2004 WNBA season
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| 2004 WNBA season | |
|---|---|
| League | Women's National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | May 20 - October 12, 2004 |
| Games | 34 |
| Teams | 13 |
| Total attendance | 1,903,427 |
| Average attendance | 8,613 |
| TV partner(s) | ABC, ESPN, Oxygen, NBATV |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick |  Diana Taurasi |
| Picked by | Phoenix Mercury |
| Regular season | |
| Top seed | Los Angeles Sparks |
| Season MVP | Lisa Leslie (Los Angeles) |
| Top scorer |  Lauren Jackson (Seattle) |
| Playoffs | |
| Finals champions | Seattle Storm |
| Runners-up | Connecticut Sun |
| Finals MVP | Betty Lennox (Seattle) |
The 2004 WNBA season was the Women's National Basketball Association's eighth season. The league had one fewer team than in 2003 as the Cleveland Rockers folded after the 2003 season. The season ended with the Seattle Storm winning their first WNBA Championship, as their head coach Anne Donovan became the first female coach to win a WNBA championship.
On January 6, 2004, the Cleveland Rockers dispersal draft was held. This draft reassigned players from the Cleveland Rockers who folded after the end of 2003 WNBA season.[1] The remaining thirteen teams in the WNBA each selected one player from the 2003 Rockers roster in the one-round draft.[2] Teams drafted in inverse order of their 2003 regular season finish.[1]
The top four picks were:
| Pick | Player | Nationality | New Team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Penny Taylor | Australia |
Phoenix Mercury | [3] |
| 2 | Chasity Melvin |  United States |
Washington Mystics | |
| 3 | LaToya Thomas | San Antonio Silver Stars | ||
| 4 | Ann Wauters |  Belgium |
New York Liberty |
Regular season
Standings
Eastern Conference
| Eastern Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connecticut Sun x | 18 | 16 | .529 | – | 10–7 | 8–9 | 14–6 |
| New York Liberty x | 18 | 16 | .529 | – | 11–6 | 7–10 | 10–10 |
| Detroit Shock x | 17 | 17 | .500 | 1.0 | 8–9 | 9–8 | 11–9 |
| Washington Mystics x | 17 | 17 | .500 | 1.0 | 11–6 | 6–11 | 9–11 |
| Charlotte Sting o | 16 | 18 | .471 | 2.0 | 10–7 | 6–11 | 8–12 |
| Indiana Fever o | 15 | 19 | .441 | 3.0 | 10–7 | 5–12 | 8–12 |
Western Conference
| Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Sparks x | 25 | 9 | .735 | – | 15–2 | 10–7 | 16–6 |
| Seattle Storm x | 20 | 14 | .588 | 5.0 | 13–4 | 7–10 | 13–9 |
| Minnesota Lynx x | 18 | 16 | .529 | 7.0 | 11–6 | 7–10 | 12–10 |
| Sacramento Monarchs x | 18 | 16 | .529 | 7.0 | 10–7 | 8–9 | 12–10 |
| Phoenix Mercury o | 17 | 17 | .500 | 8.0 | 10–7 | 7–10 | 11–11 |
| Houston Comets o | 13 | 21 | .382 | 12.0 | 9–8 | 4–13 | 7–15 |
| San Antonio Silver Stars o | 9 | 25 | .265 | 16.0 | 6–11 | 3–14 | 6–16 |
Playoffs
| Conference semifinals Best-of-3 | Conference finals Best-of-3 | WNBA Finals Best-of-3 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Washington | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Conference | ||||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | New York | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Detroit | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | Connecticut | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Los Angeles | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Sacramento | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Sacramento | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Western Conference | ||||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Minnesota | 0 | ||||||||||||
- Bold – Series winner
- Italic – Team with home-court advantage
Awards
Reference:[4]
Individual
| Award | Winner | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player (MVP) | Lisa Leslie | Los Angeles Sparks | |
| Finals MVP | Betty Lennox | Seattle Storm | |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Lisa Leslie | Los Angeles Sparks | |
| Most Improved Player (co-winners) |
Kelly Miller | Indiana Fever | |
| Wendy Palmer | Connecticut Sun | ||
| Peak Performers | Scoring | Lauren Jackson | Seattle Storm |
| Rebounding | Lisa Leslie | Los Angeles Sparks | |
| Rookie of the Year | Diana Taurasi | Phoenix Mercury | |
| Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award | Teresa Edwards | Minnesota Lynx | |
| Coach of the Year | Suzie McConnell Serio | Minnesota Lynx | |
Team
| Award | Player | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-WNBA | First Team | Lauren Jackson | Seattle Storm |
| Tina Thompson | Houston Comets | ||
| Lisa Leslie | Los Angeles Sparks | ||
| Diana Taurasi | Phoenix Mercury | ||
| Sue Bird | Seattle Storm | ||
| Second Team | Tamika Catchings | Indiana Fever | |
| Swin Cash | Detroit Shock | ||
| Yolanda Griffith | Sacramento Monarchs | ||
| Nikki Teasley | Los Angeles Sparks | ||
| Nykesha Sales | Connecticut Sun | ||
Players of the Week
| Week ending | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| May 30 | Tina Thompson | Houston Comets |
| June 6 | Tamika Catchings | Indiana Fever |
| June 13 | Swin Cash | Detroit Shock |
| June 20 | Tamika Catchings (2) | Indiana Fever |
| June 27 | Nykesha Sales | Connecticut Sun |
| July 4 | Anna DeForge | Phoenix Mercury |
| July 11 | Swin Cash (2) | Detroit Shock |
| July 18 | Lauren Jackson | Seattle Storm |
| July 25 | Lauren Jackson (2) | Seattle Storm |
| August 1 | Tina Thompson (2) | Houston Comets |
| September 7 | Lisa Leslie | Los Angeles Sparks |
| September 13 | Alana Beard | Washington Mystics |
| September 20 | Adrienne Goodson | San Antonio Silver Stars |