Inside the Numbers: Milestones

May 22, 2006 - A look at some key stats, figures and numbers around the WNBA. This week's topic is milestones - recently surpassed as well as upcoming. These totals reflect WNBA play only and do not take into account ABL or other professional stats.

1 - Seattle's Lauren Jackson ranks number one among career scoring average among active and current players. Her 18.4 ppg ranks her ahead of Sparks forward Chamique Holdsclaw (18.1) Only Cynthia Cooper has a higher career average with 21.0 points per game. She scored 23 points in Sunday night's win over Los Angeles.

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Nykesha Sales is working her way up the career rankings in many stat categories.
Rocky Widner/NBAE/Getty Images
2 - With her two three-pointers against the Sun on opening day, New York's Becky Hammon now has 296 made treys in her career. That places her eighth on the all-time WNBA list, behind Nykesha Sales, who also keeps moving up the board. Katie Smith is the all-time leader with 479 made. She also needs on two assists to break the 500 career assist mark. Indiana's Anna DeForge also needs only two three-pointers to reach the 200 plateau.

3 - Only three blocks separate Seattle's Jackson and Charlotte's Tangela Smith on the all-time career blocks lisk. Jackson ranks third with 341 while Smith has 338. Jackson averages 2.19 blocks per game over her career while Smith has averaged 1.33, meaning if that holds up, the gap will only increase as Jackson climbs toward Lisa Leslie (636) and Margo Dydek (729).

4 - In scoring her 19 points in the opener on Saturday, Connecticut's Nykesha Sales moved into fourth place all-time in career points scored. She now has 3,366 total points, moving past the recently-retired Andrea Stinson, who also had her number retired by the Sting on Saturday. Sacramento's Yolanda Griffith is now right behind Stinson, with 3,334 total points, and should pass Stinson in the next game or so.

5 - Sales went 5-7 from beyond the arc in her first game of the season, surpassing 300 career 3-pointers and staying ahead of Becky Hammon for 7th on the career list.

6 - With six rebounds against the Chicago Sky on Saturday, Charlotte Sting forward Sheri Sam surpassed 1,000 career rebounds. She is currently 23rd all-time in WNBA history.

10 - With ten rebounds on Saturday against the New York Liberty, Nykesha Sales now has 980 career rebounds, just behind Sam on the all-time list.

13 - Tangela Smith needs only 13 points to crack the 3,000 career point plateau. She ranks tenth on the all-time list.

87 - Sheryl Swoopes needs only 87 point to become the second WNBA player in history to surpass 4,000 career WNBA points. Lisa Leslie remains the all-time total points leader with 4,756 in her ten seasons.

200 - Seattle's Betty Lennox suited up and played in her 200th career WNBA game.

A look at other WNBA player individual career milestones that are expected to be reached in 2006:

3,000 Points Scored:
Mwadi Mabika - 2,941
Wendy Palmer - 2,937
Lauren Jackson - 2,853

2,000 Points Scored:
Tamika Whitmore - 1,944
Deanna Nolan - 1,863
Anna DeForge - 1,485

1,000 Points Scored:
LaToya Thomas - 970
Cheryl Ford - 996
Olympia Scott - 962
Tammy Sutton Brown - 919

200 Games
Chamique Holdsclaw - 195

1,000 Rebounds:
Cheryl Ford - 961
Michelle Snow - 846

500 Rebounds:
Nikki McCray - 481
Becky Hammon - 461

500 Offensive Rebounds:
Chasity Melvin - 499

500 Field Goals:
Dominique Canty - 494
Tichia Penicheiro - 477

500 Free Throws Made:
Dominique Canty - 489

500 Assists:
Becky Hammon - 498
Dominique Canty - 494
Tamicka Catchings - 494

500 Steals:
Tichia Penicheiro - 483

100 Blocks
Swin Cash - 89
Kristen Rasmussen - 89

200 Games Started:
DeLisha Milton-Jones - 195
Chamique Holdsclaw - 193

100 Games Started:
Helen Darling - 99
Becky Hammon - 88

Since so many of the career leaders are active, it's difficult to predict how the overall all-time leaders will play out this season, but stay tuned all season and track the leaders as they change on a daily basis.