Diana Taurasi

UConn and the No. 1 pick

Diana Taurasi grew up in Chino, California, the daughter of an Argentine mother and an Italian father. At the University of Connecticut she won three straight national championships from 2002 to 2004 and two national player of the year awards, with a swagger and range that changed what fans expected from a guard.

Phoenix drafted her first overall in 2004. She would spend all 20 of her WNBA seasons with the Mercury.

Under coach Geno Auriemma she was named Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four in 2003 and 2004.

Three titles in Phoenix

Taurasi led Phoenix to championships in 2007, 2009 and 2014. She won the league MVP in 2009 and was Finals MVP that season and again in 2014. Her deep, quick-release three-pointer and her trash talk became trademarks.

She also played many winters overseas, especially in Russia, where top WNBA players often earned more than their American salaries.

She led the WNBA in scoring five times. In 2014 the Mercury went 29-5, a league record for wins at the time, and swept Chicago in the Finals.

The record book

Taurasi became the WNBA's career scoring leader in 2017 and kept stretching the record until she finished with 10,646 points, the first and only player to pass 10,000. She also retired as the league leader in made three-pointers.

With USA Basketball she won six Olympic gold medals, from Athens 2004 to Paris 2024. No basketball player, man or woman, has won more. She announced her retirement in February 2025 at age 42, and the Mercury retired her number 3.

She played at the Paris Olympics at age 42, the oldest player on the U.S. roster, and her six golds put her one ahead of longtime teammate Sue Bird.

The White Mamba

Kobe Bryant once called Taurasi the White Mamba, a nickname she wore proudly. Like Kobe, she never backed down from a big moment and wanted the last shot every time.

For Fly Baller readers, Taurasi's career is about longevity built on competitiveness. Twenty seasons at the top do not happen by accident: they take discipline, care for your body and a love of the game that never cools.

Her mix of humor, confidence and fearlessness made her one of the most quoted players in the sport and a mentor to younger guards across the league.

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