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Sue Bird
Also Known As Suzanne Brigit Bird, Bird
American former basketball player
Suzanne Brigit Bird is an American former professional basketball player who played her entire career with the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) Bird was drafted by the Storm first overall in the 2002 WNBA draft and is considered to be one of the greatest players in WNBA history. As of 2021, Bird is the only WNBA player to win titles in three different decades. She held a front office position for the NBA's Denver Nuggets as their Basketball Operations Associate. She has also played for three teams in Russia. She holds both U.S. and Israeli citizenship.
In high school, she was the New York State Player of the Year, the New York Daily News Player of the Year, and a WBCA All-American. In her senior year on the undefeated University of Connecticut team in 2002, she won the Wade Trophy and the Naismith Award as College Player of the Year. She finished her UConn career ranked first in three-point field goal percentage and free throw percentage, second in assists and steals, and as a three-time winner of the Nancy Lieberman Award as the top point guard in the nation, while leading her team to a record of 114–4.
Bird has won a joint-record four WNBA championships with the Storm (2004, 2010, 2018, 2020), a historic five Olympic gold medals (2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2020), two NCAA Championships with UConn (2000, 2002); and four FIBA World Cups (2002, 2010, 2014, 2018). She is one of only 11 women to attain all four accolades. She is also a five-time EuroLeague Women champion (2007-2010, 2013). During her WNBA career, she has been selected to thirteen WNBA All-Star teams and eight All-WNBA teams. Additionally, she was voted by fans as one of the WNBA's Top 15 Players of All Time in 2011, was voted into the WNBA Top 20@20 as one of the league's top 20 players of all time in 2016, and was voted into The W25 as one of the league's top 25 players of all time in 2021. Her fifth Olympic gold medal, at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, makes her one of only two Olympic basketball players—of either gender—ever to win five gold medals, with the other player being her US Olympic teammate Diana Taurasi.
Bird publicly confirmed on June 16, 2022 that she would retire from playing professional basketball after the 2022 WNBA season. Her season ended on September 7, 2022 with the Storm's playoff loss to the Las Vegas Aces.
Early Life
Bird was born October 16, 1980 in Syosset, Nassau County, New York, on Long Island to Herschel and Nancy Bird. She has one sibling, an older sister named Jen. Her father's ancestry is Russian-Jewish. In the 1900's, Bird's paternal grandparents immigrated to the United States from what is now Ukraine. Upon her grandfather's arrival at Ellis Island in New York, their original last name was switched from "Boorda" to "Bird". To avoid European rules which state European basketball teams can only have two Americans, Bird obtained her Israeli citizenship, on account of her Jewish father and paternal grandparents. However, she represents her birth country, the United States, in international competitions.
Bird was interested in sports from an early age, which was partly influenced by her athletic older sister. Besides basketball, she played soccer and tennis and ran track. Bird's fifth grade yearbook lists her potential future careers as lawyer, doctor, and professional soccer player. Bird started playing Amateur Athletic Union basketball in the sixth grade. While only 11 years old, she played during halftime of a St. John's basketball game; her play was so impressive that a security guard asked for her autograph.
High school :
Bird played her freshman and sophomore years at Syosset High School, but wanted more competition. She therefore enrolled at Christ the King Regional High School in Queens, New York. Bird spent two seasons at Christ the King, and the Royals went 24–3 her junior year. In the second season her team finished undefeated and won the New York state championship, and the national title. Bird won many awards, including the New York State Player of the Year, and the New York Daily News Player of the Year. Bird was named a WBCA All-American. She participated in the Women's Basketball Coaches Association High School All-America Game, where she scored 11 points.
College :
Bird was recruited by a number of teams including Stanford and Vanderbilt. She considered UConn the favorite, but she began to waver when Keirsten Walters and Brianne Stepherson, both point guards, announced commitments to UConn. She worried that there might not be room for her to play. However, when Stepherson changed her mind and committed to Boston College, Bird committed to UConn. In addition to increased opportunity, UConn was close to home and "felt right" to her. Eight games into her freshman season, Bird suffered a torn ACL. Since she had played more than 20% of team's games the 1998–1999 season, she was not able to redshirt. In her sophomore season (1999–2000), she came back to lead the team to a 36–1 record, the Big East Championship, and the 2000 NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament. In her junior season (2000–2001), the Huskies went 32–3, with the final loss coming against UConn's Big East rival Notre Dame in the Final Four. This game would be the last loss in Bird's college career, as the Huskies went 39–0 in 2001–2002, her senior season. In that season, she also won the Wade Trophy, Honda Sports Award and Naismith Award as College Player of the Year.
During her junior year, Bird played in a game against Notre Dame referred to as "the best women's basketball game ever played". The game was memorialized in a book, Bird at the Buzzer, in which Bird took the eponymous shot at the buzzer to win the game.
She finished her UConn career on many of the record lists. She currently ranks No. 24 on the 1,000-point list with 1,378 points, No. 2 in assists with 585, and seventh with 243 steals. She ranks number 1 in three-point field goal percentage (45.9) and free throw percentage (89.2). She won two National Championships, three Big East Championships and Big East regular season titles. Bird was the inaugural winner of the Nancy Lieberman Award in 2000, given to the top point guard in the nation, and won the award again in 2001 and 2002. Overall, her record at UConn in games she played is a remarkable 114–4. Bird was a member of the inaugural class (2006) of inductees to the University of Connecticut women's basketball "Huskies of Honor" recognition program.
Recognition
WNBA :
4× WNBA champion (2004, 2010, 2018, 2020)
Commissioner's Cup Champion (2021)
12× WNBA All-Star (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022)
5× All-WNBA First Team (2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2016)
3× All-WNBA Second Team (2008, 2010, 2011)
3× WNBA assists leader (2005, 2009, 2016)
2× WNBA peak performer (2009, 2016)
All-time record for All-star appearances
All-time leader seasons played
All-time assists leader
All-time leader in games played
All-time leader in minutes played
All-time leader turnovers
WNBA All-Decade Team (2006, Top 10 players from first 10 years)
WNBA Top 15 Players of All Time (2011, Top 15 players from first 15 years)
WNBA Top 20@20 (2016, Top 20 players from first 20 years)
The W25 (2021, Top 25 players from first 25 years)
NCAA :
2× NCAA National Champion (2000, 2002)
3× Nancy Lieberman Award (2000, 2001, 2002)
Naismith College Player of the Year (2002)
USBWA Women's National Player of the Year (2002)
Senior CLASS Award[80] (2002)
Big East Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year (2002)
Honda Sports Award, basketball[81] (2002)
USA Basketball :
5× Olympic Gold Medalist (2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020)[82]
4× FIBA World Cup Gold Medalist (2002, 2010, 2014, 2018)
2006 FIBA World Cup Bronze Medalist
EuroLeague :
5× EuroLeague Champion (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013)
2× EuroLeague All-Star (2008,2011)
Media :
Associated Press Women's College Basketball Player of the Year (2002)
2002 ESPY Award - Best Female College Athlete