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Lisa Leslie

Born: July 7,1972
Nationality: American
Occupation: basketball player

Hard as it may be to believe, there was a time when Los Angeles Sparks star and WNBA pioneer member Lisa Leslie renounced basketball. Standing six feet tall in the seventh grade, Leslie was asked constantly if she played the game. Rather than spurring her interest, though, the repeated inquisitions turned her against the sport. "I hated it," she has admitted. At a friend's prodding, however, she eventually tried out for her middle school team, and her entire mindset changed. "I just changed my whole attitude," she noted in People. "I guess it was my destiny, but I never knew it."

Hard Work All Around

Once Leslie gained an interest in basketball, she worked hard to excel in the sport. With the encouragement of a cousin, she embarked on a self-directed training regimen, which included sit-ups, push-ups, drills and shooting baskets, as well as taking on male players after whom she then modeled her own style of play.

Hard work and perseverance were familiar to Leslie, whose father left the family when she was four years old. Raised by her mother Christine, Leslie learned about hard work and struggle watching her mother work as a cross-country truck driver to earn money to support her three daughters. During the school year, Leslie was often cared for by a babysitter or an aunt. Her mother's absence forced her to mature and gain self-reliance early. In the summers, she and a sister accompanied their mother, sleeping on a bunk in the back of the rig. Despite her mother's long absences, Leslie credits Christine with imparting numerous life lessons. Christine, who stands 6'3", taught her daughter to be proud of her stature. "She raised me to be confident and hold my head up," Leslie told People magazine.

High School Standout

Leslie entered Morningside High School in Inglewood, California in 1987. By her junior year she was receiving national attention for her on-court prowess. Averaging 21.7 points, 12.8 rebounds and 6.2 block shots per game that year, USA Today named her a first-team high school All-American.

The following season, Leslie achieved an almost unfathomable feat, scoring 101 points in the first half of a game against South Torrance High. She set a national high school record with thirty-one free throws and added thirty-seven field goals as well. With Leslie having scored all but one of her team's 102 points and her school leading 102-24 at the half, South Torrance forfeited, much to Leslie's dismay. Continuance of the game wold have allowed her to best the women's national high school record for points in a single game, held by basketball legend Cheryl Miller. Leslie begged the South Torrance coach to reconsider, but to no avail. Miller's record still stands today.

While that personal triumph was denied, Leslie and her team recognized a collective victory when they captured the California state title later that year. Leslie averaged 26.9 points, fifteen rebounds and 6.9 blocked shots per game that season and scored thirty- five points, grabbed twelve rebounds and blocked seven shots in the championship game against Berkeley High School, despite suffering from chicken pox. Her efforts yielded her a prestigious Naismith Award and a Dial Award for the nation's top high school student- athlete. Leslie graduated with a new state record for rebounding (1705). She held varsity letters in volleyball and track, as well as basketball. She also served as class president for three years.

Colleges, Nation Take Notice

Leslie became the most recruited female basketball player since Miller in 1983, and she elected to stay near home and play for Miller's alma matter, University of Southern California. Leslie shone at USC, and was named national and Pac-10 Freshman of the Year. She also became the first-ever freshman to be named to the Pac-10 first team, to which she would be named every year of her college career. She led USC to four NCAA tournaments, advancing to the "Great Eight" in both 1992 and 1994. After her senior season, in which she averaged 21.9 points and 12.3 rebounds per game, she was awarded her second Naismith Award. She was named an All-American in 1992, 1993 and 1994 and USA Basketball named her Female Athlete of the Year in 1993.

In the off-season, Leslie experienced international competition. She played with the U.S. women's Junior World Championship team in 1989 and averaged a team-high 13.3 points and 11.7 rebounds per game. A year later she was the last player cut from the U.S. women's national team and a year after that, she led the U.S. women's team to a gold medal at the World University Games. Leslie was the youngest player to try out for the U.S. Olympic Team in 1992. She did not make the cut, but two years later she made the U.S. women's national team, which captured a gold medal at the Goodwill Games.

Goes Pro, Makes 'Dream Team'

Leslie traveled to Sicilgesso, Italy to play professionally in 1994, as there were at the time no U.S. outlets for female players. The lack of opportunities at home frustrated Leslie. "I think we are cheated as a gender," she told Entertainment Weekly "No one knows what happens to all the great people in our game. It seems like we're written off."

Leslie returned home in 1996 to play with the U.S. Olympic "Dream Team." The team earned a gold medal and Leslie led the team in scoring with 19.5 points per game. She also broke the women's Olympic record with thirty-five points in a semifinal game against Japan. After the Olympics, Leslie was offered an opportunity to play professionally at home, in the newly formed Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). While initially unsure if she wished to continue playing after the Olympics, she eventually signed on with her hometown team, the Los Angeles Sparks.

