Ivory Latta (born September 25, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player.[1] She was drafted 11th overall by the Detroit Shock in the 2007 WNBA Draft. A 5'6" (1.68 m) guard noted for her three-point shooting and on-court enthusiasm, she played college basketball for the North Carolina Tar Heels. She is the all-time leading scorer in South Carolina high school basketball history (men's and women's) with a total of 4,319 career points.[2]
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | September 25, 1984 McConnells, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Listed height | 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) |
| Listed weight | 138 lb (63 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | York Comprehensive (York, South Carolina) |
| College | North Carolina (2003–2007) |
| WNBA draft | 2007: 1st round, 11th overall pick |
| Selected by the Detroit Shock | |
| Playing career | 2007–2017 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 12 |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 2007 | Detroit Shock |
| 2007–2008 | Elitzur Holon |
| 2008–2009 | Atlanta Dream |
| 2008–2009 | Ceyhan Belediyesi |
| 2009–2010 | Mersin BŞB |
| 2010–2012 | Tulsa Shock |
| 2011–2012 | Tarsus Belediye |
| 2013 | Maccabi Ramat Hen |
| 2013–2017 | Washington Mystics |
| 2015–2016 | Edirne Belediyesi Edirnespor |
| As coach: | |
| 2013–2015 | North Carolina (assistant) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at WNBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Early life
editBorn in McConnells, South Carolina, Latta played for York Comprehensive High School in York, South Carolina, where she was named a WBCA All-American. She participated in the 2003 WBCA High School All-America Game where she scored seventeen points, and earned MVP honors.[3][4]
College career
editLatta was named the 2006 Player of the Year by ESPN.com,[5] USBWA, GballMag.com and Basketball Times National Player of the Year, Nancy Lieberman Award Winner as Point Guard of the Year (2006), Consensus All-American (2006), ACC Player of the Year (2006), ACC Tournament MVP (2005), WBCA National Player for the Month of March (2005), All-ACC First Team (2007, 2005), AP All-American Third Team (2005), ACC Preseason Rookie of the Year (2004), All-ACC Second Team (2004), All-ACC Freshmen Team (2004).[2] Latta averaged 14.0 points per game as a freshman, 16.2 as a senior, and 16.6 for her career at North Carolina.
College statistics
editSource[6]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | Points | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–04 | North Carolina | 31 | 433 | 36.2 | 34.7 | 78.0 | 2.8 | 3.5 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 14.0 |
| 2004–05 | North Carolina | 34 | 592 | 42.0 | 39.7 | 86.3 | 2.7 | 4.3 | 1.7 | 0.2 | 17.4 |
| 2005–06 | North Carolina | 35 | 645 | 45.5 | 40.1 | 85.2 | 2.1 | 5.2 | 2.3 | 0.1 | 18.4 |
| 2006–07 | North Carolina | 38 | 615 | 41.1 | 40.2 | 85.5 | 2.1 | 4.2 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 16.2 |
| Career | North Carolina | 138 | 2285 | 41.4 | 38.9 | 84.0 | 2.4 | 4.3 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 16.6 |
Professional career
editLatta was drafted by the Detroit Shock with the 11th pick in the 2007 WNBA draft. She averaged 3.0 points per game as a rookie, and had the second-best 3-point field goal percentage in the WNBA for the 2007 regular season.[2] Latta appeared in her first WNBA Finals during her rookie season with the Shock, where they lost in 5 games to the Phoenix Mercury. On February 6, 2008, Latta was traded to the Atlanta Dream for the Dream's 2008 second round pick and LaToya Thomas.[2][7] She played for Ceyhan in Turkey during the 2008–09 WNBA off-season.[8] She was originally released by the Atlanta Dream at the start of the 2009 WNBA season, but then signed on July 3, 2009, after the Dream released Nikki Teasley instead.[9]
Latta played for the Tulsa Shock from 2010 to 2012, and joined the Washington Mystics in 2013. In 2013, she was selected to the WNBA All-Star Game for the first time. In 2014, Latta was selected as an all-star replacement for the injured Elena Delle Donne, making it her second all-star game appearance.
In July 2016, Latta suffered a left knee injury during practice at the Verizon Center that would sideline her for the rest of the season after playing 22 games.[10]
In 2017, Latta was healthy and played all 34 games. The Mystics advanced past the second round for the first time in franchise history, but were swept by the Minnesota Lynx in the semi-finals.
