NEW YORK — The illustrious basketball career of Tina Charles came to an end Tuesday, with the sure-fire Hall of Famer announcing her retirement.
The former New york Liberty star ended her career after 15 WNBA seasons. And players that crossed paths with the Queens native reminisced about her greatness throughout the years.
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“Tina is a legend. … Really just proud of what her career entails,” said Liberty star Breanna Stewart, who spent a season with Charles in Seattle in 2022. “Being in New York, having the opportunity to play for the Liberty, but also playing elsewhere. We played together in Seattle for a quick stint. And not only is she someone who’s like a bucket, she’s really hard to guard, like she’s number two in scoring for a reason, but just the way that she makes an impact in the community, the way that she really kind of makes sure that she expands her reach in every place that she goes.
“She’s had an incredible career.”
Along with being second all-time in WNBA scoring, Charles ends her career as the league’s all-time rebound leader with 4,262.
Charles, who was selected to the All-Star team in five of the six seasons she played in New York, played her final season with the Connecticut Sun in 2025 — the same franchise she started her WNBA career with.
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She won the Most Valuable Player award after averaging 18 points and 10.5 rebounds with the Sun in 2012. She was also selected to All-Defensive Second team the same year.
The accolades keep on coming: eight-time All-Star, two-time scoring champ, four-time rebounding champ, four-time All-Defensive team selection and 2010 Rookie of the Year.
She contributed to a legendary UConn program, winning two NCAA titles under Geno Auriemma.
Charles is a member of The W25 — the WNBA’s top 25 player of all-time, a recognition awarded to her in 2021.
Her greatness stretched to USA Basketball as she helped Team USA win three Olympic titles.
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“If I think back to 2016, that Olympics, I was the youngest player there, and kind of clung to to the Huskies, clung to the UConn players, because I needed a little bit of guidance and familiarity,” said Stewart, who joined Charles, Sue Bird, Maya Moore and Diana Taurasi as ex-Huskies on the star-studded Auriemma-led squad.
“And Tina was someone that was definitely kind of bringing me under her wing, helping me understand the game, playing with different players that I’ve been with before, and making sure that I had fun while doing it. I’m just honored to be able to play with her, obviously playing against her a ton, and she’s showing one of the best to ever do it.”
Charles’ mentorship stretched to other current WNBA hoopers, including current Liberty star Jonquel Jones.
“She’s one of the vets that always checked on me, that always was in my ear about what I could do to make my game better,” Jones said. “And so just hats off to her for a historical career. A legendary career. I’m sure she has a lot of great things lined up for the next chapter.”
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Charles’ playing days with the Liberty came before the sellout crowds of Barclays Center and pro-player movement initiated by owners Joe and Clara Wu Tsai.
She played her first four seasons with the Liberty in Madison Square Garden before then-owner James Dolan dumped the franchise and they were left to play the next two years at the Westchester County Center — a 2,000-seat venue nowhere near suitable for a professional hoops team.
It was there where Charles crossed paths with Marine Johannes, a rookie guard from France.
“Yeah, 2019. Not an easy season for the team,” Johannes said. The guard still considers that season as “something special,” while playing with Charles, who Johannes described as the “superstar of the team.”
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“Most of the times, the offense was going to her,” she added.
Charles is a star off the court, too.
Her charity Hopey’s Heart Foundation, named after her late aunt who died of multiple organ failure in 2013, is responsible for saving lives. The foundation has donated 500 automated external defibrillators, per the Associated Press, in an effort to curb sudden cardiac arrests in the United States.
“You can see the rest of the basketball community and world has celebrated her,” said Rebecca Allen, who played with Charles during her first stint in New York, “which is something she really, really deserves. But she’s had such an impact on New York, an impact on the WNBA and everyone that she’s played with. So I really hope that she’s taking a moment for herself to really pause and reflect, because there’s so much to be grateful for.”
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