2001 WNBA Championship: Difference between revisions

2001 WNBA finals
Dates	August 30-September 1
MVP	Lisa Leslie (Los Angeles Sparks)
Hall of Famers	Sparks:; Lisa Leslie (2015); Sting:; Dawn Staley (2013); Coaches:; Michael Cooper (2024, player); Anne Donovan (1995, player)
Eastern finals	Charlotte defeated New York, 2–1
Western finals	Los Angeles defeated Sacramento, 2–1

Browse history interactively

← Previous edit

Content deleted Content added

VisualWikitext

Inline

Latest revision as of 00:25, 9 April 2024

The 2001 WNBA Championship was the championship series of the 2001 WNBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Los Angeles Sparks, top-seeded champions of the Western Conference, defeated the Charlotte Sting, fourth-seeded champions of the Eastern Conference, two games to none in a best-of-three series. This was Los Angeles' first title.

The Sparks made their first appearance in the Finals in franchise history. The Sting also made their first Finals appearance.

Going into the series, no other team except the Houston Comets had ever won a WNBA championship (1997-2000).

The Sparks had a 28–4 record (.875), good enough to receive home-court advantage over the Sting (18–14). It did not matter, however, as the Sparks swept the Sting.

Road to the finals

Los Angeles Sparks		Charlotte Sting
28–4 (.875) 1st West, 1st overall	Regular season	18–14 (.562) 4th East, 8th overall
Defeated the (4) Houston Comets, 2–0	Conference Semifinals	Defeated the (1) Cleveland Rockers, 2–1
Defeated the (2) Sacramento Monarchs, 2–1	Conference Finals	Defeated the (2) New York Liberty, 2–1

Regular season series

The Sparks won the regular season series:

June 2

Recap at the Wayback Machine (archived October 6, 2001)

Los Angeles Sparks 76, Charlotte Sting 67

Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte

June 19

Recap at the Wayback Machine (archived December 14, 2001)

Charlotte Sting 69, Los Angeles Sparks 73

Staples Center, Los Angeles

Game summaries

All times listed below are Eastern Daylight Time.

Game 1

ESPN

August 30

Recap at the Wayback Machine (archived October 6, 2001)

Los Angeles Sparks 75, Charlotte Sting 66
Scoring by half: 35–39, 40–27
Pts: Leslie (24) Rebs: Leslie, Milton (8) Asts: Milton (5)		Pts: Stinson (18) Rebs: Feaster (5) Asts: Stinson (5)
L.A Sparks leads series, 1–0

Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte
Attendance: 16,132
Referees:

Melissa Barlow
Michael Price
Gary Zielinski

Game 2

NBC

September 1

Recap at the Wayback Machine (archived October 31, 2001)

Charlotte Sting 54, Los Angeles Sparks 82
Scoring by half: 30–38, 24–44
Pts: Sutton-Brown (12) Rebs: Smith (8) Asts: Staley (5)		Pts: Leslie (24) Rebs: Leslie (13) Asts: Dixon (7)
L.A Sparks wins WNBA Finals, 2–0

STAPLES Center, Los Angeles
Attendance: 13,141
Referees:

Patty Broderick
June Corteau
Bob Trammell

Awards

2001 WNBA Champion: Los Angeles Sparks
Finals MVP: Lisa Leslie

Rosters

2001 Los Angeles Sparks Finals roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	From
F	00	Byears, Latasha	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	206 lb (93 kg)	DePaul
G	21	Dixon, Tamecka	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	148 lb (67 kg)	Kansas
G	5	Figgs, Ukari	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	142 lb (64 kg)	Purdue
F	17	Grgin-Fonseca, Vedrana	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	Croatia
C	9	Leslie, Lisa	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	USC
G	40	Levandusky, Nicole	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	163 lb (74 kg)	Xavier
F	4	Mabika, Mwadi	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Democratic Republic of the Congo
C	51	Mapp, Rhonda	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	NC State
G	10	McCrimmon, Nicky	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	125 lb (57 kg)	USC
F	8	Milton, Delisha	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	172 lb (78 kg)	Florida
G	20	Willits, Wendy	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)	141 lb (64 kg)	Arkansas

Head coach

Michael Cooper (New Mexico)

