Cynthia Cooper-Dyke

The arc of Cynthia Cooper-Dyke’s remarkable career originated on the mean streets of Watts and ended in Houston, with stops in Spain, Italy, and seemingly all points in between. Wherever Cooper played she left her mark as one of the greatest female players of all time, from high school to the University of Southern California to Europe to the WNBA Houston Comets. At USC, Cooper teamed with fellow Hall of Famer Cheryl Miller to win back-to-back national championships. When she graduated in 1986, opportunities for women to play professional basketball in the US were limited so Cooper played overseas honing her skills against the best players in the world. Then in 1997 a new league formed and Cooper returned stateside to cement her place in women’s basketball. The two-time WNBA Most Valuable Player led the Houston Comets to four consecutive WNBA championships and was named Finals MVP each time. A four-time All-WNBA First Team performer, Cooper led the league in scoring three times.