WNBA 2009

	Women's National Basketball Association
	◄ previous	2009 season	next ►
Duration		June 6th - October 9th
Season games per team		34
Number of teams		13
Spectators (total)		1,776,654
Regular season
Best record		Phoenix Mercury
Season MVP		Diana Taurasi
Top scorer		Diana Taurasi
Playoffs
Eastern - Champion		Indiana Fever
Runner-up team		Detroit Shock
Western - Champion		Phoenix Mercury
Runner-up team		Los Angeles Sparks
Finals
WNBA champion		Phoenix Mercury
Runner-up		Indiana Fever
Finals MVP		Diana Taurasi

The 2009 season was the 13th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The regular season began on June 6, 2009 and ended on September 13, 2009. The playoffs started three days later and ended on October 9 with the finals and the victory of the Phoenix Mercury .

Rule change

For this season the maximum number of players per team has been reduced from 13 to 11.

Draft

• Main article: WNBA Draft 2009

Before the WNBA Draft 2009 , there was a dispersal draft for the Houston Comets players . The selection order for the 2009 draft was determined on December 9, 2008 in a lottery . They won the Atlanta Dream ahead of the Washington Mystics .

As the first pick, the Dream pulled the American Angel McCoughtry . After that, Washington chose Marissa Coleman in second place . In total, the 13 franchises secured the rights to 39 players. The United States made up the majority with 35 players .

Top 5 picks

Abbreviations: Pos = Position, G = Guard, F = Forward, C = Center

No.	Player	nationality	Item	WNBA team	College / professional team
1.	Angel McCoughtry	United States	F.	Atlanta Dream	University of Louisville
2.	Marissa Coleman	United States	F.	Washington Mystics	University of Maryland
3.	Kristi Toliver	United States	G	Chicago Sky	University of Maryland
4th	Renee Montgomery	United States	G	Minnesota Lynx	University of Connecticut
5.	DeWanna Bonner	United States	G	Phoenix Mercury	Auburn University

Contracts, transfers and changes

Players

On January 7, 2009, the San Antonio Silver Stars extended the contract of their star-forward Sophia Young for three years. Just a day later, the Silver Stars signed Vickie Johnson for another season. On February 18, the first big name disappeared from the free agent list when the Atlanta Dream signed Michelle Snow . Just two days later, the next known player disappeared from the list when Yolanda Griffith signed with the Indiana Fever for a year . After the Los Angeles Sparks signed All-Star Tina Thompson on March 12th , it became apparent that the Sparks would not renew Chamique Holdsclaw's contract . March 26th saw the biggest trade of the season: the Sparks transferred Temeka Johnson to the Phoenix Mercury for a first-round draft pick at the 2010 WNBA Draft . On April 20, the Dream Holdsclaw signed. The Sparks were also involved in the next major trade: on May 5th, the New York Liberty transferred their first-round draft pick for Sidney Spencer to the Sparks. The Sparks transferred the Liberty draft pick together with Raffaella Masciadri to the Minnesota Lynx for Noelle Quinn . Two days later, the Lynx made themselves felt again and brought free agent Roneeka Hodges to Minnesota. In the course of the season, the Seattle Storm secured their sporting future and extended the contracts of their two superstars Sue Bird (September 10th) and Lauren Jackson (May 4th).

Trainer and General Manager

On October 23, 2008, Angela Taylor was named the new General Manager of Washington Mystics . After Taylor accepted the position as General Manager, she announced Julie Plank, the new head coach of the Mystics, two weeks later on November 6, 2008 . On November 20, 2008, Bill Laimbeer , general manager and head coach of the Detroit Shock extended for two more years, but he resigned on July 15 after only three games. Rick Mahorn took over his post as head coach and Cheryl Reeve as general manager. Both had worked as assistant coaches under Laimbeer in previous years. On April 28, Anne Donovan , who ended her current contract as head coach of the Seattle Storm the previous season , returned to the WNBA as assistant coach of the New York Liberty . On June 3, 2009, Minnesota Lynx head coach Don Zierden gave up his post to his assistant coach Jennifer Gillom to join the Washington Wizards organization . After the Sacramento Monarchs lost ten of their first 13 games, head coach Jenny Boucek was sacked on July 12th. General Manager John Whisenant took over her post .

