Goodbye to the GOAT: The best stories of Diana Taurasi's legendary career

How do you say goodbye to the GOAT?

Diana Taurasi has retired from pro basketball after 20 seasons in the WNBA, three league championships and more than 10,000 points.

What's left to say about the former WNBA MVP, six-time Olympic gold medalist, five-time league scoring champion and three-time NCAA champion? Plenty. ESPN canvassed Taurasi's friends, teammates, family members and former coaches throughout the past year for untold tales -- the ones they could share, at least.

"There's a lot of crazy stories. They are either vault-ish or heartwarming, there's not much in between," said Morgan Valley, Taurasi's former UConn Huskies teammate and roommate. "She's one of a kind."

Unsurprisingly, many of the behind-the-scenes stories focused on Taurasi's ultra-competitive personality and sarcastic wit. But the anecdotes shed light on all sides of Taurasi, from the fierce leader to the supportive teammate, and from the nurturing mother to the generous mentor.

To paraphrase a line from UConn coach Geno Auriemma, "we had Diana" -- and you don't forget a legend like that. Here's a look at the Phoenix Mercury star from those who know her best. -- Reporting from Michael Voepel, Alexa Philippou and Josh Weinfuss

Editor's note: Anecdotes have been edited for brevity and clarity.

First impressions

Sue Bird, close friend, longtime USA Basketball teammate: "The minute you meet Diana, there is an impact. You feel the charisma. The thing that people get a little twisted is that she doesn't have warmth, because maybe they watch her play and they see a competitor, they see somebody spit on the floor, or they see somebody punch something. (But) she's really so very warm and so very generous.

"The first time I met her was on her UConn recruiting trip. Obviously, this was a big recruit, so the coaches were all nervous. She was at Coach Auriemma's house, and a couple of us went to pick her up and take her back to campus for her to start her visit.

"I have a '93 Toyota Camry. She gets in and she's like, 'Oh, yo, I got a CD. Let me put this on.'

"We're being like, 'Hey, whatever you want to do,' because this is a recruit. Right away, she's just super comfortable. It's a lot of West Coast rap, which is not bad -- that's like a representation of who she is. It was a good little mix and we were all vibing to it. By the end of the car ride, she's like, 'You like it? Keep the CD.'

"She has a way of making people feel connected to her, but also like the best version of themselves. ... She just makes you feel like a thousand bucks."

Auriemma, Taurasi's coach at UConn and with USA Basketball: "[I first met] Diana in Indianapolis at the Nike All-American Camp. They would take the top 80 [high school] players in the country, [rising] juniors and seniors, and make eight teams. It was the greatest thing ever invented, because you would watch the absolute best players in America playing against each other.

"So we're watching, and obviously I know who she is and all that. ... So their game is over, and I'm sitting there in the bleachers, and she comes walking over with another girl. And I'm thinking, this is not going to look good, and she didn't give a s---. There's 400 coaches there, and the best player in the country just walked over to Coach Auriemma, and she starts talking to me, which is totally illegal [an NCAA recruiting violation], right? You're not supposed to have any contact with the players.

"But what she said was funny. She goes, 'Hey, can I have your autograph?' And I said, 'Oh, really?' She goes, 'Yeah. Don't get all excited. It's not for me. I don't give a s---. It's for a friend of mine.'"

Jessika Taurasi-Skillern, Diana's sister: "I think people see her as a villain. If people have never met her and all they see is Dee on the TV -- yelling and complaining to the refs and stuff -- that's just so not how she is. I've never heard her complain about anything in my life other than on the basketball court.

"Obviously, the competitiveness is on and off the court, but she's just got the biggest heart and she's just such a funny person. I don't think people know she is not an a--hole."

The player

Sophie Cunningham, Phoenix Mercury teammate: "There's a lot of times in games when, if I was going against her, I'd hate her. I would absolutely hate Dee. "She's just stubborn. She's an a--hole. The way she plays is physical. She talks s--- like no other.

"But then (later), she's like, 'That was kind of fun, wasn't it?'"

Tanisha Wright, former WNBA player: "I used to battle with Dee. She loves to joke and laugh with you on court, but I also understood all that was bulls---, just trying to get under your skin, so she can come kill you. So I used to always just keep a stoic face against her. You laugh and joke afterward, but during the game, like, 'No, I'm not giving you any edge. No, I'm not your friend right now. I know you're trying to rip me apart.'

