA win eight games by an average of 37.6 points en route to Olympic gold in Beijing.
As for her future, anything seems possible.
''Usually it's who's the best athlete and then who's the best girl,'' Lieberman said. ''She has surpassed being girl-good. She's just good-good. There are icons who change the game. She ranks among them.''
THE CANDACE PARKER FILE
Full name: Candace Nicole Parker.
Sport: Basketball.
High school: Naperville Central.
College: Tennessee.
Career highlights: Four-time All-State, three-time Illinois Miss Basketball and first two-time USA Today Player of the Year. Led Naperville Central to 95-4 mark in her last 99 games and to two Class AA state titles by averaging 22.9 points and 13.2 rebounds during four-year prep career. Became the first woman to win a slam-dunk contest as part of 2004 McDonald's All-American Game festivities and first women's player to announce her college choice live on national TV. One of the most decorated players in college history, Parker ended her career with streak of 44 double-digit scoring games and as Tennessee's all-time leader in blocked shots, free throws made and free throws attempted. She was the fourth 2,000-point scorer in the program's history. Was a two-time National Player of the Year by numerous organizations. Was named Final Four MVP in back-to-back years while leading Lady Vols to two straight national championships during her last two years in college. Also won ESPY in 2008 for Best Female Athlete and Best Female Collegiate Athlete. Became first woman to give up final year of college eligibility to enter WNBA draft, where she was selected first overall by Los Angeles Sparks. She's averaging 18.8 points and 9.4 rebounds as a rookie. Helped lead U.S. team to its fourth consecutive gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.