UConn represented well on WNBA’s 20@20 all-time team Bird, Cash, Moore, Taurasi honored

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Almost 20 years after Sue Bird and Swin Cash took the court together for the first time with the UConn women’s basketball team they are still making history.

The two members of the Huskies of Honor were the only college classmates named to the WNBA’s 20@20. A panel of WNBA coaches and administrators, as well as media members, voted on the 20 best players of all time.

Diana Taurasi, also a member of the Huskies’ undefeated 2002 national-championship team, and Maya Moore, the leading scorer in UConn history, were also named to the team.

Bird ranks second in WNBA history with 2,286 assists in 425 regular-season games, she also ranks ninth in steals, 11th in scoring. Cash, who surpassed the 5,000-point mark in a recent game at Mohegan Sun Arena, is currently 14th on the career scoring list while Taurasi needs 40 points to become the third player in WNBA history to score 7,000 points in the regular season. Moore currently ranks sixth in career scoring average in WNBA history.

Bird, Cash and Taurasi are the only players to win multiple NCAA, WNBA and Olympic titles, although Moore can join that club this summer.

“To be included among the top 20 players in this league’s history is a huge honor,” said Bird in a statement. “Watching the level of competition rise over the years has been incredible and I am excited to see where the league goes in the next 20.”

Tina Charles, the 2012 WNBA MVP, and Nykesha Sales were also nominated, giving UConn six of the 60 nominees.

Former University of Connecticut women’s basketball players Sue Bird, left, Swin Cash, center, and Diana Taurasi, seen here in 2006 sharing a light moment during the Huskies of Honor induction ceremony at Gampel Pavillion, were named three of the WNBA’s Top 20 all-time players. less Former University of Connecticut women’s basketball players Sue Bird, left, Swin Cash, center, and Diana Taurasi, seen here in 2006 sharing a light moment during the Huskies of Honor induction ceremony ... more Photo: File Photo - The Associated Press Photo: File Photo - The Associated Press Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close UConn represented well on WNBA’s 20@20 all-time team 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Lindsay Whalen is the only representative of the Connecticut Sun to be named to the list of top 20 players as she was the Sun’s first-round pick in 2004 and played in Connecticut for the first six seasons of her career.

The list is highlighted by the trio of Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson, who teamed up to lead the Houston Comets to the first four WNBA championships. Former MVP Lisa Leslie and Teresa Weatherspoon are the other original WNBA players honored by the league.

Yolanda Griffith, Becky Hammon, Lauren Jackson, Deanna Nolan, career assists leader Ticha Penicheiro and Katie Smith are other former WNBA stars to make the cut.

Seimone Augustus, Tamika Catchings, Candace Parker and Cappie Pondexter join Bird, Cash, Moore, Taurasi and Whalen as active WNBA players named to the top 20.

“I grew up watching the WNBA, and to be in a class of athletes of the caliber that this league has produced over the past 20 years is a huge honor,” Moore said. “It’s definitely a dream come true. I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to compete at the highest levels and develop my talent to the point that I was even in consideration for this honor.”

UConn leads the way with four players honored, Southern California (Cooper, Leslie and Thompson) and Tennessee (Catchings and Parker) are the only other programs with more than one honoree. Leslie and Thompson, who played together during the 1993-94 season, join Bird, Cash and Taurasi as the only college teammates on the list of WNBA’s all-time greats.