Special occurrences

Houston Comets end game operations

The Houston Comets announced on December 1, 2008 that they would be ceasing to play. On December 8th a dispersal draft took place for the players of the Comets . First, Sancho Lyttle was chosen by the Atlanta Dream , the Washington Mystics chose Matee Ajavon and the Chicago Sky chose Mistie Williams . 6 of the 13 teams waived this draft and thus did not sign any player from the Comets.

Last season for Griffith, Leslie and Johnson

During the preseason, Lisa Leslie , Yolanda Griffith and Vickie Johnson announced that this season would be their last in the WNBA.

On February 5th, Lisa Leslie announced that this season would be her last. Leslie is considered one of the best players to ever play in the WNBA. Leslie was named an MVP in 2001 , 2004 and 2006 . She also won the WNBA championship with the Los Angeles Sparks in 2001 and 2002 , both times being named Finals MVP .

Yolanda Griffith announced on May 15 that she would retire after this season. On June 9, she ruptured an Achilles tendon against her former Seattle Storm team . Because of this injury, she had to end this season and her career early. Griffith won the championship with the Sacramento Monarchs in 2005 , and she was also named Finals MVP .

On May 31, Vickie Johnson announced that this would be her final season. Johnson was five times in the WNBA Finals (four times with the New York Liberty , one time with the San Antonio Silver Stars ), but she could never win the championship. Alongside Tamecka Dixon and Tina Thompson, Johnson is one of the only players to have participated in every WNBA season so far.

Advertising in the WNBA

On June 1, 2009, Donna Orender and David Stern announced that the Phoenix Mercury have entered into a multi-year sponsorship deal with LifeLock . For the first time there is a sponsor on a jersey and on the basketball field of a WNBA team. The logo replaces the place of the team logo, which is now located next to the supplier's logo and is roughly the same size. But this was not the only such deal in the WNBA. The Los Angeles Sparks also took this route and announced on June 5th that, starting this season, Farmers Insurance will be a sponsor on their jerseys and basketball court.

Regular season

mode

The 13 WNBA teams are divided into two conferences, with the Eastern Conference comprising seven teams and the Western Conference comprising six teams. In total, each team plays 34 season games during the regular season. Each team plays half of the games at home or away. Within the Western Conference, the teams play against each other four times. Each team also plays two more games against each team from the Eastern Conference. In the Eastern Conference the situation is somewhat more extensive due to the number of teams. Within the Eastern Conference, one team plays against two teams three times and against the remaining four teams a total of four times. Furthermore, each team from the Eastern Conference plays two games against all six teams from the Western Conference. However, the game mode in the Eastern Conference can lead to some teams being disadvantaged.

All-Star Game 2009

• Main article: All-Star Game 2009

The WNBA's 9th All-Star Game was played on July 25, 2009 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Montville , Connecticut . The league leadership awarded the game to the Connecticut Sun on February 3 , which had already hosted in 2005 . As in previous years, a selection of the best players from the Eastern Conference competed against a team from the Western Conference .

July 25, 2009	Summary	Western Conference	130-118	Eastern Conference	Mohegan Sun Arena at Uncasville , Montville, Connecticut Visitors: 9,518 Referees: # 42 Gulbeyan # 44 Grinter # 53 Gulbeyan
		Points per quarter: 25:27, 38:33, 36:33, 31:25
		Points: Cash (22) Rebounds: Pondexter (9) Assists: Bird (10) Steals: Anosike , Houston (3) Turnover: Pondexter (5)		Points: Fowles (17) Rebounds: Desouza (9) Assists: Jones (6) Steals: Perkins (4) Turnover: Christon (4)

