2012 WNBA Award Winners

Most Valuable Player
Connecticut Sun center Tina Charles has been named the 2012 WNBA Most Valuable Player presented by Boost Mobile, the WNBA announced. Charles received 345 points (25 first place votes) from a national panel of 41 sportswriters and broadcasters. Los Angeles Sparks� forward Candace Parker finished second with 253 points (seven first-place votes) and Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings finished third with 210 points (seven). A pair of Minnesota Lynx players, forward Maya Moore and guard Seimone Augustus, finished fourth and fifth with 128 points and 42 points, respectively.

All-WNBA Teams
Connecticut Sun center Tina Charles, 2012 WNBA Most Valuable Player presented by Boost Mobile, headlines the 2012 All-WNBA First-Team, the league announced. A three-time All-WNBA Team selection Charles led all vote-getters with 196 points. Forwards Candace Parker of the Los Angeles Sparks (176) and Tamika Catchings of the Indiana Fever (161), as well as guards Cappie Pondexter of the New York Liberty (128) and Seimone Augustus of the Minnesota Lynx (95) round out the First-Team.

Defensive Player of the Year
For the fifth time in her career, Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings has been named the WNBA Defensive Player of the Year presented by Boost Mobile, the league announced. Catchings previously won the award in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010. Catchings received 19 out of 41 votes, 11 more than Atlanta Dream guard/forward Angel McCoughtry (eight). Los Angeles Sparks teammates forward Candace Parker (six) and guard Alana Beard (four), Atlanta Dream forward Sancho Lyttle (two), Connecticut Sun center Tina Charles (one) and San Antonio Silver Stars forward Sophia Young (one) received the remaining votes.

All-Defensive Teams
Indiana Fever forward Tamika Catchings, the 2011 WNBA MVP, and Chicago Sky center Sylvia Fowles, the 2011 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, headline the 2012 WNBA All-Defensive First-Team, the league announced. Catchings received 50 votes from a national panel of 41 sports writers and broadcasters, with Fowles following suit with 33 votes, Los Angeles Sparks guard Alana Beard (30), Indiana Fever guard Briann January (26) and Atlanta Dream forward Sancho Lyttle (26) round out the group.

Rookie of the Year
Los Angeles Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike earned the 2012 WNBA Rookie of the Year award, the league announced. Ogwumike received 39 votes from a national panel of 41 sportswriters and broadcasters. Phoenix Mercury guard Samantha Prahalis and Tulsa Shock forward Glory Johnson each received one vote. The honor for Ogwumike marked the fifth straight season in which the No. 1 overall pick in the Draft went on to be named WNBA Rookie of the Year. She follows Maya Moore (2011), Tina Charles (2010), Angel McCoughtry (2009), and Candace Parker (2008).

All-Rookie Team
2012 WNBA Rookie of the Year Nneka Ogwumike of the Los Angeles Sparks and the Tulsa Shock�s Glory Johnson headline the 2012 WNBA All-Rookie Team, the league announced. The Atlanta Dream�s Tiffany Hayes, Phoenix Mercury�s Samantha Prahalis and Shock�s Riquna Williams round out the group of elite first-year players. The voting panel consisted of the WNBA�s 12 head coaches, each of whom voted for five players regardless of position. Coaches were not permitted to vote for players on their own team. Ogwumike and Johnson each received 11 votes, Hayes and Prahalis each garnered nine, and Williams tallied eight.

Most Improved Player
Los Angeles Sparks guard Kristi Toliver is the winner of the 2012 WNBA Most Improved Player presented by Boost Mobile, the league announced. Toliver received 24 out of 41 votes from a panel of national and local sportswriters and broadcasters. Phoenix Mercury guard/forward DeWanna Bonner was the runner-up (7). Chicago Sky guard Epiphanny Prince (6), Minnesota Lynx forward Rebekkah Brunson forward (2), and Connecticut Sun guard Kara Lawson (2) received the remaining votes.

Sixth Woman of the Year
Connecticut Sun guard Renee Montgomery is the winner of the 2012 WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year presented by Boost Mobile, the league announced. Montgomery received 23 votes from a national panel of 41 sportswriters and broadcasters to earn the award. San Antonio Silver Stars teammates forward/center Danielle Adams (nine) and guard Jia Perkins (six) placed second and third, respectively.

Coach of the Year
The Los Angeles Sparks� coach Carol Ross is the recipient of the 2012 WNBA Coach of the Year Award, the league announced. Ross received 15 votes from a national panel of 41 sportswriters and broadcasters. Connecticut�s Mike Thibault, the 2006 winner, finished second with 12 votes, while Minnesota�s Cheryl Reeve, the winner last season, received nine votes. Gary Kloppenburg of Tulsa (three votes) and Dan Hughes of San Antonio (two) rounded out the vote-getters.

Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award
Connecticut Sun guard Kara Lawson was named the recipient of the 2012 Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award, the WNBA announced. Lawson, who also won the award in 2009, received 18 of 41 votes from a panel of national and local sportswriters and broadcasters. San Antonio guard Becky Hammon finished second with five votes. Designed to honor a player who exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship � ethical behavior, fair play and integrity � the award is named for the late Kim Perrot, who helped guide the Houston Comets to their first two WNBA championships, before passing away in August 1999, after a seven-month battle with cancer.

WNBA Peak Performers
Angel McCoughtry (Atlanta Dream), Tina Charles (Connecticut Sun) and Lindsay Whalen (Minnesota Lynx) have won the 2012 WNBA Peak Performer Awards for scoring, rebounding and assists, respectively, the WNBA announced. The WNBA presents the Peak Performer awards annually to the players who lead the league in each of those categories during the regular season. Each player will receive a trophy crafted by Tiffany in honor of her accomplishments.