Assistant coaches

Glenn McDonald

Legend

(C) Team captain
(FA) Free agent
(IN) Inactive
(S) Suspended
Injured

2001 Charlotte Sting Finals roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	From
G	20	Anderson, Keisha	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)	125 lb (57 kg)	Wisconsin
G	13	Edwards, Tonya	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	Tennessee
F	7	Enis, Shalonda	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Alabama
C	3	Erb, Summer	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	NC State
F	21	Feaster, Allison	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	168 lb (76 kg)	Harvard University
C	33	Machanguana, Clarisse	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Old Dominion
G	8	Miller, Kelly	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	144 lb (65 kg)	Georgia
F	23	Smith, Charlotte	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	148 lb (67 kg)	North Carolina
G	5	Staley, Dawn	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)	134 lb (61 kg)	Virginia
G	32	Stinson, Andrea	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	158 lb (72 kg)	NC State
C	55	Sutton-Brown, Tammy	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	203 lb (92 kg)	Rutgers

Head coach

Anne Donovan (Old Dominion)

Assistant coaches

Trudi Lacey
Cheryl Reeve

Legend

(C) Team captain
(FA) Free agent
(IN) Inactive
(S) Suspended
Injured

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Short description|Women's basketball series}}
+{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
 {{WNBA Finals summary
-| image =
+| image = 2001 WNBA Finals logo.png
 | caption =
+| league = WNBA
 | year = 2001
-| runnerup = [[Charlotte Sting]]
+| runnerup = [[2001 Charlotte Sting season|Charlotte Sting]]
 | runnerup_coach = [[Anne Donovan]]
 | runnerup_games = 0
-| champion = [[Los Angeles Sparks]]
+| champion = [[2001 Los Angeles Sparks season|Los Angeles Sparks]]
 | champion_coach = [[Michael Cooper]]
 | champion_games = 2
 | date=August 30-September 1
 | MVP = [[Lisa Leslie]] <small>(Los Angeles Sparks)</small>
+| HOFers = '''Sparks:'''<br>[[Lisa Leslie]] (2015)<br/>'''Sting:'''<br>[[Dawn Staley]] (2013)<br/>'''Coaches:'''<br>[[Michael Cooper]] (2024, player)<br>[[Anne Donovan]] (1995, player)
-| television = [[National Broadcasting Company|NBC]]
+| television = [[WNBA on ESPN|ESPN]] (Game 1)<br>[[NBC Sports|NBC]] (Game 2)
+| announcers = [[Michele Tafoya]] and [[Doris Burke]] (ESPN, Game 1)<br>[[Mike Breen]] and [[Ann Meyers]] (NBC, Game 2)
 | referees_1 = Barlow, Price, Zielinski
 | referees_2 = Broderick, Corteau, Trammell
-| ECF result = [[Charlotte Sting|Charlotte]] defeated [[New York Liberty|Liberty]], 2–1
+| ECF result = [[2001 Charlotte Sting season|Charlotte]] defeated [[2001 New York Liberty season|New York]], 2–1
-| WCF result = [[Los Angeles Sparks|Los Angeles]] defeated [[Sacramento Monarchs|Sacramento]], 2–1
+| WCF result = [[2001 Los Angeles Sparks season|Los Angeles]] defeated [[2001 Sacramento Monarchs season|Sacramento]], 2–1
-| prev_year = [[2000 WNBA Finals|2000]]
+| prev_year = [[2000 WNBA Championship|2000]]
 | next_year = [[2002 WNBA Finals|2002]]
 }}
-The '''2001 WNBA Finals''' was the championship [[Playoff format#Best-of-three playoff|series]] of the [[2001 WNBA season]], and the conclusion of [[WNBA Playoffs|the season's playoffs]]. The [[Los Angeles Sparks]], top-seeded champions of the [[Western Conference (WNBA)|Western Conference]], defeated the [[Charlotte Sting]], fourth-seeded champions of the [[Eastern Conference (WNBA)|Eastern Conference]], two games to none in a best-of-three series. This was Los Angeles' first title.
+The '''2001 WNBA Championship''' was the championship [[Playoff format#Best-of-three playoff|series]] of the [[2001 WNBA season]], and the conclusion of [[WNBA Playoffs|the season's playoffs]]. The [[2001 Los Angeles Sparks season|Los Angeles Sparks]], top-seeded champions of the [[Western Conference (WNBA)|Western Conference]], defeated the [[2001 Charlotte Sting season|Charlotte Sting]], fourth-seeded champions of the [[Eastern Conference (WNBA)|Eastern Conference]], two games to none in a best-of-three series. This was Los Angeles' first title.
 The Sparks made their first appearance in the Finals in franchise history. The Sting also made their first Finals appearance.
-Going into the series, no other team expect the [[Houston Comets]] had ever won a WNBA championship ([[1997 WNBA Finals|1997]]-[[2000 WNBA Finals|2000]]).
