Vote Diana Taurasi as the GOAT on WNBA.com/GOATvote, on the WNBA App, or use the hashtag #WNBAGoatVote on Twitter.
With just 6.2 seconds remaining in Game 2 of the 2018 WNBA Semifinals, DeWanna Bonner lobbed the ball to Brittney Griner as Diana Taurasi sprinted to the corner. Griner flipped the ball to Taurasi, who immediately saw three Seattle Storm defenders swarm around her her.
Despite the pressure from the defense, the high-stakes of the situation and the off-balanced shot attempt, Taurasi fired the 3-pointer.
“It’s good! She got it! The GOAT delivers again!”
Stoic even when the lights are the brightest, Taurasi drained the shot in the closing seconds of the fourth quarter to force overtime to once again add to her long list of achievements, accolades and iconic moments that make her the greatest of all time, a.k.a. THE GOAT.
Three NCAA titles were just the beginning for Taurasi’s basketball resume when the Phoenix Mercury drafted her first overall in 2004. In the 17 years since then, she’s added:
- 14x All-WNBA selection
- 10x All-Star
- 6x WNBA Peak Performer
- 5x Olympic Gold Medalist
- 5x Scoring Champion
- 4x USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year
- 3x WNBA Champion
- 2x Finals MVP
- 2009 Most Valuable Player
- 2004 Rookie of the Year
- WNBA All-Time Scoring Leader
Along with this historic list of accolades, Taurasi is also the Mercury’s all-time franchise leader in 16 categories: seasons, games played, games started, minutes played, points scored, scoring average, field goals made, field goal attempts, 3-pointers, 3-point attempts, free throws made, free throw attempts, defensive rebounds, assists, steals and championships.
Whether it’s making tough buckets inside, launching from deep, playmaking for her teammates, battling for boards, hustling for steals, rising for blocks or being a leader on sidelines, Taurasi has remained constant through it all. Every time she faced adversity through losses or injury, she’s found a way to bounce back stronger, even at age 39.
There is only one G.O.A.T. and her name is Diana Taurasi.
As the WNBA continues to commemorate its landmark 25th season, the league is launching the “Vote for the GOAT” campaign. Vote for Taurasi at WNBA.com/GOATvote, on the WNBA App, or use the hashtag #WNBAGoatVote on Twitter.
Take a journey through her one-of-a-kind seasons, her historic performances and the countless honors she’s received over the years to claim the title of the greatest WNBA player to ever step foot on the hardwood.
2004
STATS:
17.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.3 steals
ACCOLADES:
First Overall Pick
Rookie of the Year
First Team All-WNBA
Olympic Gold Medalist
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
5/20/2004: In her WNBA debut, Taurasi scored a game-high 22 points along with 3 assists, 3 rebounds and 3 blocks
7/1/2004: Taurasi scored a season-high 29 points with 8 assists and 7 rebounds in a 12-point victory over Charlotte
KEY STATS:
Among rookies, Taurasi was 1st in scoring, 2nd in rebounding and assists, 3rd in steals and free-throw percentage (76.0) and 4th in blocked shots (0.7).
2005
STATS:
16.0 points, 4.5 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.2 steals
ACCOLADES:
All-Star
All-WNBA Second Team
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
8/27/2005: Taurasi notched her first 30-point performance, with 31 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists against Seattle.
8/5/2005: Taurasi finished just shy of a triple-double with 37 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists in a five-point victory over Houston.
2006
STATS:
25.3 points, 4.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds, 1.2 steals
ACCOLADES:
All-Star
All-WNBA First Team
Scoring Champion
WNBA Peak Performer
USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
8/10/2006: Taurasi scored a career-high 47 points on 17-of-33 shooting (8-of-16 3P) with 9 assists, 6 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block against Houston.
7/27/2006: Taurasi also broke the 40-point mark with another 41-point performance with 2 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals also against Houston.
KEY STATS:
Taurasi led the WNBA in scoring, setting the record for most points in a season with 860.
Her 47-point performance broke multiple WNBA records including most points in a game, most field goals and most 3-pointers made.
2007
STATS:
19.2 points, 4.3 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals, 1.1 blocks
ACCOLADES:
WNBA Champion
All-Star
All-WNBA First Team
WNBA Peak Performer
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
5/25/2007: Taurasi scored a season-high 37 points to go along with 4 assists and 4 steals vs Houston.
9/8/2007: In Game 2 of the WNBA Finals, Taurasi scored 30 points with 8 rebounds, 3 assists and a block, leading the Mercury to a blow-out 28-point victory to tie up the series 1-1.
KEY STATS:
Taurasi made the most out of her first trip to the WNBA playoffs, sweeping the first two rounds and bringing home the first title in franchise history.
2008
STATS:
24.1 points, 5.1 rebounds. 3.6 assists, 1.4 steals, 1.4 blocks
ACCOLADES:
All-WNBA First Team
Scoring Champion
Olympic Gold Medalist
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
6/11/2008: Taurasi scored a season-high 37 points with 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block.
