NEW YORK, Aug. 26, 2018 – Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird has been named the 2018
Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award recipient, the WNBA announced today. This marks
the third such honor for Bird, who won the award in 2017 and shared it with Ruth
Riley in 2011.
The Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award is presented each season to a player who
exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, including ethical
behavior, fair play and integrity. The award is named for the late Kim Perrot,
who helped guide the Houston Comets to their first two WNBA championships before
passing away in August 1999 after a seven-month battle with cancer.
Bird received 16 votes from a national panel of 38 sportswriters and
broadcasters. The Chicago Sky’s Courtney Vandersloot finished second with five
votes, while the Washington Mystics’ Elena Delle Donne, the Connecticut Sun’s
Jasmine Thomas and the Atlanta Dream’s Elizabeth Williams tied for third with
four votes each.
Bird, the WNBA’s all-time assists leader, has spent her entire 16-year career
with the Storm, which selected her with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 WNBA
Draft. Bird was named an All-Star for the 11th time this season, surpassing
Tamika Catchings for the most selections in league history. She also eclipsed
DeLisha Milton-Jones for career games played (508).
The two-time WNBA champion averaged 10.1 points and a career-high 7.1 assists to
help Seattle claim the best record in the league (26-8) and the No. 1 overall
seed in the 2018 WNBA Playoffs.
Bird finished the 2018 season ranked seventh in WNBA history in scoring (6,154)
and fifth in steals (652). She has led the league in assist average three times
(2005, 2009 and 2016).
Below are the voting results for the 2018 WNBA Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award
and a list of all-time winners.
2018 KIM PERROT SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD RESULTS
Player Team Votes Sue Bird Seattle Storm 16 (of 38 votes) Courtney Vandersloot
Chicago Sky 5 Elena Delle Donne Washington Mystics 4 Jasmine Thomas Connecticut
Sun 4 Elizabeth Williams Atlanta Dream 4 Briann January Phoenix Mercury 2
Chelsea Gray Los Angeles Sparks 1 Danielle Robinson Minnesota Lynx 1 Sugar
Rodgers New York Liberty 1
ALL-TIME KIM PERROT SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD WINNERS
2018 Sue Bird Seattle Storm 2017 Sue Bird Seattle Storm 2016 Tamika Catchings
Indiana Fever 2015 DeLisha Milton-Jones Atlanta Dream 2014 Becky Hammon San
Antonio Stars 2013 Swin Cash Chicago Sky Tamika Catchings Indiana Fever 2012
Kara Lawson Connecticut Sun 2011 Sue Bird Seattle Storm Ruth Riley San Antonio
Stars 2010 Tamika Catchings Indiana Fever 2009 Kara Lawson Sacramento Monarchs
2008 Vickie Johnson San Antonio Stars 2007 Tully Bevilaqua Indiana Fever 2006
Dawn Staley Houston Comets 2005 Taj McWilliams-Franklin Connecticut Sun 2004
Teresa Edwards Minnesota Lynx 2003 Edna Campbell Sacramento Monarchs 2002
Jennifer Gillom Phoenix Mercury 2001 Sue Wicks New York Liberty 2000 Suzie
McConnell Serio Cleveland Rockers 1999 Dawn Staley Charlotte Sting 1998 Suzie
McConnell Serio Cleveland Rockers 1997 Haixia Zheng Los Angeles Sparks
