WNBA all-time scoring list 1997-2024
As of September 2024, Diana Taurasi was the all-time leading points scorer in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), having amassed 10,646 points in her career. In second place was Tina Charles, with 7,696 points.
Diana Taurasi and the Phoenix Mercury
Diana Taurasi professional playing career started when she was the first overall pick in the WNBA Draft for Phoenix Mercury in 2004. She has since won three WNBA championships with the franchise, the most recent in 2014. As a recipient of many league honors, including the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award (2004), the WNBA Most Valuable Player Award (2009), and one of the WNBA Top 15 Players of All Time (2011), Taurasi is considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time. Nicknamed the “White Mamba” by one of the NBAs top scorers Kobe Bryant, who himself is known as the “Black Mamba”, Taurasi achieved the highest number of WNBA points scored in history when she surpassed Tina Thompson’s record in 2017. This record is set to increase as Taurasi remains an active player with the Phoenix Mercury.
Who are other leading players in the WNBA?
In addition to Diana Taurasi, the WNBA is home to many other successful basketball players. Sue Bird, who was the first draft pick of the Seattle Storm in 2002 and who played there for 20 years until her retirement in 2022, holds the record for the most assists in the WNBA. Bird is also considered one of the greatest WNBA players of all time, and won four WNBA championships with the Seattle Storm. In terms of all time steals leaders in the WNBA, the record goes to former WNBA player Tamika Catchings, who played for 15 years with the Indiana Fever and amassed a total of over 1,000 steals. Meanwhile, Ticha Penicheiro, who also played for 15 years on three different WNBA teams, is the second-highest ranked WNBA player of all time in terms of assists, and the third-highest in steals. Most of Penicheiro’s career was played with the Sacramento Monarchs, an WNBA team that was in operation from 1997 until 2009.