+Going into the series, no other team except the [[Houston Comets]] had ever won a WNBA championship ([[1997 WNBA Championship|1997]]-[[2000 WNBA Championship|2000]]).
-The Sparks had a 28-4 record (.875), good enough to receive home-court advantage over the Sting (18-14). It did not matter, however, as the Sparks swept the Sting.
+The Sparks had a 28–4 record (.875), good enough to receive home-court advantage over the Sting (18–14). It did not matter, however, as the Sparks swept the Sting.
 ==Road to the finals==
@@ Line 53: / Line 58: @@
  | bg = #eee
  | date = June 2
- | report = [http://web.archive.org/web/20011006192013/www.wnba.com/games2001/20010602/LOSCHA/boxscore.html Recap]
+ | report = {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011006192013/http://www.wnba.com/games2001/20010602/LOSCHA/boxscore.html |date=October 6, 2001 |title=Recap }}
  | team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score1=76'''
  | team2 = [[Charlotte Sting]] |score2=67
  | place = [[Charlotte Coliseum]], [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]]
  | TV =
  }}
 {{basketballbox
  | bg = #eee
  | date = June 19
- | report = [http://web.archive.org/web/20011214070457/www.wnba.com/games2001/20010619/CHALOS/boxscore.html Recap]
+ | report = {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011214070457/http://www.wnba.com/games2001/20010619/CHALOS/boxscore.html |date=December 14, 2001 |title=Recap }}
  | team1 = [[Charlotte Sting]] |score1=69
  | team2 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]] |score2=73'''
  | place = [[Staples Center]], [[Los Angeles, California|Los Angeles]]
  | TV =
  }}
@@ Line 76: / Line 81: @@
  | bg = #eee
  | date = August 30
  | time =
- | report = [http://web.archive.org/web/20011006195426/www.wnba.com/games2001/20010830/LOSCHA/boxscore.html Recap]
+ | report = {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011006195426/http://www.wnba.com/games2001/20010830/LOSCHA/boxscore.html |date=October 6, 2001 |title=Recap }}
  | team1 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]'''
  | score1 = '''75'''
  | score2 = 66
  | team2 = [[Charlotte Sting]]
- | H1 = 35-39 | H2 = 40-27
+ | H1 = 35–39 | H2 = 40–27
  | points1 = [[Lisa Leslie|Leslie]] (24)
  | points2 = [[Andrea Stinson|Stinson]] (18)
@@ Line 95: / Line 100: @@
 *Michael Price
 *Gary Zielinski
- | TV = [[National Broadcasting Company|NBC]]
+ | TV = [[WNBA on ESPN|ESPN]]
+|series=L.A Sparks leads series, 1–0
 }}
@@ Line 102: / Line 108: @@
  | bg = #eee
  | date = September 1
  | time =
- | report = [http://web.archive.org/web/20011031144041/www.wnba.com/games2001/20010901/CHALOS/boxscore.html Recap]
+ | report = {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011031144041/http://www.wnba.com/games2001/20010901/CHALOS/boxscore.html |date=October 31, 2001 |title=Recap }}
  | team1 = [[Charlotte Sting]]
  | score1 = 54
  | score2 = '''82'''
  | team2 = '''[[Los Angeles Sparks]]'''
- | H1 = 30-38 | H2 = 24-44
+ | H1 = 30–38 | H2 = 24–44
  | points1 = [[Tammy Sutton-Brown|Sutton-Brown]] (12)
  | points2 = [[Lisa Leslie|Leslie]] (24)
- | rebounds1 = [[Charlotte Smith|Smith]] (8)
+ | rebounds1 = [[Charlotte Smith (basketball)|Smith]] (8)
  | rebounds2 = [[Lisa Leslie|Leslie]] (13)
  | assist1 = [[Dawn Staley|Staley]] (5)
@@ Line 121: / Line 127: @@
 *June Corteau
 *Bob Trammell
- | TV = [[National Broadcasting Company|NBC]]
+ | TV = [[NBC Sports|NBC]]
+|series=L.A Sparks wins WNBA Finals, 2–0
 }}
 ==Awards==
 *'''2001 WNBA Champion:''' [[Los Angeles Sparks]]
 *'''[[Women's National Basketball Association Finals Most Valuable Player Award|Finals MVP]]''': [[Lisa Leslie]]
@@ Line 138: / Line 145: @@
 | valign="top" |
 {| class="sortable" style="background:transparent; margin:0px; width:100%;"
-! Pos. !! # !! Nat. !! Name !! Ht. !! Wt. !! From
+! Pos. !! # !! Nat. !! Name !! Height !! Weight !!class="unsortable"| !! From
 |-
 <!-- list of players -->
-{{player2 | num = 00 | first = Latasha | last = Byears | pos = F | ft = 5 | in = 11 | lbs = 206 | from = DePaul | nat = USA}}
+{{player2 | num = 00 | first = Latasha | last = Byears | pos = F | ft = 5 | in = 11 | lbs = 206 | college = DePaul | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 21 | first = Tamecka | last = Dixon | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 9 | lbs = 148 | college = Kansas | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 5 | first = Ukari | last = Figgs | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 9 | lbs = 142 | college = Purdue | nat = USA}}
