Bird looks to break the record on Sunday vs. Phoenix at KeyArena
SEATTLE – The best point guard in women’s basketball history, Sue Bird sits only six assists away from becoming the WNBA’s all-time assist leader. With 2,594 career dimes, Bird is on the verge of passing Ticha Penicheiro (2,599), and with a 6.5 assist-per-game average, she is likely to break the record on Sunday during Seattle’s regular-season home finale vs. Phoenix.
Ticket sales are well into the upper bowl for Seattle’s home finale vs. Phoenix, which is set to tipoff at 6 p.m. PT on NBATV. The 2017 series is tied at one game apiece, with both teams claiming victories on the road. In the most recent meeting on Aug. 12, the Storm topped the Mercury in Phoenix – a 98-89 triumph in which Bird was one of four Storm players to notch five dimes, a first in franchise history for Seattle.
Bird, a two-time WNBA champion and 10-time All-Star, has averaged 5.5 assists per outing for her career. In her 16th Storm season, she has never come off the bench, tallying a WNBA-record 475 starts. Should Bird continue at her 6.5 assist-per-game pace, it will tie the 2003 campaign as the best passing season for her illustrious career. In her last time out at Atlanta, Bird recorded six dimes to go along with 15 points.
Seattle (14-17) currently sits in seventh place in the latest WNBA standings, ahead of Dallas (14-17) thanks to winning the season series with a 2-1 record vs. the Wings. The Storm still has work to do, though, needing any combination of Chicago losses and Seattle wins adding up to 3 to clinch a spot in the postseason.
After Sunday’s showdown with Phoenix, the Storm will hit the road for matchups at Washington (Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. ET) and Chicago (Sept. 3 at 5 p.m. CT) to cap the 2017 regular season.