"You have to constantly be ready, you have to be on your toes. Because you know every night she's going to bring it. If I didn't bring it, I was going to be embarrassed. So I appreciate Dee, because she always brought the best out of me playing against her."

Sandy Brondello, Taurasi's coach in Phoenix and overseas: "Everyone talks about our 2018 semifinal series versus the Seattle Storm. There was one game, we were down by a lot, and we ran the same play for Diana two times in a row with six seconds left, and they both worked. But that's what Diana does. Even Sue Bird knew what was coming, but they still couldn't stop her. When she's locked in, when she's in the zone, it's fun to watch."

Auriemma, former USA Basketball coach: "We were playing Czechoslovakia in Prague, trying to win a World Championship to qualify for the Olympics. It was a really tight game, because the Czechs, they've been playing together for 10 years. It's on national television, the president of the country's there. It's crazy. And we couldn't shake them. We pressed them, we get a 10-point lead. Then it becomes eight, then it becomes five. I put up two fingers, and I go, 'Two.' That's our two-three zone.

"Now, here's the problem. When you're coaching the Olympic team, guys are playing out of position. So somebody like Tina Charles is used to playing in the middle, (but) she's on the wing. So now we're running back and she runs to her normal position, toward the middle of the floor. Only problem is, Sylvia (Fowles) is there. So the Czech kids come down, they fire the ball into the corner, and before we get out there, the kid makes a 3. I think they cut (the lead) to three.

This never gets old. pic.twitter.com/861ejQQS50

"We inbound the ball, throw it to Dee. She dribbles across halfcourt, takes like three dribbles and buries a 30-foot 3, runs all the way across the court so she can run back on defense in front of our bench -- so that everybody could hear as she's 5 feet away from me -- and she goes, 'Get out of this f---ing zone.'

"And I yelled, 'Five' -- that's our man-to-man (defense) -- and 'Who the hell said go zone?' I pretended like somebody else did."

Briann January, former Phoenix Mercury teammate, WNBA player: "I know she probably swears that because she's a vegan she's been able to (play) this long, but she does put in the work, and she puts in the time. When I was in Phoenix, I was coaching at Arizona State, but I was also coming in and getting workouts in prior to the season.

"Watching her level of focus when she was on the court, and just the repetition, down to the footwork to her shot. It was consistent, at game speed, every time. It was just very intentional, focused work, and she put in the time and the effort and the energy whenever she stepped on the floor. That's how you play at that level for so long, it doesn't happen by accident. You have to put in the time."

The teammate, leader and mentor

Tina Charles, fellow UConn grad and former Olympic teammate: "We were playing for Galatasaray in Istanbul in the winter of 2012. She and I were working out together, and then she said that I had to make 10 free throws in a row. That was after my second year [in the WNBA], and I couldn't do it.

"But she stayed in the gym with me for maybe two hours until I made them. She said to me, "A professional player should be able to make 10 straight free throws."

(Editor's note: Later that year, in a season with the Connecticut Sun, Charles improved her free throw percentage from 68.7 in 2011 to 80.2 in 2012 and was the WNBA's MVP.)

Paige Bueckers, fellow UConn All-American: "Coach [Auriemma] told me about how Dee had this bond with her teammates, that it was always respect and it was always love. And out of that, you can hold people accountable and get on people, and as long as you have that type of relationship with them, they'll be able to take it the right way. And even if they don't, you can have uncomfortable conversations.

"That's the biggest thing that I've learned: Holding other people accountable and getting on people and demanding greatness out of people isn't a bad thing. You're not calling people out, you're calling people up. Take it as a compliment, and not, 'Oh, Paige is on me, I'm doing bad.' I expect greatness out of you, and I expect you to be better.

"I can reach out to her about anything. ... For her to have that open line of communication, where she's never too big for anybody -- she cares super deeply about everybody around her."

Sabrina Ionescu, Olympic teammate, who as senior at Oregon led the Ducks to an upset over Taurasi and the U.S. national team in a November 2019 exhibition: "She was someone I looked up to growing up, so I was able to watch her when I was younger, wanting to play in the WNBA and kind of like my idol. When we played the national team, she came in and spoke to our team. I think it was like an hour(-long) Q&A that she had with our team, took time out of her day to be able to come and do that ...

