Vegan basketball player is first woman to reach 10,000 points

Diana Taurasi made history as she became the first player in the WNBA to score 10,000 points

The trailblazing basketballer has already had an amazing career. She has five Olympic golds and three World Championship golds. She’s been in the WNBA first team ten times and league scoring champion five times.

Taurasi plays in the WNBA for Phoenix Mercury, and broke the 10,000 point barrier in a game against Atlanta Dream.

With just over eight minutes left in the third quarter, Taurasi saw a three-pointer swoosh through the net to put Phoenix up 51-39 and break the five-figure milestone.

Not only did she join the likes of Kobe Bryant on the list of players to make 10,000 points but she also finished the night with 42 points – her highest game total since 2010. At 41 years old, this made her the oldest player in WNBA history to make over 40 points in a single game.

Diana has been vegan since 2015. She told Women’s Fitness in 2018 that it had helped maintain her career:

“I have been vegan for about three years now and I think it is something I have really benefitted from. Just staying away from foods that cause a lot of inflammation, fats and sugars that everyone knows are obviously a little counterproductive if you eat large amounts of them. So, I have stayed more on a plant-based diet and it has really benefitted me.”

Content sourced and adapted with permission from Great Vegan Athletes. Featured photo by Lorie Shaull, CC BY-SA 4.0