Closing tables

Explanations:     = Playoff qualification,     = Conference winner

Eastern Conference
Pl	team	Sp	S.	N	%	GB	home	Away
1	Indiana Fever	34	22nd	12	64.7	-	14: 3	8: 9
2	Atlanta Dream	34	18th	16	52.9	4th	12: 5	6:11
3	Detroit Shock	34	18th	16	52.9	4th	11: 6	7:10
4th	Washington Mystics	34	16	18th	47.1	6th	11: 6	5:12
5	Chicago Sky	34	16	18th	47.1	6th	12: 5	4:13
6th	Connecticut Sun	34	16	18th	47.1	6th	12: 5	4:13
7th	New York Liberty	34	13	21st	38.2	9	8: 9	5:12

Western Conference
Pl	team	Sp	S.	N	%	GB	home	Away
1	Phoenix Mercury	34	23	11	67.6	-	12: 5	11: 6
2	Seattle Storm	34	20th	14th	58.8	3	13: 4	7:10
3	Los Angeles Sparks	34	18th	16	52.9	5	11: 6	7:10
4th	San Antonio Silver Stars	34	15th	19th	44.1	8th	10: 7	5:12
5	Minnesota Lynx	34	14th	20th	41.2	9	9: 8	5:12
6th	Sacramento Monarchs	34	12	22nd	35.3	11	7:10	5:12

Playoffs

mode

After the four teams from each conference have qualified, the playoffs, which are held in the knockout system, start. Each conference then plays its winner in the conference semifinals (German conference semi-finals) and in the conference final (German conference finals), who then takes part in the finals. The team that is highest on the seeding list always meets the lowest seeded team. The series within the conference are played in the best-of-three mode, which means that a team needs two wins to reach the next round. The final will be played in the best-of-five mode. The team with the better record always has the home advantage in all duels. For games that are tied after the regular playing time of 40 minutes, overtime follows. The quarters continue to last ten minutes and play continues until one team has scored more points than the opposing team at the end of an overtime.

Playoff tree

	Conference semifinals					Conference Finals					WNBA finals
	1	Indiana Fever	2
	4th	Washington Mystics	0
						1	Indiana Fever	2
	Eastern Conference
						3	Detroit Shock	1
	2	Atlanta Dream	0
	3	Detroit Shock	2
											E1	Indiana Fever	2
											W1	Phoenix Mercury	3
	1	Phoenix Mercury	2
	4th	San Antonio Silver Stars	1
						1	Phoenix Mercury	2
	Western Conference
						3	Los Angeles Sparks	1
	2	Seattle Storm	1
	3	Los Angeles Sparks	2

Conference semifinals (round 1)

Eastern Conference

Indiana Fever (1) - Washington Mystics (4)
date	Away team		Home team		Note
17th of September	Indiana	88	79	Washington
September 19th	Washington	74	81	Indiana	OT
Indiana wins the series 2-0.

The Indiana Fever ended the season relatively well before the Mystics, who had to tremble for a place in the playoffs until the last round. But bad luck injured both teams. Although the Fever lost most of their last ten games, the Mystics couldn't really convince either.

The first game was balanced over long distances, neither of the two teams could really pull away. The Mystics were able to successfully defend their four-point lead from the first quarter over the first three quarters. The Mystics acted very strongly in the collective, while the Fever relied on their rated stars Tamika Catchings (12 rebounds and 26 points) and Katie Douglas . The Fever started very aggressively in the last quarter and scored the first new points. The Mystics did not really recover from this shock and finally lost the first game 79:88.

The Fever led by an outstanding Tamika Catchings had a clearly better start in the second game. But the Mystics also found their way into the game during the first quarter. The Mystics were able to break away for the first time in the second quarter when Alana Beard scored seven points just before the end of the second quarter. In the third quarter, the Mystics were able to partially extend their lead to nine points, but the Fever kept struggling to get closer. After 30 minutes the Mystics were still leading with 55:49. In the last quarter, the Mystics remained unsuccessful for five minutes, so the Fever were able to make the game exciting again. Nonetheless, the Mystics pulled away again and took a four-point lead with a successful free throw from Beard 39 seconds before the end of the game. Nevertheless, after 40 minutes, due to a successful lay-up by Tammy Sutton-Brown and two free throws converted by catchings, it was 69:69. Also in the overtime it was a draw shortly before the end, but then the Mystics lost their luck and didn't hit a single throw in the decisive phase. So the Fever could finally prevail with 81:74. The most outstanding player was again Catchings who scored 24 points, 16 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 4 blocks.