"It meant a lot. So then to share the floor with her, she just gave me a hug, like a pat on the back when we were running up the court, and that was kind of all I needed. I didn't even know she knew who I was."

Bueckers: "She came to Minneapolis to the 2022 Final Four and saw us after the semis when we won to go to the national championship. She was super encouraging. And she's super loving. She tells me all the time that she loves me, she'll do anything for me, she always has my back.

"[At WNBA All-Star weekend] they were asking questions to the players, quick hitters. And one was, 'If you had to pick one college player to join your pick-up team, who would you pick?' She picked [USC star] JuJu Watkins.

"I saw the video and I was like, 'All right, bro, I see what you're doing. You picked JuJu over me. What's up with that? You told me you had my back, it was me over everybody.'

"And she was like, 'Yeah, dog, I just did that to motivate you. It's all motivation.'"

The competitor

Rebekkah Brunson, former WNBA player: "I just remember her being a pain in the butt, she was so good. I played against her when she was at UConn and I was at Georgetown. You hate to play against her, but you know if she's on your team, you're going to do something special. She was great in college, but when she came to the pros, she could spread her wings even more and be an a--hole a little bit. What great competitor isn't? You have to have an edge."

Valley: "When you get her mad or annoyed or angry, she is cutthroat. When I coached Kelsey Plum, it was the same thing. It was like, "Whoa. When you get upset ... everything's off, like there are no safe spaces." Like your mom's ugly, your kid's ugly. It wouldn't matter. When she takes her gloves off, it was a whole other story.

Bird: "We lost to Brazil [75-68] in 2006 in the [FIBA World Cup] semis. We lost to Russia, so that even had a little bit more of just a s---ty feeling, because it was all of our (offeason) teammates or people we were playing against over there. That sucked.

"We're all depressed. USA basketball, you don't lose a major competition, and this was really the first time that Dee and I were starting. The team is ours as guards -- and we lose. We were both taking that really hard. The two of us just went back to my room. We ordered room service, we got some drinks.

"And just like, you know what you do when you lose -- you just talk a little bit of s---, and then you're kind of sad. And then you talk a little bit more s---, and then you're like, 'What the f--- was that person doing? Can you believe that player played so well? The referee sucks.' You're just kind of going through the cycle of emotion, like, 'Oh my god, I cannot believe we lost.'

"But I also would say it kind of bonded us in a sense. We experienced it together. We had, at that point, experienced so many highs together, a couple lows in college, but so many highs together. And now we are experiencing a low together. I think the lows, the losses -- it's where you really build something that's sturdy and deep. So that's how I would describe that moment.

"We played in that third-place game, and she balled the absolute f--- out. She had six 3s, she was killing it [28 points in a 99-59 win for the bronze medal over Brazil]. And that's Diana in a nutshell, right? That really marked for us our entire mindset around USA Basketball. It informed everything from that point on."

D, if this is the last time, it was once in a lifetime. pic.twitter.com/FwVfrNXwNg

Taurasi-Skillern: "Her and my husband always were kind of competitive, whether it be ping pong or throwing the football the farthest. He's always trying to one-up her on something.

"This one time we were at Target looking for Christmas gifts, and my husband came across these little hacky sacks. And he is like, 'Hey, do you know how to juggle?' And she goes, 'No, I really just have never really tried it.'

"So, my husband was like, 'Yes, this is it. This is the time I'm gonna do something better than her.' He grabs a couple hacky sacks and starts throwing them up and juggling two and then three. My sister's watching him, like, 'Yeah, I've never really tried it.' And so he thought he was gonna get her.

"My sister grabs a couple hacky sacks and starts throwing them up in the air, dropping 'em. She tries it a couple times -- and then literally looks at him, grabs three balls and just starts juggling like she was out of the circus.

"She sticks her tongue out at us and my husband wanted to die. He was like, 'Of course, of course she's just good at everything."

The friend

Cunningham: "When people think of DT, they think of a fierce competitor, someone who's super intense, really doesn't give a f---. But when you really get to know DT, she's the most genuine, loving, caring person you'll ever meet. And I think that she puts up that front because she does care a lot. I just think that's who she is."

