Michael Voepel, ESPN Senior Writer
Tina Charles believed there was a chance her stellar WNBA career was over after she didn’t play in the league last season. Instead, she’s back this year, and Wednesday night she moved into second place on the WNBA’s career scoring list behind the Phoenix Mercury‘s Diana Taurasi.
Charles had 12 points and 17 rebounds, and the Atlanta Dream beat Phoenix 72-63 in College Park, Georgia, for their third straight victory since the Olympic break.
“Just a whole bunch of gratitude,” Charles said of her place on the scoring list, crediting her religious faith and the Dream’s belief in her. “Just where I was last year, and just where I am today. … I thought I was done playing last year. So for me to be here right now is just really special.”
Charles passed Hall of Famer Tina Thompson (7,488 points) for second on the all-time list and now has 7,491 career points across her 13 WNBA seasons. Taurasi, who was held to 3 points Tuesday, has 10,500 points over her 20 WNBA seasons. Both are former UConn stars who were USA Basketball teammates in three Olympics and briefly WNBA teammates with the Mercury in 2022.
“To be on the court with Diana, to be in the same sentence — it’s just unimaginable,” Charles said.
Charles now has 184 career double-doubles, second most in WNBA history and 10 shy of breaking retired center Sylvia Fowles’ record of 193. Charles’ 3,876 rebounds are also second to Fowles’ record 4,006.
Charles, who was selected No. 1 in 2010 by Connecticut and was named league MVP in 2012 while with the Sun, reached these milestones despite not playing in 2020 (medical exemption during the COVID-19 pandemic) and in 2023. She split the 2022 season between Phoenix and Seattle.
Dream coach Tanisha Wright — Charles’ teammate for three seasons with the New York Liberty — and general manager Dan Padover felt Charles, 35, was still an impact player and signed her as a free agent in February.
Plagued by injuries, the Dream skidded into the Olympic break, losing eight consecutive games to fall to 7-17. Now, with players such as 3×3 Olympic bronze medalist Rhyne Howard and Jordin Canada healthy and in the starting lineup, Atlanta is 10-17 and just a game behind the Chicago Sky for the last playoff spot.
“Really good teams are very consistent in who they are,” Charles said. “We were consistent [tonight]. Defensively, offensively, sharing the ball, celebrating one another.”
Asked how she might celebrate, Charles shrugged and said, “I don’t.”
Wright jumped in, adding: “She’s definitely going to have a beer tonight. She’s going home and having a beer, sitting on her hammock and listening to some Caribbean music.”
Charles agreed.
“Yeah, that’s a fact,” she said. “But … I think when I’m actually done [playing], you take it in differently. I’m just thankful to be around a great group of women. To see the growth of Allisha Gray, to be alongside Rhyne Howard, to have an impact on them. I think that’s just what means the most to me right now in my career.”