Atlanta Dream (2) - Detroit Shock (3)
date	Away team		Home team		Note
16th September	Atlanta	89	94	Detroit
September 18	Detroit	94	79	Atlanta
Detroit wins the series 2-0.

The duel between the reigning champions from Detroit and the playoff newcomer from Atlanta looks balanced on paper. Both teams ended the season with the same record and the encounters during the season were mostly even. Still, many saw Detroit as favorites as they were the strongest team at the end of the season.

The first game in the series took place in Detroit. In the first quarter, the Dream got off to a dream start and were already 30:14 after the first ten minutes. But the Shock, led by Deanna Nolan, found themselves out during the game and took the lead in the third quarter when they scored 17 unanswered points. The game stayed very close throughout the last quarter. A minute before the end, the Dream were only one point behind, but misses by rookie Angel McCoughtry and Iziane Castro Marques (both scored over 20 points each) in the crucial final phase made everything impossible.

In the second game, the Dream had home advantage for the first time. The first half was extremely close between the two teams. The Dream went into the half-time break with a narrow 46:45 lead. In the third quarter the Shock managed to break away easily and went into the final quarter with a five-point lead. In the last quarter, the Shock soon expanded their lead to over ten points, thus securing victory and promotion to the next round early on. The best player in the series was Nolan, who with 25 and 22 points played a major role in the Shock's success.

Western Conference

Phoenix Mercury (1) - San Antonio Silver Stars (4)
date	Away team		Home team		Note
17th of September	Phoenix	91	92	San Antonio
September 19th	San Antonio	78	106	Phoenix
21st September	San Antonio	92	100	Phoenix
Phoenix wins the series 2-1.

The Phoenix Mercury were the strongest team throughout the season and deservedly ended the regular season with the best record. The season was different for last year's finalists from San Antonio who only made it into the playoffs with one round to go. Even if the Mercury can show the clearly better record, in the regular season each of the two teams could win two of the four direct encounters.

The first game was already a very close affair. The two league top scorers Diana Taurasi (Phoenix) and Becky Hammon (San Antonio) never really found their rhythm, so other players took the lead. Neither team was able to pull away in the entire game. In the last minute, Edwige Lawson-Wade hit a 3-point throw and gave the Silver Stars a four-point lead. The Mercury could no longer react accordingly and lost the first game just 91:92.

In the second game, the Phoenix dominated the entire game and were able to score more points than the challengers from San Antonio in all four quarters. Already at halftime the Mercury were leading with 64:42. Diana Taurasi , who didn't really find her rhythm in the first game, had already scored 20 points after just 15 minutes of play, underscoring the strong performance of her team. Subsequently, both the Mercury and the Silver Stars mostly used substitutes, so it was obvious after the first 20 minutes that there would be a third game. In the end, the Mercury won the second game with a clear 106-78.

After the clear defeat in the second game, the Silver Stars managed to keep up with the Mercury for a long time in the third game. This was mainly due to Hammon's good performance, who scored 29 points. But the most outstanding player in this game was again Taurasi, who scored 30 points and 6 assists. Both teams were equal most of the time, at halftime the Mercury led just under 43:42. After a good third quarter, the Silver Stars were able to go into the last quarter with a slight margin, where they were almost overrun by the Mercury. The Mercury scored 34 points in the final quarter and won the crucial game of the series 100-92.

Seattle Storm (2) - Los Angeles Sparks (3)
date	Away team		Home team		Note
16th September	Seattle	63	70	los Angeles
September 18	los Angeles	74	75	Seattle
September 20th	los Angeles	75	64	Seattle
Los Angeles wins the series 2-1.

