WNBA - Candace Parker Returns to WNBA after Pregnancy
By Ally White
The 23-year-old basketball star of the Sparks, Candace Parker, returned to her team almost two months after giving birth to her daughter Lailaa, who was born on May 13th.
Now the Sparks player is ready for some action on the basketball court and despite of some people thinking that is too soon to come back, Candace is feeling great after practicing all last week and playing this past Sunday against the Phoenix Mercury, to whom her team lost regardless of her participation. Obviously, she wasn’t at her hundred percent since she was out of pro basketball for almost 10 months.
Parker, before signing with the Sparks in 2008 and leaving college, was one of the greatest players in the University of Tennesse, becoming the first woman basketball player in the NCAA to dunk the ball in a tournament game and twice in a college basketball game. Candace took the Lady Vols to two NCAA titles in 2007 and 2008 and was named MVP of the tournament in two occasions. Also Parker scored her 1,000 career point just at her sophomore year in her 56th game; a record that surpassed the ones of great players such as Chamique Holdsclaw, who did it on her 57th game and Tamika Catchings's, who did it in 58 games.
During last season, Parker was named MVP and rookie of the year with her great performance, averaging 18.5 points and leading the WNBA with 9.5 rebounds. Parker also participated in her first Olympic tournament with the USA team, in which she won the gold medal playing collectively with great players such as Tina Thompson, Lisa Leslie, Diana Taurasi and others. This experience has been one of the greatest for Candace, who for some it’s considered as the Michael Jordan in women’s basketball.
In the first game on her return, Candace didn’t look as amazing as she used to, scoring just 6 points in her 18 minutes and 41 seconds off the bench. However, her coach and her teammates knew it wouldn’t be so easy for her to recover completely this soon but they all know that with her determination and her young age, she will recover her great game in a little while.
"It's different. Last year I was able to rely more on my athleticism and jumping over people. Now I actually have to box out. The speed, I'm not able to go past people anymore. I'm going to have to be more fundamental until that comes back," expressed the 23-years-old Candace Parker.
In addition, her teammate Lisa Leslie, who has already been through the experience Parker is living now, expressed that she is glad to be the mentor of Parker and the one who can give her some advices not only in the basketball court but also outside of it. Leslie also said that it took her almost a year to get back in her rhythm after having her daughter back in 2007, but she knows that with the hard-worker mentality that Candace has and her young age, she could recover sooner and her contribution will be big for the Sparks this season.
About the Author
Ally White is a top senior copy writer on sports action for the online sports betting: http://www.instantactionsports.com. Feel free to reprint this article in its entirety on your site, make sure to leave all links in place and do not modify any of the content.