Kara Braxton, a two-time WNBA champion with the Detroit Shock, died after a Saturday car crash in Atlanta, officials said.
She was 43.
No cause of death was given.
Kara Braxton #45 of the Detroit Shock waves to the audience during the WNBA game against the Chicago Sky on September 12, 2009 at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago, Illinois. The Shock won 80-69. NBAE via Getty Images
Braxton was driving a 2023 Ford Mustang heading north on Interstate 285 just after 5 p.m. on Saturday when she collided with the concrete median wall, according to the Cobb County Police Department.
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“The Ford continued in a northerly direction against the concrete wall until coming to rest on the left shoulder of I-285 at Cobb Parkway,” police said, adding that the crash is still under investigation.
Braxton was rushed to Wellstar Kennestone Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Kara Braxton #45 of the Detroit Shock poses with the trophy after winning Game 3 of the WNBA Finals against the San Antonio Stars on October 5, 2008 at the Eastern Michigan University Convocation Center in Ypsilanti, Michigan. NBAE via Getty Images
“It is with profound sadness that we mourn the passing of 2x WNBA Champion Kara Braxton,” the WNBA said in a statement Sunday.. “Our thoughts are with her family, friends, and former teammates at this time.”
The No. 7 overall pick by the Shock in the 2005 WNBA Draft, Braxton went on to make the league’s all-rookie team that season.
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The 6-foot-6 center-forward played with the Detroit Shock, Tulsa Shock, Phoenix Mercury, and New York Liberty — averaging 7.6 points and 4.7 rebounds — during her 10-year WNBA career.
She won championships with Detroit in 2006 and 2008, and was named an All-Star in 2007.
Braxton finished her career with the Liberty in 2014.
She played at Georgia from 2001 to 2004 and was named SEC Freshman of the Year in 2002.
Kara Braxton’s son, Jelani Thurman mourned his mother’s passing in series of post on Instagram. Instagram/Jelani Thurman
Braxton’s son, Jelani Thurman — who played tight end the past three seasons at Ohio State before transferring to North Carolina in January — mourned his mother’s passing in a series of posts on Instagram.
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“Imma miss my queen,” Thurman wrote, including a past photo of him wearing his mother’s Detroit jersey on his Instagram Story.
Thurman reposted an interview with Yahoo Sports, in which he previously spoke about his mother and the lessons she taught him in the sport.
He included another clip that showed the pair hugging at an Ohio State game, along with a snapshot of her holding him when he was a baby.