This playoff duel already existed last season, which the Los Angeles Sparks won. The Storm was able to end the regular season as clearly the second strongest force in the West and with a clear gap to the Sparks. Nevertheless, there is no favorite in this duel, as the Sparks had a very bad start to the season due to Candace Parker's baby break and Lisa Leslie's injury . In the course of the season, the teams proved to be equal.

The Storm had to play the first game and subsequently the entire series without their star Lauren Jackson . Especially in the first quarter the Storm had problems without scoring their top scorer points. As a result, the Storm were already 6:22 behind after the first ten minutes. In the further course the Storm fought closer again, but they could not bring the Sparks into trouble, who finally won the first game with 70:63.

The second game in the series was hard to beat in terms of drama. The Storm fought a tough battle with the Sparks until the last second. The Sparks dominated the action for long stretches and led at halftime with a relatively clear 43:34 and already seemed to be the sure winner. But the Storm managed to catch up again with a strong third quarter of their two guards Sue Bird and Tanisha Wright and even went one point ahead into the last quarter. In the last quarter the lead changed several times between the two teams and with 53.5 seconds to go it was a draw after a successful lay-up by Swin Cash . Lisa Leslie and Tina Thompson gave the Sparks another 74:70 lead, but Bird brought the Storm down to one point with a 3-point throw. A bad pass from Noelle Quinn a few seconds before the end of the game used Storms Camille Little to take the 75-74 lead. A last desperate attack by the Sparks were able to prevent the Storm successfully and thus forced an all-important third game.

The all-important third game took place in Seattle, where the fans saw only one strong team from Los Angeles in the first half. The Sparks dominated the first 20 minutes at will and led at halftime with 41:25. Only in the fourth quarter, where the series had already been decided, did the Storm find their way into the game. In the end, the game clearly went to the Los Angeles Sparks with 75:64. The most outstanding players in this series were Candace Parker, who scored 16.7 points and 9 rebounds per game, and Swin Cash, who achieved an average of 21 points and 2.3 steals per game in the series.

Conference Finals (Round 2)

Eastern Conference

Indiana Fever (1) - Detroit Shock (3)
date	Away team		Home team		Note
September 23rd	Indiana	56	72	Detroit
25th of September	Detroit	75	79	Indiana
September 26th	Detroit	67	72	Indiana
Indiana wins the series 2-1.

The Detroit Shock fought in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Fever for the fourth finals in a row. The Fever were eliminated in the playoffs in the last three seasons against the Shock and after the first game it looked again as if the Fever would not be able to overcome the Shock hurdle. After a weak first quarter, the Shock clearly dominated the first game. Above all, the two star players of the Fever Katie Douglas and Tamika Catchings found no means against the good defense of the Shock. Outstanding player on the Shock side was again Deanna Nolan , who scored 22 points.

In the second game, the Fever had their backs to the wall and absolutely had to win the game in order not to miss the final again. The second game was balanced over the entire game due to a good performance of catchings. In the third quarter, Catchings was injured after a tough foul, which brought memories of the Eastern Conference Finals two years ago to life. Two years ago the Fever also met the Shock and in the decisive third game Catchings could not continue playing after a rough foul. After that, the Fever did not find its way into the game and the Shock made it into the finals. But this time Catchings was able to continue playing, who scored 22 points and 9 rebounds. After this foul, the fever got stronger and stronger and successfully defended the narrow lead to the end.

In the third game neither of the two teams could pull away. So until the end it was exciting to see who made it into the finals. 19 seconds before the end of the game, the two teams were separated by only one point. But after two successful free throws from Ebeny Hoffman , the Shock needed a 3-point throw to level the game. Nolan took responsibility and failed to balance the game. After a tactical foul of the Shock, Katie Douglas also hit both free throws and decided the game and the series in favor of Fever, which made it into the finals for the first time.

Western Conference

Phoenix Mercury (1) - Los Angeles Sparks (3)
date	Away team		Home team		Note
September 23rd	Phoenix	103	94	los Angeles
25th of September	los Angeles	87	76	Phoenix
September 26th	los Angeles	74	85	Phoenix
Phoenix wins the series 2-1.

