Biography of Sue Bird

Olympic veteran
Making her second Olympic appearance, Sue Bird is one of the veteran leaders of the U.S. team. The second-youngest player on the 2004 Olympic gold medal-winning U.S. team, Bird averaged 2.9 points, 1.1 assists and 12.7 minutes in seven games in Athens. Her contributions have increased since. At the 2006 World Championships, where the U.S. won bronze, Bird averaged 7.7 points, a team-best 4.7 assists and a team-high 23.5 minutes per game.

Pick of the litter
After a legendary collegiate career at Connecticut, the Seattle Storm chose Bird as the first overall pick in the 2002 WNBA Draft. The runner-up for the league's Rookie of the Year award in 2002, when she averaged 14.4 points and 6.0 assists, Bird is a five-time WNBA All-Star. Though she missed the 2007 game because of knee surgery, she was the league's leader in fan balloting. When the Storm won the 2004 WNBA championship, Bird became just the fifth WNBA player to win an NCAA title, a WNBA championship and an Olympic gold medal (Diana Taurasi became the sixth in 2007). Bird's Storm jersey number is 10, which she chose because she and her sister Jennifer were both born in October, the 10th month.

Not relaxing in Russia
During the past three WNBA offseasons, Bird traveled to Russia to play professionally for Spartak Moscow. "They take care of us," she says. "There's a lot more to that city, to Moscow, than you would ever think. It's very similar to New York. There's a lot of Americans who play there. Aside from the weather, it's really a good place to be. It's really cold." U.S. teammates Taurasi and Tina Thompson, and Australian national player Lauren Jackson also play for Spartak. During the 2007-08 Russian season, Bird shared a house in Moscow with Taurasi and Jackson.

Near perfection
During Bird's career at UConn, the Huskies went 136-9, won two NCAA titles, reached a third Final Four and won four Big East regular season and tournament titles. As a senior in 2002, she led UConn to a 39-0 record and an NCAA title, and earned the Naismith Award as the nation's top player. She was a finalist for that award in 2001 as well. A communication science major at UConn, Bird was chosen as the Best Female College Athlete of the Year at the 2002 ESPY Awards after her senior season.

Miss Popular
After the NBA's Seattle Supersonics traded two-time Olympian Gary Payton to Milwaukee in 2003, area sports fans were asked to choose an athlete to replace Payton on a billboard at the entrance of Seattle's Nike Town. The fans chose Bird over Olympic medalists Ray Allen, Lance Armstrong, Mia Hamm, and Marion Jones.