Cynthia Cooper-Dyke facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Cynthia Cooper

Cooper-Dyke in 2011
Personal information
Born	(1963-04-14) April 14, 1963 (age 62) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
High school	Locke (Los Angeles, California)
Listed height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Listed weight	150 lb (68 kg)
Career information
College	USC (1982–1986)
Pro career	1986–2003
Coaching career	2001–2022
Career history
As player:
1986–1987	Bétera - Valencian Region / Spain
1987–1994	Basket Parma
1994–1996	SC Alcamo
1997–2000, 2003	Houston Comets
As coach:
2001–2002	Phoenix Mercury
2005–2010	Prairie View A&M
2010–2012	UNC Wilmington
2012–2013	Texas Southern
2013–2017	USC
2019–2022	Texas Southern
Career highlights and awards
As player: 4× WNBA champion (1997–2000) 4× WNBA Finals MVP (1997–2000) 2× WNBA MVP (1997, 1998) 3× WNBA All-Star (1999, 2000, 2003) 4× All-WNBA First Team (1997–2000) 3× WNBA scoring champion (1997–1999) WNBA 10th Anniversary Team (2006) WNBA 15th Anniversary Team (2011) WNBA 20th Anniversary Team (2016) WNBA 25th Anniversary Team (2021) 2× NCAA champion (1983, 1984) No. 14 retired by Houston Comets No. 44 retired by USC Trojans As coach: CAA Coach of the Year (2011)
Career WNBA statistics
Points	2,601 (21.0 ppg)
Rebounds	403 (3.3 rpg)
Assists	602 (4.9 apg)
Medals Women's basketball Representing the  United States Olympic Games Gold 1988 Seoul Team competition Bronze 1992 Barcelona Team competition Pan American Games Gold 1987 Indianapolis Team competition FIBA World Championship Gold 1986 Moscow Team competition Gold 1990 Malaysia Team competition Jones Cup Silver 1981 Taipei Team competition Assistant coach for  United States FIBA Under-19 World Championship Gold 2007 Bratislava Team competition

Cynthia Lynne Cooper-Dyke (born April 14, 1963) is an American basketball coach and former player. She won many championships in college, at the Olympics, and in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Many people think she is one of the greatest female basketball players ever.

When the WNBA started, she played for the Houston Comets from 1997 to 2000. She was named the Most Valuable Player of the WNBA Finals for four years in a row.

After playing, Cooper-Dyke coached the Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA from 2001 to 2002. She also coached college teams like UNC Wilmington, Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern, and USC between 2005 and 2022.

Cooper-Dyke was honored in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009. She was also inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. She is part of every WNBA Anniversary Team, including the 10th, 15th, 20th, and 25th. In 2011, fans voted her as one of the top 15 players in WNBA history.

Early Life and Basketball Beginnings

High School Sports

Cynthia Cooper went to Locke High School in Los Angeles. She was great at both track and field and basketball. She led her basketball team to win the California State Championship. In one game, she scored an amazing 44 points! She was named the Los Angeles Player of the Year.

College Basketball Career

Cooper played guard for the University of Southern California (USC) from 1982 to 1986. She helped her team reach the NCAA Final Four three times. They won back-to-back NCAA tournament titles in 1983 and 1984.

She finished her college career by playing in the 1986 NCAA tournament championship game. Cooper is one of USC's top scorers, ranking eighth with 1,559 points. She is also fifth in assists (381) and third in steals (256). While she played, USC had an impressive record of 114 wins and only 15 losses. She later earned her bachelor's degree from Prairie View A&M University in 2005.

Professional Playing Career

Playing for Team USA

Cynthia Cooper played for the United States national team many times. In 1981, while still in high school, she helped the US team win a silver medal at the William Jones Cup in Taiwan.

She also played in the first-ever Goodwill Games in Moscow in 1986. The US team, coached by Kay Yow, won the gold medal by beating the Soviet Union. The Soviet team had a very strong record, but the US team won 83–60.

A month later, Cooper played for the US at the 1986 World Championship, also in Moscow. The US team was even stronger this time. They won the gold medal again, beating the Soviet team 108–88 in the final game.

Cooper was also a member of the US Olympic Women's Basketball Team. She won a gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and a bronze medal at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. She also won a gold medal at the 1987 Pan American Games in Indianapolis.

Playing Overseas

Before joining the WNBA, Cooper played basketball in Europe for almost ten years. She played for teams in Spain and Italy:

• Samoa Bétera (Spain) from 1986–1987
• Parma (Italy) from 1987–1994
• Alcamo (Italy) from 1994–1996

While playing in Spain, she was the top scorer in the league, averaging 36.7 points per game. In Italy, she was the league's leading scorer eight times and finished second in the other two years. In 1987, she was named the MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the European All-Star team.

WNBA Success with Houston Comets

At 34 years old, Cooper joined the Houston Comets when the WNBA started in 1997. She made history by scoring the most points on the very first day of the WNBA. On June 21, 1997, she scored 25 points in the Comets' 76–56 win over the Cleveland Rockers. She was the only player that day to score over 20 points.

Cooper led the WNBA in scoring for three years in a row. She also led the Houston Comets to win four WNBA Championships in a row (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000). She was named the WNBA's MVP in 1997 and 1998. She also won the Most Valuable Player award in each of those four WNBA Finals.