The Western Conference Finals offered an interesting duel. The Mercury were known for their strong offensive this season, while the Sparks convinced with their good defense.

In the first game the Mercury made sure things were clear and rolled over the Sparks. The Sparks dominated the rebounds due to the economies of scale, but they still allowed 103 points. Candace Parker of the Sparks and Diana Taurasi each scored 28 points. After the first game, the Mercury had all the trumps in hand.

In the second game the Sparks were finally able to get the Sparks offensive under control and clearly dominated the Mercury in the first quarter with 31:17. The Mercury could not really reduce this gap and lost in front of their own audience in the end with 76:87. Parker scored an incredible 18 rebounds and 24 points.

In the decisive third game, the Mercury made things clear and only allowed 7 out of 19 points in the first quarter. The Sparks never really got into the game, as the Mercury had Parker under control for the first time in the series. The Sparks never managed to put the Mercury under pressure and were already well behind with 14 points at halftime. In the last two quarters, the Sparks were able to catch up slightly, but the game was clearly lost in the end with 74:85.

Finals (round 3)

Phoenix Mercury (W1) - Indiana Fever (E1)
date	Away team		Home team		Note
September 29th	Indiana	116	120	Phoenix	OT
October 1	Indiana	93	84	Phoenix
4th of October	Phoenix	85	86	Indiana
October 7th	Indiana	77	90	Phoenix
9th October	Indiana	86	94	Phoenix
Phoenix wins the series 3-2. Diana Taurasi has been named Finals MVP.

In the finals, the Phoenix Mercury and Indiana Fever, the best team from their conference, met each other. Due to the better final balance in the regular season, the Mercury secured the home advantage. With the Mercury and the Fever, two different worlds collided. The Mercury were led by Diana Taurasi , who finished the regular season with the best points average, while the Fever was led by Tamika Catchings , the current season's best defenders.

Both teams were even in most games, so the series went over the entire distance of five games. After the Fever won the second away game and the first home game, they had the chance to win the series and the championship for the first time in front of their own audience on October 7th. The Mercury, however, fought their way back into the series, forcing a fifth game. In the all-important game, no team could really pull away. A minute before the end, the two teams separated only two points. The Mercury were able to defend their narrow lead and won the championship for the second time since 2007 . Diana Taurasi was named finals MVP, averaging 20.4 points per game in the finals.

Game 1

September 29th	Summary	Indiana Fever 116, Phoenix Mercury 120			US Airways Center , Phoenix Visitors: 11,617 Referees: # 8 Humphrey # 22 Courteau # 45 wall
		Points per quarter: 31-31, 22-25, 33-24, 19-25. Overtime / s: 11-15
		Points: Douglas 30, Hoffman 27 Rebounds: Hoffman 8 Assists: January 7 Blocks: Catchings 2		Points: Pondexter , Taylor 23, Taurasi 22 Rebounds: Taurasi 9 Assists: Taurasi 6 Blocks: Smith , Bonner 2

Game 2

October 1	Summary	Indiana Fever 93 , Phoenix Mercury 84			US Airways Center , Phoenix Visitors: 16,758 Referees: # 39 Price # 4 Blue # 42 Gulbeyan
		Points per quarter: 31-24, 17-21, 29-18, 16-21
		Points: Catchings 19 Rebounds: Catchings 9 Assists: Catchings 11 Blocks: Davenport 3		Points: Taurasi 20 rebounds: Taurasi 7 assists: Johnson 6 blocks: Taurasi , Bonn 4

Game 3

October 3	Summary	Phoenix Mercury 85, Indiana Fever 86			Conseco Fieldhouse , Indianapolis Visitors: 18,165 Referees: # 22 Courteau # 7 Stevens # 55 Brewton
		Points per quarter: 31-24, 17-21, 29-18, 16-21
		Points: Pondexter 23 rebounds: Smith 10 assists: Pondexter 8 turnovers: Johnson 3		Points: Hoffman 18 rebounds: Catchings 12 Assists: Catchings , Douglas 7 Steals: Catchings 4