6/20/2008: Taurasi notched a double-double with 33 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 blocks in a 7-point victory over Chicago.
2009
STATS:
20.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.4 blocks, 1.2 steals
ACCOLADES:
Most Valuable Player
WNBA Champion
Finals MVP
All-Star
All-WNBA First Team
Scoring Champion
WNBA Peak Performer
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
7/26/2009: Taurasi notched a double-double with a season-high 34 points and also a season-high 13 rebounds in a 6-point win over New York.
9/21/2009: Taurasi scored a game-high 30 points with 6 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and a block in a series-clinching victory over San Antonio in the first round of the playoffs.
10/9/2009: Taurasi closed out the Mercury’s second championship, scoring a game-high 26 points with 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks and steal on her way to her first Finals MVP.
2010
STATS:
22.6 points, 4.7 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 1.2 steals
ACCOLADES:
All-WNBA First Team
Scoring Champion
WNBA Peak Performer
USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
7/14/2010: Taurasi recorded the second-high scoring performance of her career with 44 points to go along with 5 assists, 5 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 blocks vs Seattle.
6/18/2010: Taurasi stuffed the stat sheet with 39 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals vs San Antonio.
8/1/2010: Taurasi notched a double-double with 35 points and a season-high 11 assists with 3 rebounds and 2 steals in the victory over Chicago.
2011
STATS:
21.6 points, 3.6 assists, 3.2 rebounds
ACCOLADES:
All-Star
All-WNBA First Team
Scoring Champion
WNBA Peak Performer
Voted Top 15 Players in Fifteen Year History of WNBA
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
6/4/2011: Taurasi opened up the season with a 31 points performance on 11-of-20 shooting, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range.
9/9/2011: Taurasi scored a season-high 36 points vs Seattle on 10-of-19 shooting and a season-high 6 3-pointers made.
9/17/2011: Taurasi evened up the series against Seattle, with 26 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and a block in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals.
2012
STATS:
14.0 points, 2.3 assists, 1.6 rebounds
ACCOLADES:
USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year
Olympic Gold Medalist
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
9/1/2012: Although Tauasi only played in eight games all season due to injury, she showed out in one of the team’s final games, with a 25-point performance.
2013
STATS:
20.3 points, 6.2 assists, 4.2 rebounds
ACCOLADES:
All-Star
All-WNBA First Team
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
6/14/2013: Taurasi scored a season-high 34 points with 7 assists, 6 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks in a 16-point victory vs Los Angeles.
6/16/2013: Taurasi finished just shy of a triple-double with 29 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists as well as recorded 3 steals in a win over Tulsa.
8/20/2013: Taurasi notched one of her 4 double-doubles of the season with 28 points and 10 assists against Tulsa.
9/9/2013: In her first playoff game in 2 years, Taurasi scored a game-high 30 points with 7 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals in a win over Los Angeles.
KEY STATS:
Taurasi became the first player in WNBA history to finish in the top two in scoring and assists in the same season.
2014
STATS:
16.2 points, 5.6 assists, 3.8 rebounds
ACCOLADES:
WNBA Champion
Finals MVP
All-Star
All-WNBA First Team
WNBA Peak Performer
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
6/15/2014: Taurasi notched one of her four double-doubles of the season with 21 points and 11 assists, as well as 6 rebounds and 2 blocks in a win over Minnesota.
8/22/2014: Taurasi scored a season-high 34 points in the Mercury’s first playoff game to claim a 3-point victory against Los Angeles.
9/2/2014: Taurasi recorded 31 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block in an 18-point victory over Minnesota to book the Mercury’s ticket to the WNBA Finals.
9/12/2014: Taurasi scored a game-high 24 points with 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block to close out the WNBA Finals, claim the Mercury’s third championship and was awarded her second Finals MVP.
KEY STATS:
The Mercury finished the season with an WNBA-record 29 victories, clinching the number one seed in the playoffs. The team only lost one game all playoffs, including a 3-0 sweep of Chicago in the Finals.
2016
STATS:
17.8 points, 3.9 assists, 3.0 rebounds
ACCOLADES:
All-WNBA Second Tea
WNBA Top 20@20
USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year
Olympic Gold Medalist
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
5/18/2016: After sitting our the previous season, Taurasi didn’t skip a beat. In just her second game, she scored a season-high 32 points with 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block in a win over San Antonio.
9/24/2016: Taurasi scored a game-high 30 points with 3 assists and 2 rebounds in the single-elimination win over New York.
9/30/2016: Taurasi recorded 31 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal in the WNBA Semifinals vs Minnesota.
KEY STATS:
Taurasi showed-out in the playoffs, averaging 26.5 points in the Mercury’s first four playoff games, including two single-elimination victories.
On September 21, Taurasi became the all-time leader in playoff career 3-pointers with 113.