Again, Leslie emerged as the star of the team. Coach Michael Cooper, who played for the L.A. Lakers, likened her to one of his former teammates. "Lisa is smooth like Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar]," he once told Sports Illustrated. Leslie led the Sparks to two WNBA championships, in 2001 and 2002, and was named MVP of the finals both times. In the summer of 2002, she scored one giant leap for womankind when, on July 30, she became the first woman to slam dunk in a professional game.

Shines Off-Court

Leslie has not limited her professional interests to basketball. Prior to the Olympics, she signed a contract with the prestigious Wilhelmina Models agency and has been featured in Vogue. She has also been a guest actor on several sitcoms, including Moesha and Sister, Sister.

In addition, after her mother experienced a breast cancer scare, Leslie became a spokesperson for breast cancer awareness and prevention. "Having that scare so close to home, I had to become more educated about it," she told Ebony. "I used to wear the pink ribbons but I did not really understand breast cancer." Now, she travels the country to speak on the topic, sometimes accompanied by her mother, and her public service announcements are shown on television and at sports arenas. "I've had a wonderful opportunity to reach a lot of people in inner-city communities and just around the world," Leslie told Ebony. "A lot of people come up to me and say 'Thank you. I saw your public service announcement and I got checked and they found a lump. It was benign.' People have told me so many different stories about how they used to be afraid of [the exam]."

Whether its on the basketball court, on television or during public service activities, Leslie maintains a pioneering spirit wherever she ventures. The days when she swore she'd never see a basketball court are clearly behind her. Today, it is impossible to talk of the strides women have made in the sport without mentioning Leslie's name.

Chronology

1972 - Born July 7
1987 - Enters Morningside High School in Inglewood, California and joins the basketball team
1989 - Named to USA Today's high school All-American first team
1989 - Competes with U.S. women's Junior World Championship team
1990 - Scores 101 points in the first half of game against South Torrance High; denied national record for points in one game when South Torrance forfeits
1990 - Leads Morningside to state title
1990 - Awarded Naismith and Dial awards
1990 - Becomes last player cut from U.S. women's National Team
1991 - Enters University of Southern California as most highly recruited female basketball player since Cheryl Miller in 1983
1991 - Earns National and Pac-10 Freshman of the Year honors
1991 - Becomes first freshman named to Pac-10 first team
1991 - Leads U.S. to gold at the World University Games
1992 - Attends Olympic trials as youngest player trying out for U.S. women's team
1993 - Named Female Athlete of the Year by USA Basketball
1994 - Earns second Naismith Award
1994 - Qualifies for U.S. women's national team and leads team to gold in Goodwill Games
1994 - Travels to Italy to play professionally
1996 - Named to U.S. women's Summer Olympics "Dream Team" and leads team to gold medal
1996 - Assigned to Los Angeles Sparks of newly formed Women's National Basketball Association
2001 - Leads L.A. to first WNBA title and named tournament MVP
2002 - On July 30 becomes first woman to slam dunk in a professional game
2002 - Leads L.A. to second WNBA title and named tournament MVP
2002 - Named regular season, All-Star and tournament MVP, becoming first WNBA player to win all three MVP trophies in one season

Awards and Accomplishments

1989 - Named to USA Today's high school All-American first team
1989 - Competes with U.S. women's Junior World Championship team
1990 - Awarded Naismith and Dial awards
1991 - National and Pac-10 Freshman of the Year honors
1991-1994 - Named to All-Pac-10 first team
1992-94 - Named All-American
1993 - Named Female Athlete of the Year by USA Basketball
1994 - Qualifies for U.S. women's national team
1994 - Wins gold medal at Goodwill Games and bronze at World Women's Basketball Championships
1996 - Qualifies for U.S. Olympic team and leads team to gold medal
2001 - Leads L.A. to first WNBA title and named tournament MVP
2002 - Leads L.A. to second WNBA title
2002 - Named regular season, All-Star and tournament MVP

Related Biography: Basketball Coach Michael Cooper

Before he became coach of the Los Angeles Sparks, Michael Cooper made his mark as a player with the powerhouse Los Angeles Lakers. Playing in the 1980s alongside such talents as Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, "Coop" and the Lakers won five NBA titles and made it to the finals eight times in that decade. He retired as a player for the team in 1990, but he became an assistant coach in 1994. Although his grandfather, a player in the Negro Baseball League, encouraged Cooper to try baseball, Cooper started out as a football player. After sustaining an injury in his first game, he turned to basketball, and stuck with it, playing for Pasadena High School, Pasadena City College and the University of New Mexico. It was at PCC where he began wearing his trademark knee-high athletic socks. He later explained that he opted for the look so his grandmother, who had cataracts, could distinguish him from the other players when she watched his games. Cooper was drafted by the Lakers in 1978 and he was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 1987. His full story is recounted in the 1987 autobiography No Slack.

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