Game 4

5th October	Summary	Phoenix Mercury 90 , Indiana Fever 77			Conseco Fieldhouse , Indianapolis Visitors: 18,165 Referees: # 9 Brooks-Clauser # 39 Price # 18 Walker
		Points per quarter: 33-22, 16-25, 23-18, 18-12
		Points: Pondexter 22 rebounds: Willingham 8 assists: Pondexter 7 turnovers: Taurasi 3		Points: Catchings 24 Rebounds: Catchings 12 Assists: Catchings , Douglas 4 Steals: Catchings 3

Game 5

October 7th	Summary	Indiana Fever 86, Phoenix Mercury 94			US Airways Center , Phoenix Visitors: 17,313 Referees: # 39 Price # 4 Blue # 55 Brewton
		Points per quarter: 23-16, 19-35, 23-19, 21-24
		Points: Sutton-Brown 22 rebounds: Catchings 9 Assists: Douglas 9 Steals: Catchings 5		Points: Taurasi 26, Pondexter 24 rebounds: Smith 8 assists: Taylor 5 blocks: Taurasi , Bonner 3

WNBA championship team

(Participation in at least one playoff game)

WNBA Champion Phoenix Mercury

Guards: Diana Taurasi (Finals MVP) , Temeka Johnson , DeWanna Bonner , Ketia Swanier , Kelly Mazzante Forwards: Cappie Pondexter , Le'coe Willingham , Penny Taylor Forward Centers: Nicole Ohlde , Brooke Smith Center: Tangela Smith Head Coach: Corey Gaines   General Manager: Ann Meyers-Drysdale

WNBA awards and trophies awarded

Award	Player	team	comment
WNBA Finals MVP Award	Diana Taurasi	Phoenix Mercury	-
WNBA Most Valuable Player Award	Diana Taurasi	Phoenix Mercury	323 of 966 votes
WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award	Tamika catchings	Indiana Fever	34 out of 40 votes
WNBA Most Improved Player Award	Crystal Langhorne	Washington Mystics	19 out of 40 votes
WNBA Peak Performer (points)	Diana Taurasi	Phoenix Mercury	20.4 points per game
WNBA Peak Performer (Rebounds)	Candace Parker	Los Angeles Sparks	9.8 rebounds per game
WNBA Peak Performer (Assists)	Sue Bird	Seattle Storm	5.8 assists per game
WNBA Rookie of the Year Award	Angel McCoughtry	Atlanta Dream	30 out of 41 votes
WNBA Sixth Woman of the Year Award	DeWanna Bonner	Phoenix Mercury	20 out of 38 votes
Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award	Kara Lawson	Sacramento Monarchs	8 out of 38 votes
WNBA Coach of the Year Award	Marynell Meadors	Atlanta Dream	30 out of 41 votes

All-WNBA teams

All-WNBA First Team
Guards:	Becky Hammon - Cappie Pondexter
Forwards:	Diana Taurasi - Tamika Catchings
Center:	Lauren Jackson

All-WNBA Second Team
Guards:	Katie Douglas - Deanna Nolan
Forwards:	Candace Parker - Sophia Young
Center:	Lisa Leslie

All-rookie team

All-rookie team

Angel McCoughtry - DeWanna Bonner - Shavonte Zellous (MIN) Renee Montgomery - Marissa Coleman

All-Defensive Team

All-Defensive First Team
Guards:	Tanisha Wright - Tully Bevilaqua
Forwards:	Tamika Catchings - Lauren Jackson
Center:	(MIN) Nicky Anosike

All-Defensive Second Team
Guards:	Candace Parker - Alana Beard - Deanna Nolan
Forwards:	Sancho Lyttle - Angel McCoughtry
Center:	Lisa Leslie

Web links

• Final Standings 2009 on WNBA.com ( Memento from December 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
• WNBA Award Winners 2009 WNBA.com (Engl.)
• WNBA Playoffs 2009 WNBA.com (Engl.)
• Statistics for the WNBA season 2009 on basketball-reference.com (engl.)
• Key dates in the WNBA history (Engl.)