NEW YORK, Aug. 26, 2018 – Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird has been named the 2018 Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award recipient, the WNBA announced today. This marks the third such honor for Bird, who won the award in 2017 and shared it with Ruth Riley in 2011.

The Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award is presented each season to a player who exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, including 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.

Bird received 16 votes from a national panel of 38 sportswriters and broadcasters. The Chicago Sky’s Courtney Vandersloot finished second with five votes, while the Washington Mystics’ Elena Delle Donne, the Connecticut Sun’s Jasmine Thomas and the Atlanta Dream’s Elizabeth Williams tied for third with four votes each.

Bird, the WNBA’s all-time assists leader, has spent her entire 16-year career with the Storm, which selected her with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 WNBA Draft. Bird was named an All-Star for the 11th time this season, surpassing Tamika Catchings for the most selections in league history. She also eclipsed DeLisha Milton-Jones for career games played (508).

The two-time WNBA champion averaged 10.1 points and a career-high 7.1 assists to help Seattle claim the best record in the league (26-8) and the No. 1 overall seed in the 2018 WNBA Playoffs.

Bird finished the 2018 season ranked seventh in WNBA history in scoring (6,154) and fifth in steals (652). She has led the league in assist average three times (2005, 2009 and 2016).

Below are the voting results for the 2018 WNBA Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award and a list of all-time winners.

2018 KIM PERROT SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD RESULTS

Player Team Votes
Sue Bird Seattle Storm 16 (of 38 votes)
Courtney Vandersloot Chicago Sky 5
Elena Delle Donne Washington Mystics 4
Jasmine Thomas Connecticut Sun 4
Elizabeth Williams Atlanta Dream 4
Briann January Phoenix Mercury 2
Chelsea Gray Los Angeles Sparks 1
Danielle Robinson Minnesota Lynx 1
Sugar Rodgers New York Liberty 1

ALL-TIME KIM PERROT SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD WINNERS

2018 Sue Bird Seattle Storm
2017 Sue Bird Seattle Storm
2016 Tamika Catchings Indiana Fever
2015 DeLisha Milton-Jones Atlanta Dream
2014 Becky Hammon San Antonio Stars
2013 Swin Cash Chicago Sky
Tamika Catchings Indiana Fever
2012 Kara Lawson Connecticut Sun
2011 Sue Bird Seattle Storm
Ruth Riley San Antonio Stars
2010 Tamika Catchings Indiana Fever
2009 Kara Lawson Sacramento Monarchs
2008 Vickie Johnson San Antonio Stars
2007 Tully Bevilaqua Indiana Fever
2006 Dawn Staley Houston Comets
2005 Taj McWilliams-Franklin Connecticut Sun
2004 Teresa Edwards Minnesota Lynx
2003 Edna Campbell Sacramento Monarchs
2002 Jennifer Gillom Phoenix Mercury
2001 Sue Wicks New York Liberty
2000 Suzie McConnell Serio Cleveland Rockers
1999 Dawn Staley Charlotte Sting
1998 Suzie McConnell Serio Cleveland Rockers
1997 Haixia Zheng Los Angeles Sparks