@@ Line 147: / Line 154: @@
 {{player2 | num = 9 | first = Lisa | last = Leslie | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 5 | lbs = 170 | college = USC | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 40 | first = Nicole | last = Levandusky | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 8 | lbs = 163 | college = Xavier | nat = USA }}
-{{player2 | num = 4 | first = Mwadi | last = Mabika | pos = F | ft = 5 | in = 11 | lbs = 165 | from = Congo | nat = Congo}}
+{{player2 | num = 4 | first = Mwadi | last = Mabika | pos = F | ft = 5 | in = 11 | lbs = 165 | from = Democratic Republic of the Congo | nat = Democratic Republic of the Congo}}
 {{player2 | num = 51 | first = Rhonda | last = Mapp | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 2 | lbs = 190 | college = North Carolina State | nat = USA}}
-{{player2 | num = 10 | first = Nikki | last = McCrimmon | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 8 | lbs = 125 | college = USC | nat = USA}}
+{{player2 | num = 10 | first = Nicky | last = McCrimmon | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 8 | lbs = 125 | college = USC | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 8 | first = Delisha | last = Milton | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 1 | lbs = 172 | college = Florida | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 20 | first = Wendy | last = Willits | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 7 | lbs = 141 | college = Arkansas | nat = USA}}
 <!-- end list of players -->
-{{NBA roster footer
+{{WNBA roster footer
 | head_coach =
-*{{player||USA|[[Michael Cooper]]}} ({{college|USC}})
+*{{player||USA|[[Michael Cooper]]}} ({{college|New Mexico}})
 | asst_coach =
 *{{player||USA|Glenn McDonald}}
@@ Line 168: / Line 175: @@
 | valign="top" |
 {| class="sortable" style="background:transparent; margin:0px; width:100%;"
-! Pos. !! # !! Nat. !! Name !! Ht. !! Wt. !! From
+! Pos. !! # !! Nat. !! Name !! Height !! Weight !!class="unsortable"| !! From
 |-
 <!-- list of players -->
@@ Line 178: / Line 185: @@
 {{player2 | num = 33 | first = Clarisse | last = Machanguana | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 5 | lbs = 180 | college = Old Dominion | nat = Mozambique}}
 {{player2 | num = 8 | first = Kelly | last = Miller | link = Kelly Miller (basketball) | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 9 | lbs = 144 | college = Georgia | nat = USA}}
-{{player2 | num = 23 | first = Charlotte | last = Smith | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 0 | lbs = 148 | college = North Carolina | nat = USA}}
+{{player2 | num = 23 | first = Charlotte | last = Smith |link = Charlotte Smith (basketball) | pos = F | ft = 6 | in = 0 | lbs = 148 | college = North Carolina | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 5 | first = Dawn | last = Staley | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 6 | lbs = 134 | college = Virginia | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 32 | first = Andrea | last = Stinson | pos = G | ft = 5 | in = 10 | lbs = 158 | college = North Carolina State | nat = USA}}
 {{player2 | num = 55 | first = Tammy | last = Sutton-Brown | pos = C | ft = 6 | in = 4 | lbs = 203 | college = Rutgers | nat = CAN}}
 <!-- end list of players -->
-{{NBA roster footer
+{{WNBA roster footer
 | head_coach =
 *{{player||USA|[[Anne Donovan]]}} ([[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]])
 | asst_coach =
@@ Line 191: / Line 198: @@
 }}
-==Links==
 {{WNBA Finals}}
 {{2001 WNBA season by team}}
+{{Los Angeles Sparks}}
-{{WNBA}}
 {{Los Angeles Sparks 2001 WNBA champions}}
+{{Charlotte Sting}}
+{{NBA on NBC}}
+{{WNBA on ESPN}}
 [[Category:2001 WNBA season|Finals]]
 [[Category:Los Angeles Sparks]]
 [[Category:Charlotte Sting]]
+[[Category:2001 in sports in California|WNBA Championship]]
+[[Category:2001 in North Carolina|WNBA Championship]]
 [[Category:WNBA Finals]]
+[[Category:August 2001 sports events in the United States|WNBA Championship]]
+[[Category:September 2001 sports events in the United States|WNBA Championship]]
+[[Category:Basketball competitions in Charlotte, North Carolina]]
+[[Category:Basketball competitions in Los Angeles]]
+[[Category:2001 in Los Angeles|WNBA Championship]]

