1. Sean Gantwerker
June 9, 2016
Sometimes greatness is defined by scarcity, and Sky veteran Cappie Pondexter finds herself in good
company. Cappie enters the Friday, June 10 contest against the Indiana Fever, her 333rd career game, on the
verge of history, nine points away from becoming just the seventh player in WNBA history to reach 6,000
career points. By reaching that mark in her eleventh season in the league, Pondexter will become the
third fastest player to reach that mark trailing only fellow all-stars Diana Taurasi and Tamika Catchings. In
celebration of this historic occasion, let’s take a look back at how Pondexter got where she is today.
Growing Up:
Cappie Pondexter was born in Oceanside, California but raised in the Windy City. By ten years old, she was
engaging in spirited games of one-on-one against her brother Ronald, and knew she wanted to pursue a
career in basketball. By High School, she had the motivational words “The Future,” tattooed on her right
bicep, big words, and a tall order, one that has paid off in spades. Pondexter was a four-year starter at John
Marshall High School in Chicago, the same school as Houston Rockets point guard Patrick Beverely, and
Hoop Dreams subject Arthur Agee. Pondexter, was selected as the 2001 Illinois Player of the Year by
Gatorade and USA Today, and became the first player in the state to twice be named Illinois’ Miss Basketball
(2000 and 2001).
Cappie Pondexter: The College Years
After a heavy recruiting period, Pondexter landed at Rutgers University in New Jersey, where she left a lasting
impression: being named Big East Rookie of the Year in 2003, the Big East Player of the Year in 2006, and
leading the Scarlet Knights to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments. Pondexter left school, second on the
school’s all-time leading scorers list at 2,211 trailing only the great Sue Wicks’ (2,655 points from 1984-88).
Pondexter: The Pro
Cappie’s journey towards 6,000 started when she was picked by the Phoenix Mercury with the 2nd overall
pick of the 2006 draft. Pondexter made an immediate impression on the league averaging 19.5 points on
her way to the All-WNBA and All-Rookie teams. Pondexter played a crucial role for a championship Mercury
team, during her sophomore season, averaging 22 points per game during the playoffs on her way to the
2007 WNBA Finals MVP honors. Pondexter increased her scoring average by four points in 2008, and
followed that season up with yet another All-Star appearance as she helped the Mercury claim the 2009 title.
Pondexter career took a turn when she was traded to the New York Liberty in March 2010. Cappie finished
her four-year Mercury career with two championship rings, three all-star appearances, and 2,483 points. And
as the league found out when she got to the Big Apple, the best was yet to come.
Pondexter helped the Liberty to a 22-11 record during her debut 2010 season with the club, a nine-win
turnaround from the previous season. Pondexter’s consistnes scoring helped lead the Liberty squad to the
playoffs and a hard-fought Eastern Conference Finals loss against future Sky teammate Erika De Souza and
the Atlanta Dream. For the year, Pondexter averaged career bests in points (21.2), and rebounds (4.5) per
game, and shot career bests from both the field (48%) and long-range (43%). The Liberty would make the
playoffs for the next two consecutive seasons, before stumbling during the last two years of Pondexter’s
tenure with the team. All told Cappie’s five-year stint in New York brought three more All-Star appearances
and 2,970 points. In February 2015, Pondexter received another call about a chance of scenery: this time she
was coming home.
Cappie Pondexter came to the Sky with some big shoes to fill, replacing Epiphanny Prince, who averaged 14
points per game during her tenure in Chicago. Pondexter took little time adjusting to new surroundings as the
Sky went 21-13 during the 2015 season, averaging a league-best 82.9 points per game, and making the
Eastern Conference Semi-Finals on the backs of strong play from Elena Delle Donne, Courtney Vandersloot,
and Pondexter. During the 2015 campaign, Pondexter earned the seventh All-Star appearance of her career,
averaged 15 points per game on 44% shooting.

2. Now early on Pondexter’s 2016 crusade is shaping up to be one of her best. As of this writing, Pondexter is
averaging 13 points, 2.8 assists and 2.3 rebounds in 25.5 minutes per game. Pondexter is shooting a career-
best 45% from three, and is shooting an identical percentage from the field. Pondexter remains a vocal
leader both on-and-off the court, and remains a key contributor for a Sky team expected to challenge for the
2016 WNBA title.
Cappie: As a Whole
Cappie Pondexter’s career statistics are a laundry list of basketball dominance, beyond 6,000 points she
stands on the verge of history in multiple other categories. Pondexter is 38th all-time in WNBA career games
played, 13th all-time in 3-pt field goals made , fifth all-time in field goals made, 16h all-time in minutes
played, ninth all-time in career 2-pt field goals, eightth all-time in free throws, 39th all-time in career steals
and 11th all-time in career assists. Pondexter is just five assists away from passing Dawn Staley (1,337) for
10th all-time in Career assists, and six away from passing Teresa Weatherspoon for ninth.
Looking at those numbers in a vacuum, it’s easy to forget how she got here. Those one-on-ones with her
brother, the countless hours in the gym, the relentless training it takes to get your body into the kind of shape
that can log over 10,0000 career minutes, and still let her travel overseas to test her skills against
international competition during the off-season. When Cappie Pondexter takes the court at the Bankerslife
Fieldhouse on Friday night, she will be accomplishing something very special, but really she’s been
accomplishing something very special ever since she picked up a basketball.
When Pondexter was in High School, she got that tattoo that said, “The Future,” and due to her hard work and
determination: that future proved to be very bright indeed.