“In the words of Pat Summitt, offense sells tickets, defense wins games, rebounding wins championships.”
Candace Parker took the words of former coach Pat Summitt to heart as she won the 2020 Peak Performer Award for rebounding, was named to the All-WNBA First Team and WNBA Defensive Player of the Year in her thirteenth season. Parker finished the season averaging 14.7 points, 9.7 rebounds. 4.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks. Parker was ranked 4th in defensive rating and a near career high 39.6% from three-point range.
CP3 did it all this season, both on the court and off. Parker had ten double-doubles and finished third in MVP voting on the court. Off the court, she is an NBA analyst on TNT. Along with balancing both jobs during the WNBA and NBA season, Parker was also on mom duty to 11-year-old daughter, Lailaa, inside the Wubble.
One of her most notable double-doubles of the season came early on against the Minnesota Lynx. Parker put up an impressive stat line and near triple-double of 11 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists on 55.6% shooting. Her impressive play combined with a stellar night from former Lynx, Seimone Augustus, led to a big 97-81 win.
Oh watch out for the step-back 😬@Candace_Parker | #GoSparks pic.twitter.com/7WU9a4GYwf
— Los Angeles Sparks (@LASparks) August 9, 2020
Parker finished her highly accoladed season with game highs of 25 points, 17 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, and 10 field goals made.
“I do believe people had written me off after last year. I think being injured last year at 33 … I just wanted to prove that I had a little bit more left in the tank.”