INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Longtime WNBA pro DeWanna Bonner moved into third place on the league’s career scoring list in her Indiana Fever debut Saturday.
She passed Tina Thompson when she made two free throws with 3:13 to go in the game against the Fever’s nearest rival, the Chicago Sky. The crowd gave her a roaring ovation after the free throw that tied Thompson with 7,488 points and Bonner waved to the crowd before making the next one to move to No. 3.
At the next stoppage, she left the game to an even louder ovation and her new teammates helped her celebrate the moment.
“D.B. is somebody that’s a Hall of Famer, like a legend, not only a good basketball player, a great person,” Caitlin Clark said after recording her third career triple-double and blocking four shots. “The strongest voice in the locker room is hers, and it’s fun to have been around for her for about a month, just to get to learn from her. And I’m really happy she got to do it at the free-throw line and all the fans could go crazy and cheer for her because she really deserved that moment.”
The 37-year-old Bonner didn’t need a few more points to cement her legacy. But after winning two leagues titles and making six All-Star appearances, getting to 7,489 points was certainly a unique way to enjoy her first home game with Indiana.
Only the recently retired Diana Taurasi and Tina Charles have scored more points than Bonner, who has made the All-WNBA team twice. She was a key offseason acquisition for Indiana, opting to follow her coach in Connecticut, Stephanie White, to Indiana.
“It’s really incredible and not just her longevity, her efficiency and how good she’s been her entire career and she gets lost in the shuffle, right?” White said. “She’s played with a lot of great players, and she’s just quietly gone about her business.
“What she’s done and been able to accomplish in this league, the way she’s been able to do it, being available every year, nearly every game, that’s hard to do.”
It wasn’t just Indiana players and fans celebrating, either.
Shortly after the game, the Fever posted a video clip of other WNBA stars congratulating Bonner, who entered the league with Phoenix in 2009 after starring at Auburn in college. She’s also repeatedly made it clear that she came to Indiana to win a third title.
She and the overhauled Fever are off to a good start, and her teammates relished the moment they got to share with Bonner.
“That’s super special. I mean third on the scoring list,” Indiana center Aliyah Boston said. “That’s her spot now, so for us, it’s super exciting. I think D.B. is such a light and positive leader for us in the locker room and so to be able to see that and celebrate and share that with her is super special.”
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