Elena Baranova
Baranova in 2012
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| Born |
28 January 1972 (age 45) Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan |
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| Nationality | Russian | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 182 lb (83 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1997–2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Forward | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 28 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–1999 | Utah Starzz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001 | Miami Sol | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2005 | New York Liberty | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at WNBA.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medals
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Elena Viktorovna Baranova (Russian: Елена Викторовна Баранова; born 28 January 1972) is a retired Russian professional basketball player. She is a former Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) player, where she became the first player from Europe in 1997 WNBA inaugural season, the first All-Star from Russia in 2001 and played for the New York Liberty until the 2005 season.
Baranova was born in the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic. She started playing professional basketball at age 16, was included to the Soviet national team at the age of 17, won European Championship at the age of 19 in 1991, and became the Olympic champion at the age of 20 in 1992.
Baranova was assigned to the Utah Starzz on 22 January 1997. She was later traded with Utah's second-round pick in the 2000 WNBA Draft to the Miami Sol in exchange for Kate Starbird and the 8th pick in the 2000 WNBA Draft (15 December 1999). She was taken in the 2003 WNBA Dispersal draft by the New York Liberty.
In January 1997, Baranova was selected among world's 16 top players to play in the inaugural WNBA season and in the first and inaugural WNBA championship. So the league was created and she became the first player from Russia and even from Europe to play in the World's Top Women's Basketball League.
Also known as 'Russian Queen' and 'SuperNova', Elena shined in 7 WNBA seasons during 1997–2005: 3 for Utah Starzz, 1 for Miami Sol and 3 for New York Liberty. She took part in 220 games where she scored 2,215 points, leading her teams to the Conference Semifinals (2001, 2005) and Conference Final (2004) and proved her name and reputation as one of the best in Pro Basketball Women.
In her first WNBA season she led the League in blocked shots (2,25 blocks per game) and set the League's single-game record for three-point field goals with 7 of 9 recorded 22 July 1997 at Madison Square Garden, New York. In 2001 WNBA season she got 'The Bud Light Shooting Champion' trophy as the League's top free-throw shooter (with 93,1%). The same 2001 season she was selected to play in WNBA All-Star Game in Orlando to become the only player from Russia to represent her country at the All-Star Weekend, where she set WNBA All-Star Game record for blocked shots (4).
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