2017
STATS:
17.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists
ACCOLADES:
All-Star
All-WNBA Second Team
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
6/1/2017: Taurasi scored a season-high 37 points with 8 made 3-pointers, becoming the WNBA’s all-time leading scorer in an 8-point victory over Chicago.
7/19/2017: Taurasi recorded 34 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds vs Indiana.
9/10/2017: Taurasi scored 23 points with 4 assists and 2 rebounds to lead the Mercury to a single-elimination victory over Connecticut.
KEY STATS:
In Phoenix’s 99-91 win on June 1, 2017 at Chicago, Taurasibecame the league’s all-time leader in three-point makes, passing Katie Smith.
Taurasi become the first player to reach 7,000 points, 1,500 rebounds and 1,500 assists.
2018
STATS:
20.7 points, 5.3 assists, 3.5 rebounds
ACCOLADES:
All-Star
All-WNBA First Team
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
8/1/2018: Taurasi scored a season-high 37 points to go along with 9 assists and 4 rebounds in an 11-point victory over Las Vegas.
8/17/2018: Taurasi notched a monster double-double with 27 points and a season-high 14 assists against Atlanta.
8/21/2018: Taurasi showed-out in the Mercury’s single-elimination game vs Dallas, recording a double-double with 26 points and 12 assists in the win.
KEY STATS:
In the Mercury’s season opener against the Dallas Wings on Friday, May 18, 2018, Taurasi became the first and only WNBA player in history to reach 1,000 career made three-pointers. Additionally, having done so in her 399th career game, Taurasi joined Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Damian Lillard as the only players in WNBA/NBA history to reach 1,000 career three-pointers in 400 games or less.
Taurasi led the league in 3-pointers yet again, claiming the top 6 spots for most 3-pointers in a season in WNBA history. She has led the league in 3-point makes in 10 season, the next closest is Katie Smith with 4.
On July 5, 2018 against Connecticut Taurasi added yet another record to her resume, passing Tina Thompson for first on the WNBA’s all- time field goals made list.
2020
STATS: 18.7 points, 4.5 assists, 4.2 rebounds, 1.0 steals
ACCOLADES:
All-WNBA Second Team
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
7/31/2020: Taurasi became the first player in WNBA history to notch at least 20 points and 10 assists in a game at the age of 38 or older, recording 22 points and 10 assists in the 7-point victory.
8/23/2020: Taurasi scored a season-high 34 points to go along with 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks in a win over Washington.
8/30/2020: Taurasi notched one of her two double-doubles of the season with 23 points and a season-high 12 rebounds in a 4-point win over Minnesota.
KEY STATS:
In the Mercury’s game on August 23 against Washington, Taurasiwore a No.8 ‘BRYANT’ jersey for the duration of the game on what would have been Kobe Bryant’s 42nd birthday. Taurasi finished with a season-high 34 points after knocking down seven triples in the game. In the game, Taurasi became the first player in WNBA history to record at least 34 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks, make 7 three-pointers, make 10 free throws and shoot at least 52% from the field. The only player in NBA history to do so was Bryanton Jan. 31, 2007.
On July 31, 2020, Taurasinotched her 19th career double- double, finishing with 20 points and 10 assists. It Was Taurasi’s 13th career double-double with points and assists, moving her into a tie for fourth with Lindsay Whalenfor most points/assists double-doubles in WNBA history entering 2021.
Taurasi was just one of two players in 2020 to rank in the top-10 in both scoring (eighth) and assists (eighth) per game, joining teammate, Skylar Diggins-Smith.
She became the first player in WNBA history to average at least 18 points, four rebounds, 3 assists and three three-point make per game for a season.
2021
STATS:
16.4 pints, 4.8 rebounds, 4.7 assists
ACCOLADES:
Olympic Gold Medalist
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
6/27/2021: After missing 9 games with a fractured sternum, returned to the court on vs Los Angles, scoring a season-high 25 points and drilling a then-season-best 4 three-pointers
8/17/2021: Taurasi stuffed the stat sheet with 22 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists in a 4-point victory over Indiana.
8/21/2021: Taurasi notched a double-double with 18 points and a season-high 10 rebounds in a 15-point win vs Atlanta.
KEY STATS:
Already the WNBA’s all-time leader in scoring and three-point field goals, Taurasibecame the first, and only, player in WNBA history to 9,000 career points on June 27 against Los Angeles.
On August 21 at Atlanta, Taurasi became just the fifth player to 2,000 career assists and is the only player with 9,000 and 8,000 career points and 2,000 assists in WNBA history. Additionally, she’s the only player to rank in the top-5 on the league’s all-time scoring and assists lists.
Taurasi knocked down a game-winning three-pointer at Minnesota on May 14 in the Mercury’s season opener with 1.1 second remaining to give Phoenix at 77-75 win. This marked Taurasi’s fourth career regular season game-winner in the final 5 seconds of the game
There is only one GOAT. Starting NOW you can officially “Vote for the GOAT” at WNBA.com/GOATvote. One entry per day now thru Sept 19. You know what to do.