WNBA career statistics
edit| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game | RPG | Rebounds per game |
| APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game | BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game |
| TO | Turnovers per game | FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| Bold | Career best | ° | League leader |
Regular season
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Detroit | 31 | 1 | 7.1 | .391 | .449 | .429 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 3.0 |
| 2008 | Atlanta | 34 | 31 | 28.2 | .362 | .344 | .802 | 2.1 | 3.6 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 11.4 |
| 2009 | Atlanta | 24 | 0 | 14.6 | .409 | .360 | .826 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 6.1 |
| 2010 | Tulsa | 18 | 16 | 28.7 | .422 | .370 | .776 | 1.4 | 3.9 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 2.1 | 12.4 |
| 2011 | Tulsa | 24 | 24 | 28.5 | .414 | .351 | .830 | 2.0 | 3.2 | 1.2 | 0.0 | 2.8 | 12.2 |
| 2012 | Tulsa | 34 | 18 | 28.3 | .430 | .390 | .840 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 2.1 | 14.3 |
| 2013 | Washington | 34 | 34 | 31.5 | .392 | .396 | .902 | 2.6 | 4.4 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 1.8 | 13.9 |
| 2014 | Washington | 34 | 33 | 31.7 | .395 | .377 | .833 | 2.4 | 3.3 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 1.9 | 12.8 |
| 2015 | Washington | 34 | 25 | 27.3 | .406 | .389 | .909 | 1.8 | 2.6 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 13.4 |
| 2016 | Washington | 22 | 2 | 20.8 | .331 | .305 | .909 | 1.7 | 1.9 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 1.4 | 8.3 |
| 2017 | Washington | 34 | 1 | 17.0 | .349 | .328 | .871 | 0.8 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 8.0 |
| Career | 11 years, 4 teams | 323 | 185 | 24.2 | .393 | .369 | .848 | 1.7 | 2.7 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 1.7 | 10.7 |
Playoffs
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Detroit | 10 | 0 | 4.7 | .263 | .333 | .667 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 1.9 |
| 2009 | Atlanta | 2 | 2 | 37.5 | .400 | .333 | .889 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 1.5 | 13.5 |
| 2013 | Washington | 3 | 3 | 31.3 | .484 | .400 | .500 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 12.7 |
| 2014 | Washington | 2 | 2 | 37.1 | .357 | .333 | 1.000 | 1.5 | 4.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 17.0 |
| 2015 | Washington | 3 | 3 | 31.5 | .400 | .524 | .818 | 1.3 | 4.3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1.3 | 16.0 |
| 2017 | Washington | 3 | 0 | 9.2 | .467 | .444 | .000 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 6.0 |
| Career | 6 years, 3 teams | 23 | 10 | 17.9 | .399 | .402 | .795 | 1.2 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 8.0 |
European career
edit- 2007–2008:
Elitzur Holon - 2008–2009:
Ceyhan Belediyesi - 2009–2010: Mersin BŞB
- 2010–2011: Maccabi Ramat Hen
- 2011–2012: Tarsus Belediye
- 2013: Maccabi Ramat Hen
- 2015–2016: Edirne Belediyesi Edirnespor
Personal life
editOn January 9, 2003 a resolution was read on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives by U.S. Representative John Spratt[11] honoring Latta. She would also receive the key to the city of York, South Carolina (where she attended high school and Spratt's hometown),[11][12] which celebrated Ivory Latta Day on January 10, 2003.[13]
Latta's father and paternal grandmother both live with Parkinson's disease and she has been very outspoken about how her father's diagnosis impacted her.[14] As a result, Latta serves as an ambassador for the Parkinson's Disease Foundation (PDF).[15] In this role, she is involved with fundraising campaigns for PDF and generating awareness about Parkinson's disease, and enlists other professional athletes to support the cause.[14]
Latta's friendships with NBA superstar LeBron James and actor/rapper Chris "Ludacris" Bridges have been well documented.[5]
Awards and honors
edit- 2006 – Nancy Lieberman Award
Notes
edit- ^ "WNBA Player Movement Central". WNBA.com – Official Site of the WNBA.
- ^ a b c d "official bio". Archived from the original on July 18, 2008.
- ^ "WBCA High School All-America Game Box Scores". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
- ^ "WBCA High School All-America Game Team MVP's". Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved June 29, 2014.
- ^ a b "Lieberman: Five Final Four observations". ESPN.com. March 22, 2007.
- ^ "Women's Basketball Player stats". NCAA. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
- ^ "Atlanta's expansion draft trades/analysis". Archived from the original on June 14, 2009. Retrieved February 6, 2008.
- ^ "WNBA.com: Offseason 2008–09: Overseas Roster". www.wnba.com.
- ^ "Long-range shooting reason for Latta's return".
- ^ Lee, Albert (July 20, 2016). "Ivory Latta injures knee". Retrieved July 22, 2016.
- ^ a b "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 28, 2009. Retrieved March 10, 2009.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved March 10, 2009.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 1, 2009. Retrieved March 10, 2009.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ a b Spain, Sarah (April 26, 2012). "Shock's Latta hopes for turnaround". ESPN. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
- ^ "Latta to Become Parkinson's Ambassador". TarHeelBlue.com. University of North Carolina Athletics. Retrieved February 19, 2012.