Candace Parker #3 Forward/Center

Background

WNBA Career Highlights
In 2008, became the first player to earn WNBA MVP and Rookie of the Year in the same season…Second player to dunk in league history and first player to do so in consecutive games (2008).

2012 (Los Angeles): Started all 33 games played…Averaged 17.4 points, 3.3 assists and 30.7 minutes per game…Led the team in rebounds (9.7) and blocks (2.30) per game …Second on the team in scoring and steals (1.55) and tied for second in assists…Led the league in blocks and defensive rebounds (7.2) per game…Finished third in the WNBA in rebounding and seventh in scoring…Tied for first in double-doubles among league leaders (18)…Named Western Conference Player of the Month for May, June and July…Five time WNBA Player of the Week…Scored her 1500th career point against Minnesota with 23 points (May 24, 2012)…Had a career-high nine blocks and tied a season-high in points with 33 against Tulsa on June 20…Set new career-highs in free throws made (12) and attempted (17) vs. Minnesota on July 5…Member of USA's gold medal Women's Basketball team at the 2012 London Olympics…Started all four playoff games…Averaged new postseason career-highs with 28.8 points, 11.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists through four games…Led the league in playoff scoring and rebounding…Averaged a double-double with 29.0 points and 13.0 rebounds in the Western Conference Finals against Minnesota…Set playoff career-highs in points (33), field goals made (14), attempted (22) and three-point field goal attempts (6) in the Sparks 79-80 loss to Minnesota in the Western Conference Finals.

2011 (Los Angeles): Averaged 18.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 17 games played…Scoring and rebounding averages led Sparks and would have both ranked fourth in the WNBA had she played the minimum number of games…Suffered right knee injury June 26 at New York, sidelining her 15 contests…Returned from injury to earn fifth career WNBA Player of the Week award on Aug. 22…Season-high 32 points on Sept. 3 at Phoenix, one of 16 double-digit scoring efforts…Amassed six of her 38 career double-doubles…Sparks leading scorer on 10 occasions and top rebounder 11 times…Selected as the Western Conference starting center for the 2011 WNBA All-Star Game, but missed the contest in San Antonio...Currently playing with UMMC Ekaterinburg, her third season with the Russian club.

2010 (Los Angeles): Played in 10 games before dislocating her left shoulder against the Minnesota Lynx…At the time of her injury, Parker was averaging a career-high 20.6 points and 10.1 boards per game…Team’s leading rebounder in each of those 10 contests, and leading scorer seven times.

2009 (Los Angeles): Missed the first month (nine games) of the 2009 WNBA season following the birth of her first child, Lailaa…Named second team All-WNBA…Ranked second on team in scoring with 13.1 points per game…Led the league in rebounds per game (9.8) and blocks per game (2.12)…Ranked second in total blocks (53)…Twice named WNBA Player of the Week… Earned the WNBA Peak Performer Award for rebounding…Selected to play for Team USA in the 2010 FIBA World Championships, but missed competition due t aforementioned shoulder injury.

2008 (Los Angeles): No. 1 pick in the WNBA Draft…Posted 34 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists in her debut… Became the first player to earn WNBA MVP and Rookie of the Year in the same season… Named First Team All-WNBA and All-Rookie Team…Earn the May and July Rookie of the Month awards…Led all rookies in scoring (18.5 ppg.), rebounding (9.5 rpg.), blocks (2.3 bpg.) and minutes (33.6 mpg.)…Led the league in double-doubles (17), rebounds per game and total rebounds (313)…Ranked second in blocks and fifth in points…Became the second player to dunk during the regular season on June 22 vs. Indiana…She would go on to dunk two nights later vs. Seattle on June 24…Earned a gold medal while representing the United States at the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

College: Attended the University of Tennessee where she led the Lady Vols to consecutive NCAA Championships (2007 and 2008)…Named the National Player of the Year in both of those seasons by every major award committee…In 2006-07, she became the youngest woman ever to earn the State Farm Wade Trophy Player of the Year...Two-time Final Four MVP…Also named a WBCA/Kodak All-American as a redshirt freshman in 2005-06, in addition to Second Team AP All-America status…The fastest UT player to reach 1,000 career points… As a freshman vs. Army, became the first female to dunk in an NCAA Tournament game and the first woman to dunk twice in any game… Named the SEC Freshman of the Year, a first-team All-SEC selection in 2005-06...Capped collegiate career with SEC Player of the Year accolades in 2007-08…Earned SEC All-Academic honors. In 2004-05, Parker joined teammate Alex Fuller as the first-ever redshirt freshmen in Lady Vol History while recovering from a pair of surgeries as a prepster…she earned a spot on the Lady Vol Honor Roll and was named to the SEC All-Academic Freshman Team.