v t e 2001 WNBA season by team
Draft All-Star Game Championship Playoffs
Eastern	Charlotte Sting Cleveland Rockers Detroit Shock Indiana Fever Miami Sol New York Liberty Orlando Miracle Washington Mystics
Western	Houston Comets Los Angeles Sparks Minnesota Lynx Phoenix Mercury Portland Fire Sacramento Monarchs Seattle Storm Utah Starzz
← 2000 WNBA season 2002 →

v t e Los Angeles Sparks
Founded in 1997 Based in Los Angeles, California
Franchise	Franchise Current season
Arenas	Kia Forum Crypto.com Arena
Head coaches	Linda Sharp Julie Rousseau Orlando Woolridge Michael Cooper Karleen Thompson Ryan Weisenberg Henry Bibby Joe Bryant Michael Cooper Jennifer Gillom Joe Bryant Carol Ross Penny Toler Brian Agler Derek Fisher Fred Williams Curt Miller Lynne Roberts
Administration	Owner: Guggenheim Partners General Manager: Vacant
All-Stars	Alana Beard Tamecka Dixon Chelsea Gray Dearica Hamby Chamique Holdsclaw Jantel Lavender Lisa Leslie Mwadi Mabika Taj McWilliams-Franklin DeLisha Milton-Jones Nneka Ogwumike Candace Parker Nikki Teasley Tina Thompson Kristi Toliver
Seasons	1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Playoff appearances	1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2008 2009 2010 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
Conference Championships	2001 2002 2003 2016 2017
WNBA Championships	2001 2002 2016
Rivals	Detroit Shock Houston Comets New York Liberty Minnesota Lynx Phoenix Mercury Sacramento Monarchs Las Vegas Aces Seattle Storm
Media	TV: Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles) Announcers: Jim Watson, Mary Murphy

v t e Charlotte Sting
Founded in 1997 Folded in 2006 Based in Charlotte, North Carolina
Franchise	Franchise Final season
Arenas	Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte Bobcats Arena
Head Coaches	Marynell Meadors Dan Hughes T.R. Dunn Anne Donovan Trudi Lacey Tyrone "Muggsy" Bogues
Seasons	1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Conference Championships	2001