With the first overall pick in the 2004 WNBA Draft, the Mercury Phoenix selected guard Diana Taurasi. Taurasi made an immediate impact for the team, scoring 26 points in her WNBA debut against the Seattle Storm. She continued at that hot pace, averaging 17 points on the season and collecting the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award, and a member of the Western Conference All-Star team.
Diana Lurena Taurasi was born in Chino, CA on June 11, 1983. She became an athlete, sports in her blood. Father Marius Taurasi was a professional basketball player, and sister Jessica was Diana’s basketball teammate in high school.
While a student-athlete at Don Lugo High School, Diana Taurasi collected many accolades. She was twice named Parade Magazine All-American and Gatorade California Player of the Year. Taurasi also won the 2000 Naismith Women’s Prep National Player of the Year and the ESPN Scholastic USA Player of the Year. His career total topped over 3,000 points, making him only one of five players to accomplish that feat.
College years
Diana Taurasi has made an appearance in college circles. She enrolled at the University of Connecticut (UCONN), a school known for its excellence in women’s basketball. During his freshman campaign, Taurasi immediately made his presence known and was named to the Big East All-Rookie Team, averaging just under 11 points per game.
After her freshman-year, Taurasi’s career really took off and began to pile up awards including being named a 2-time Kodak All American and a 2-time Naismith National Player of the Year. Taurasi finished her career at UCONN with 1,583 points, which placed her in seventh place on the school’s all-time career list.
Taurasi didn’t just rack up personal milestones while at UCONN. She was a member of three NCAA championship teams, just not winning in her freshman year. The Huskies have finished as Big East Regular Season champions in all four of their seasons and have been Conference Champions three times.
International Travel
On 12 May 2004, Taurasi was named to the women’s team that would play in the 2004 Athens. , Greece. Taurasi was the youngest member of the team that would go on to win the gold medal. Team USA beat Australia in the last game. That wasn’t Taurasi’s first gold medal, as she won one as a member of the United States Basketball Women’s Junior World Championship Qualifying team in 2000. Gold is not Taurasi’s only color though, he won a bronze medal while playing for 2001. USA Junior World Championship team.
BIG TIME
Most recently Diana Taurasi was named to the WNBA All-Decade Team, along with UCONN alum Sue Bird. This is a great feat considering Taurasi has only been in the league for two full years. If he continues his success – it’s already 2-hour All-Star season – then Taurasi will be a force to be reckoned with for many years to come.
Report:
- WNBA – www.wnba.com UCONN Women’s Basketball – uconnhuskies.com/Sports/WBasketball/index.asp
