University of Tennessee graduate Candace Parker, a legendary player whose presence helped transform women’s basketball at the high school, college, professional and international levels of the game, announced her retirement on Sunday. She had spent the past 16 years playing in the WNBA and internationally, including two gold-medal stints with the U.S. Olympic Team.
Parker was on Rocky Top from 2004-08, and her fingerprints are all over the school’s record book. Her No. 3 jersey banner hangs from the rafters of Food City Center at Thompson-Boling Arena, where it was hoisted on Jan. 2, 2014. Her coach, the now late Pat Summitt, was on hand for that ceremony and looked on proudly.
The 6-foot-4 guard/forward/center from Naperville, Illinois, redshirted her first year in Knoxville before enjoying a brilliant three-season run on the court for Summitt’s program, leading the Big Orange to NCAA National Championships in 2007 and 2008 before embarking on an impact-filled 16-year WNBA career.
