Kara Lawson

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Kara Lawson bigraphy, stories - American professional women's basketball player

Kara Lawson : biography

February 14, 1981 –

Kara Marie Lawson (born February 14, 1981) is an American professional women’s basketball player in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and a women’s basketball television analyst for ESPN. Lawson primarily plays as a shooting guard. She won a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. Lawson signed a three-year contract extension with the Connecticut Sun on August 19, 2012.

High school

Lawson attended Sidwell Friends School her freshman year, then went to West Springfield High School, where she played on the girls’ basketball and soccer teams. Lawson was named a WBCA All-American. She participated in the 1999 WBCA High School All-America Game, where she scored twenty points, and earned MVP honors.

Notes

WNBA career

On April 24, 2003, Lawson was selected by the Detroit Shock in the first round (fifth overall) during the annual WNBA Draft. But five days later, the Shock traded Lawson to the Sacramento Monarchs in exchange for Kedra Holland-Corn and a 2004 second-round draft pick. Two years later, Lawson would be a key member of the Monarchs 2005 championship team.

In recent years, Lawson has been involved in sports broadcasting during the WNBA off-season, doing commentaries for men’s and women’s college basketball games and Sacramento Kings games.

Lawson was a free agent when the Sacramento Monarchs folded prior to the 2010 WNBA season, but later signed a three-year contract with the Connecticut Sun.

USA Basketball

On July 10, 2008, Lawson was selected to represent the United States with the USA women’s national basketball team at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. She helped the United States capture the gold medal, and led the team in points (15) during the gold medal game against Australia, going a perfect 5-5 from the field and 4-4 from the free throw line.

Lawson was invited to the USA Basketball Women’s National Team training camp in the fall of 2009. The team selected to play for the 2010 FIBA World Championship and the 2012 Olympics is usually chosen from these participants. At the conclusion of the training camp, the team will travel to Ekaterinburg, Russia, where they compete in the 2009 UMMC Ekaterinburg International Invitational.

Lawson was one of 21 finalists for the U.S. Women’s Olympic Basketball Team Roster. The 20 professional women’s basketball payers, plus one collegiate player (Brittney Griner), were selected by the USA Basketball Women’s National Team Player Selection Committee to compete for the final roster which will represent the USA at the 2012 Olympics in London.

College

Lawson attended the University of Tennessee (UT) and played for the Lady Vols basketball team, coached by Pat Summitt. She enrolled in UT’s College of Business, and graduated in 2003 with a degree in Finance. Lawson received the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award from the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association as the best senior player under 5 ft 8 in (1.7 m).

ESPN

Lawson serves as an analyst for ESPN covering college basketball and the NBA. On January 12, 2007, she was the first woman to work as a nationwide broadcast analyst for an NBA game, when the New Orleans Hornets took on the Washington Wizards in Oklahoma.