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Los Angeles Sparks

Sparks Select Tennessee Superstar Candace Parker with No. 1 Pick in WNBA Draft

April 9, 2008 - Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Los Angeles Sparks News Release


LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Sparks selected Tennessee All-American forward Candace Parker with the No. 1 over-all pick in Wednesday's WNBA draft. Parker will join Lisa Leslie and former Tennessee teammates Sidney Spencer and Tye'sha Fluker on the Sparks. The Sparks also selected Parker's Tennessee teammate, guard Shannon Bobbitt, in the second round and Virginia guard Sharneé Zoll in the third round.

The 6-4 Parker recently completed one of the most brilliant careers in women's collegiate basketball history, leading the Lady Volunteers to back-to-back NCAA titles in 2007 and 2008 and earning consensus All-American and player of the year honors. Parker became the fourth player to win back-to-back Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four honors. This season, she averaged 21.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists with 90 blocked shots and was named Naismith Trophy and Associated Press college basketball player of the year. She is a finalist for the John R. Wooden Award. She is one of only five to win the Naismith Trophy in both high school (2003, 2004) and college. She is one of six women to dunk in the college game and had seven in her career, including two in one game against Army as a freshman. A senior academically, Parker played three years at Tennessee after red-shirting as a freshman.

"I'm extremely happy to be adding a player of her caliber to the Sparks family to help us continue our winning tradition," said Sparks' general manager Penny Toler.

"It was a very difficult pick because these two players (Parker and LSU center Sylvia Fowles) are such outstanding talents," said Sparks' coach Michael Cooper. "We picked the best player for our ball club. This pick is the equivalent of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and James Worthy and we got all three in one pick. I'm very happy and pleased she is a Spark."

"I feel relieved; I was so excited when the Sparks called my name," Parker said. "I am so happy to be able to play alongside Lisa Leslie and having such a phenomenal coach as Michael Cooper. I can't wait to be in LA."

Parker posted a double-double (19 points, 10 rebounds) in her first collegiate game for Tennessee against Stetson. She went on to lead the team in scoring 18 times and in rebounding 22 times. As a sophomore in 2007, she led Tennessee to the NCAA title. She became the youngest woman ever to earn the State Farm Wade Trophy Player of the Year and the Wooden Player of the Year awards. She also won the Honda Award for Basketball Player of the Year and she was named the Basketball Writers Association National Player of the Year. Very much a student-athlete, Parker earned second-team Academic All-America honors in 2007. She is earning her degree in Sports Management with a minor in Psychology.

Born in St. Louis, Parker moved with her family to Naperville, Ill., outside Chicago, where she became perhaps the most decorated high school player in history. She helped Naperville Central to two Illinois AA state titles. She became the only high school junior ever to win both the Naismith and Gatorade Prep Player of the Year awards, accomplishing the feat in 2003 and 2004. She also was the only two-time USA Today National Player of the Year (2003, 2004). She was the 2004 Women's Sports Foundation High School Athlete of the Year and three-time Gatorade Illinois State Player of the Year (2002, 2003, 2004). She averaged 22.9 points and 13.2 rebounds in her prep career.

In September 2007, Parker led the USA Women's Senior National Team to a gold medal at the FIBA Americas Championship and an automatic berth to the 2008 Olympic Summer Games. She led the 2004 U.S. Women's Junior World Championship Qualifying Team to a gold medal in Puerto Rico with a 5-0 record. She is a two-time AAU Deep South Classic Most Valuable Player. She was selected MVP of the 2001 Reze International Basketball Tournament for Girls in Nante, France.

Bobbitt, 5-2, from Bronx, N.Y., quarterbacked Tennessee's NCAA championship teams in 2007 and 2008. She was selected to the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament team in 2007. She was the WBCA Junior/Community College Player of the Year in 2006. She averaged 9.9 points and 3.3 assists per game in 2008.

Zoll, 5-7, from Marlboro, N.J., was one of the most decorated guards in Virginia history. She was the Atlantic Coast Conference's all-time assists leader. She ranks in the all-time top 10 in career steals and she was a three-time all-ACC selection. She averaged 8.5 points and 6.3 assists per game in 2008.

The Sparks begin their 2008 WNBA regular season May 17 at the defending WNBA champion Phoenix Mercury. The game airs at 12:30 p.m. PT on ABC. The Sparks play their home opener at STAPLES Center on June 6 at 7:30 p.m. with a rematch against the Mercury.

For Sparks' season ticket information, call 1-877-44-SPARKS.

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