Cynthia Cooper (basketball)

Cynthia Cooper-Dyke

Cooper-Dyke in 2011.
Personal information
Born	(1963-04-14) April 14, 1963 (age 54) Chicago, Illinois
Nationality	American
Listed height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Listed weight	150 lb (68 kg)
Career information
High school	Locke (Los Angeles, California)
College	USC (1982–1986)
Playing career	1986–2003
Position	Point guard / Shooting guard
Number	14
Coaching career	2001–present
Career history
As player:
1986–1987	UB-Barca
1987–1992	CREFF Madrid
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
Career highlights and awards
As player: 2× WNBA MVP (1997, 1998) 3× WNBA All-Star (1999, 2000, 2003) 4× WNBA champion (1997–2000) 4× All-WNBA First Team (1997–2000) 4× WNBA Finals MVP (1997–2000) 3× WNBA scoring champion (1997–1999) WNBA's Top 15 Players of All Time (2011) WNBA Top 20@20 (2016) As coach: CAA Coach of the Year (2010)
Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Women's Basketball Hall of Fame
Medals Women’s basketball Representing the  United States Olympic Games 1988 Seoul Team competition 1992 Barcelona Team competition Pan American Games 1987 Indianapolis Team competition FIBA World Championship 1986 Moscow Team competition 1990 Malaysia Team competition Jones Cup 1981 Taipei Team competition Assistant Coach for  United States FIBA Under-19 World Championship 2007 Bratislava Team competition

As player:

As coach:

Cynthia Lynne Cooper-Dyke (born April 14, 1963) is an American basketball coach and former player who has won championships in college, in the Olympics, and in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is considered by many as one of the greatest women's basketball players ever. In 2011, she was voted by fans as one of the Top 15 players in WNBA history. Upon the league's formation, she played for the Houston Comets from 1997–2000, being named the Most Valuable Player of the WNBA Finals in all four seasons, and returned to play again in 2003. On April 11, 2013 she was introduced as the head coach for the University of Southern California women's basketball team. In her first season as head coach at USC, she led the Women of Troy to their first Pac-12 conference championship and consequently, their first NCAA tournament bid since 2006. After four seasons, she resigned from USC following the 2016–17 season.

She attended Locke High School before enrolling at the University of Southern California. Cooper participated athletically in both track and field as well as basketball. She led her team to the California State Championship (4A) scoring an average of 31 points per game, and scoring 44 points in one game. Cooper was named the Los Angeles Player of the Year.

Cooper was a four-year letter winner at guard for USC from 1982–1986. She led the Women of Troy to NCAA appearances in all four years, Final Four appearances in three of her four years, and back-to-back NCAA tournament titles in 1983 and 1984. After the 1984 Championship, she briefly left school, but was persuaded to return. She completed four years with USC, although she did not graduate. Cooper closed out her collegiate career with an appearance in the 1986 NCAA tournament championship game and a spot on the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team. Cooper ranks eighth on USC’s all-time scoring list with 1,559 points, fifth in assists (381) and third in steals (256). While Cooper was at USC, the Women of Troy compiled a record of 114–15.