Valley: "I think what goes unnoticed is her kindness. The way she treats the people she loves and how she takes care of them and just would do anything for them is probably her most remarkable trait, not even really anything to do with a basketball player.

"It's a big thing, but it's little. Her dad always wanted a Mercedes. She buys her dad a Mercedes. Fixes up her parents' kitchen. Helps family out, helps friends out. She's helped me in the past. Someone hits me up and they're like, 'Hey, can I get tickets?' It was a national team exhibition game. She doesn't know that person, I don't really know that person. (But it's) 'Yep, Mo, whatever you need,' gives the person two tickets. These random little acts. There's a lot of them. ...

"She makes everyone feel like they're the most important person to her when she meets them. She'd meet a little kid and that person would talk about it (long afterward). I meet people to this day who are like, 'Oh yeah. I met Diana when I was 9 at a UConn game.' She can just make you feel like nothing else matters when you're in her presence.

"She's always been good with kids. When we played [at UConn], Michael, Coach's (Auriemma's) son was 12. He was like our little brother. We'd go to all his games and got to watch him grow up. ... We'd be at practice, we'd be like, 'Hey, Coach, Michael, have a game tonight?' And we'd roll in and watch Michael ball out. We loved it. We went to quite a few games of Michael's."

Bird, Taurasi's Spartak Moscow teammate in Russia: "Our very first year in Russia, we're the only two Americans. Our coach didn't speak English. So we had a translator. Really what that means is you're just on tape delay, right? You're 30 seconds late to (understanding) everything.

"So we're just kind of like in our own world. And we laughed a lot. We were giggling constantly. It was the two of us bopping around this cold place where nobody is smiling, and we're just cracking up constantly at everything.

"We were like the two most thankful people you've ever met, because 'spasibo' [meaning 'thank you' in Russian, and pronounced spuh-SEE-buh] is really the only word we could say. We're at the grocery store, we're at a restaurant, we're with our teammates, we're a practice. We were just like, 'Oh, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.' Because it was really the only way we could communicate at the start.

"Then Dee added this thing. She was like, 'Spasibo, diva!' It means nothing; it's just her way. What ended up happening -- because it's Diana -- people loved it. They would crack up. The equivalent [in English] was like if someone was walking around going, 'Thanks, Hanks!' or 'Thanks, Franks!' That's what she was doing."

Auriemma on Nov. 20, when asked what moment from his NCAA record-1,217th career win will stick with him the most: "Anytime Dee talks about her time here with me and this program, it's very, very emotional for me, so that's probably the biggest moment.

"I just remember what we went through together, how much she meant to so many people here. What she meant to me, to my family, to my mom. She's just one of those unique people that comes into your life and you're better off for having her in your life.

"People on the outside, they see the competitive, snarky Dee that will cut your heart out. But there's something about her that makes me feel better to know that she's in my world and I'm in hers."

The wife and mother

Bird: "Penny (Taylor) was such an amazing influence on her, and you could see Dee just kind of melted into Penny. None of that is surprising. And then you add in (son) Leo and (daughter) Isla, just what an amazing mom she is. In season, moms have to do a lot to spend time with their kids, waking up at like 4 or 5 in the morning, even though you have practice.

"Dee, deep down, has an incredible warmth to her. I think that's really what Penny tapped into. That's what her children have tapped into, and that's who you see now. Dee, when you really get her in a reflective mode or place, I think she surprises people with her depth and with her insight. But when you know her, that's who she is all the time. It's just you get a little duped by the on-court persona."

Brittney Griner, Phoenix Mercury teammate: "I don't even know what year it was, but she was prepping me for when she's [retired], dropping little knowledge dimes about the game of life. ... We went from my rookie season where we probably didn't talk about relationships, but now we'll talk about being a parent, being a good spouse, being here, being present at home. And it's something that I really appreciate because even though we've been here so long, I'm still in awe of her.

"[Taurasi's best parenting advice] is: None of this matters when you get home. Game, loss, win, hard practice, irritated at somebody. None of that matters, because when [your family] gets home, they don't know nothing about this. They don't care about this. All they care about is you being right there. Just soak it in because it goes quick."