During the Comets' championship years, she was a key player alongside Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson. When she first retired in 2000, Cooper was the first WNBA player to reach 500, 1,000, 2,000, and 2,500 career points. She scored 30 or more points in 16 of her 120 games. She also had a streak of 92 games where she scored double-digit points from 1997 to 2000.

Cooper returned to play for the Comets in the 2003 season, playing in 4 games. On May 22, 2003, at 40 years old, she became the oldest player at that time to play in a WNBA game. Her final WNBA game was on June 1, 2003.

After her playing career, she worked as a TV analyst for the Houston Rockets of the NBA. She was also named one of the top 15 players in the WNBA in 2011 and one of the WNBA Top 20@20 in 2016.

WNBA Career Statistics

†	Denotes seasons in which Cooper won a WNBA championship
	WNBA record

Regular Season Stats

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
1997†	Houston	28	28	35.1	.470	.414	.864	4.0	4.7	2.1	0.2	3.89	22.2°
1998†	Houston	30	30	35.0	.446	.400	.854	3.7	4.4	1.6	0.4	3.17	22.7°
1999†	Houston	31	31	35.5	.463	.335	.891	2.8	5.2	1.4	0.4	3.35	22.1°
2000†	Houston	31	31	35.0	.459	.355	.875	2.7	5.0	1.3	0.2	3.19	17.7
2003	Houston	4	4	36.0	.421	.389	.893	2.5	5.5	1.0	0.3	3.50	16.0
Career	5 years, 1 team	124	124	35.2	.459	.377	.871	3.2	4.9	1.6	0.3	3.40	21.0

Playoff Stats

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TO	PPG
1997†	Houston	2	2	38.5	.533	.400	.741	4.5	4.5	1.5	0.5	3.50	28.0°
1998†	Houston	5	5	39.6°	.452	.250	.844	3.2	4.4	1.8	1.0	3.00	25.8°
1999†	Houston	6	6	36.7	.388	.324	.865	4.3	6.8	1.5	1.0	3.33	20.3
2000†	Houston	6	6	38.0	.378	.344	.897	2.5	3.7	1.5	0.2	3.00	22.8°
Career	4 years, 1 team	19	19	38.1	.416	.317	.847	3.5	4.9	1.6	0.7	3.16	23.3

Coaching Career Highlights

Coaching at Prairie View A&M

In May 2005, Cooper-Dyke became the head coach for the women's basketball team at Prairie View A&M University. In her second season (2006–07), she led the team to win their first SWAC tournament title. They also made their first appearance in the NCAA tournament. Cooper-Dyke was named SWAC Coach of the Year in 2007. She coached at Prairie View for five seasons, with a total record of 86 wins and 72 losses.

Coaching at UNC Wilmington

On May 10, 2010, Cooper-Dyke became the head coach for the UNC Wilmington Seahawks women's basketball team. In her first season, UNCW had a great record of 24 wins and 9 losses. They also played in the 2011 Women's National Invitation Tournament. Cooper-Dyke was named the 2011 Colonial Athletic Association Coach of the Year.

Coaching at Texas Southern (First Time)

In April 2012, Cooper-Dyke left UNCW to become the head coach at Texas Southern. The Texas Southern team had a record of 20 wins and 12 losses in the 2012–13 season. They also played in the 2013 Women's National Invitation Tournament.

Coaching at USC

On April 11, 2013, Cooper-Dyke returned to USC as head coach. In her first season, she led USC to a 22–13 record. They also made it to the NCAA first round. She coached at USC until March 2017, with an overall record of 70 wins and 56 losses.

Coaching at Texas Southern (Second Time)

In April 2019, she returned to coach at Texas Southern for a second time. In her first season back, the team had a 20–10 record. Cooper-Dyke retired from coaching on March 17, 2022. She finished her two coaching periods at Texas Southern with a total record of 56 wins and 47 losses.

Basketball Hall of Fame Honors

Cynthia Cooper was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009. She was also announced as a member of the 2010 class for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. She was the first WNBA player to be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Her formal induction ceremony was on August 13, 2010.

About Cynthia Cooper-Dyke's Life

Cynthia Cooper-Dyke was born in Chicago, Illinois. She grew up in South Central Los Angeles, California. Her parents are Mary and Kenny Cooper. Her father left the family when she was six, and her mother raised eight children.

She attended the University of Southern California and played on their women's basketball team for four years. She won NCAA championships in 1983 and 1984 with her teammate Cheryl Miller. After college, she played basketball in Spain and Italy for ten years. While living abroad, she learned to speak Italian very well.

In 2000, she wrote her autobiography called She Got Game: My Personal Odyssey. The book talks about her childhood, her basketball career, and her mother's fight with breast cancer.

Cynthia Cooper-Dyke married Anthony Stewart on July 30, 1993. Later, she married Brian Dyke on April 28, 2001. She is a mother to twins, a son named Brian Jr., and a daughter named Cyan, who were born on June 15, 2002.

Awards and Achievements

• 2x Ronchetti Cup (1990, 1993)
• 2× WNBA MVP (1997, 1998)
• 3× WNBA All-Star (1999, 2000, 2003)
• 4× WNBA Champion (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000)
• 4× WNBA Finals MVP (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000)
• WNBA Hall of Fame (2009)
• Women's Basketball Hall of Fame (2009)
• Basketball Hall of Fame (2010)
• CAA Coach of the Year (2010)
• WBCBL Professional Basketball Trailblazer Award (2015)

See also

In Spanish: Cynthia Cooper para niños