DeWanna Bonner improved to No. 3 on the WNBA all-time scoring list during a memorable debut with the Indiana Fever on Saturday. The achievement was part of the Fever’s 93-58 dismantling of the Chicago Sky.
Bonner contributed to the dominant victory with seven points, increasing her total career points to 7,482. She only sits behind now-retired Diana Taurasi (10,646) and Tina Charles (7,696), who is currently with the Connecticut Sun, on the all-time scoring list.
Bonner’s historic moment came with 3:13 remaining in the game when she sank two free throws. She raised her arms in celebration and the sold-out crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse gave her a standing ovation.
“I think I’m just grateful. Most people don’t get up there,” Bonner said. “That’s really hard to do. It’s really hard to be in that position and to be in the league this long. You’ve seen all the cuts that happened this week with great talented players, so just to be in that position to get there was just, I don’t know, I’m just grateful. I just try to soak in the moment.”
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Bonner was selected fifth overall by the Phoenix Mercury in 2009. This being her 15th year in the league is something she does not take for granted, and she admitted that standing on the free throw line made her get emotional.
Before the game, Fever coach Stephanie White talked about how Bonner sometimes gets “lost in the shuffle.”
“We tell her all the time, ‘You deserve the limelight, right? You deserve the recognition.'” White said. “She doesn’t love it, it’s not really her personality. But what she’s been able to do and accomplish in this league, the way she’s been able to go about doing it, to make herself available every year, nearly every game, that’s hard to do, and she deserves a lot of credit for what she’s been able to accomplish, for how she’s been able to do it. … She’s a Hall of Famer.”
Bonner’s teammates wanted the historic moment as bad as she did, and Caitlin Clark, who was mic’d up for the game, told her teammates they needed to get Bonner an opportunity during a timeout late in the fourth quarter.
“DB is somebody that is a Hall of Famer, a legend,” said Clark, who also made history Saturday with her third career triple-double. “Not only a good basketball player — a great person, a great leader. The strongest voice in our locker room is hers.”
Bonner rising the all-time scoring list was not an easy achievement, and she already won two WNBA championships during her time with the Mercury. However, at 37 years old, she is still hungry to achieve more and desires another championship.
Last year, the Fever made the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and are now expected to be one of the top teams in the league. So far, they seem on the right track with 1-0 start. They will be back on the court Tuesday when they host the Atlanta Dream.