LOS ANGELES -- The Sparks will be adding another jersey to the rafters. On Tuesday, July 28th at Crypto.Com Arena, #8 will be retired as the team honors the great DeLisha Milton-Jones.
Milton-Jones was a huge part of the Sparks franchise. She started out in the short-lived ABL (American Basketball League) before coming over to the WNBA in 1999, when the Sparks drafted her fourth overall in the supplemental draft. She helped the team win back-to-back WNBA championships in 2001 and 2002.
“DeLisha Milton-Jones represents the very best of the Los Angeles Sparks, with excellence, leadership and an unwavering commitment to winning,” Sparks GM Raegan Pebley said. “Her contributions to our championships and her impact on generations of players and fans make this honor not only well deserved, but a meaningful part of celebrating and preserving the legacy of our franchise.”
Milton-Jones joins an elite group of retired Sparks jerseys as her number will be with Lisa Leslie, Penny Toler, and Candace Parker, whose jersey was retired last year.
“Moments like this are well worth the wait,” Milton-Jones said in the Sparks' press release. “I’m filled with pure joy and gratitude knowing my day has come to receive flowers of this magnitude for the legacy I’ve left within the game of basketball and the Sparks organization. I’m honored to be recognized in this way and incredibly elated to take my place in the rafters alongside my forever teammates Penny Toler, Lisa Leslie and Candace Parker. Ephesians 3:20 reminds us that if you wait on the Lord, He will give you exceedingly and abundantly more than you ask for. Just be patient and trust Him!”
Milton-Jones spent 11 of her 17 seasons with the Sparks in a storied career. She averaged 11.7 points and 5.5 rebounds in 344 games in Los Angeles and is among the franchise leaders in numerous career categories such as points (4th), rebounds (4th), assists (8th), steals (4th), and blocks (3rd).