Adrienne Johnson Announces Retirement

Apr. 29, 2005

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Johnson

SEATTLE - Seattle Storm free agent Adrienne Johnson today announced her retirement from the WNBA.

“It is unfortunate that she had to make this decision due to injuries and timing,” Storm Head Coach Anne Donovan said. “We were pleased to have Adrienne in training camp. She has an engaging personality and was a great spokesperson for professional women’s basketball.”

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Johnson was signed by the WNBA as a developmental player and assigned to the now defunct Cleveland Rockers in 1997. In 1999, Johnson was selected (eighth overall pick) by the Orlando Miracle (Connecticut Sun) in the WNBA Expansion Draft. Johnson averaged 5.6 points per game over six active seasons with three teams. In her best season, Johnson averaged 13.6 points while starting 31 of 32 games for the Miracle in 2000. She missed the entire 2001 season after rupturing her right Achilles tendon.

“I feel fortunate to have been around since the beginning of the league, and it has been a wonderful journey,” said Johnson. “My body just won’t allow me to do the things I want to do any more, and I didn’t think I would be able to give the team my all. I am very grateful to Coach Donovan and the Storm organization for the past five days in Seattle. If I could do it all over again this is where I would want to be.”

Johnson signed with the Seattle Storm as a free agent on March 3, 2005. She finishes her career with totals of 181 games played (38 starts), 3,034 minutes, 1,018 points, 292 rebounds, 132 assists and 73 steals.

The Storm will play their first preseason game against the New York Liberty on Saturday, May 7 at Madison Square Garden in New York at 1 p.m. Seattle will play one home preseason game on Saturday, May 14 at 7 p.m. against the Sacramento Monarchs at KeyArena.

Single-game tickets for Storm games can be purchased through TicketMaster by logging on to storm.wnba.com or calling 1-877-WNBA-TIX. Storm tickets are also available at the Sonics & Storm Team Shop located at 312 First Ave on KeyArena’s West Plaza.

The defending WNBA Champion Storm will open their 2005 season on ABC-TV against their Western Conference rival Los Angeles Sparks at KeyArena on Saturday, May 21 at 1 p.m. The following weekend, Seattle will host the Houston Comets on Friday, May 27 and the San Antonio Silver Stars on Sunday, May 29.

In the season opener against the Sparks, the 2004 WNBA Championship banner will be raised to the KeyArena rafters. The festivities will also feature Storm players receiving their championship rings.

The Seattle Sonics & Storm manages the Puget Sound region’s professional basketball franchises – the NBA’s Seattle SuperSonics and the WNBA’s Seattle Storm. The organization oversees all sales, marketing, finance, public relations and basketball operations for the teams. The Basketball Club of Seattle LLC owns both teams.