WNBA Champion Sanders To Sit Out 2020 Season

UNC graduate LaToya Sanders has announced she'll sit out the 2020 WNBA season, which is slated to begin in late July. Sanders plays for the Washington Mystics and helped the team to the 2019 WNBA Championship, the franchise's first.

"We understand and respect LaToya's decision and will miss her both on and off the court as we head towards the upcoming season," Mystics head coach and general manager Mike Thibault said in the team's news release. "She has been a big part of our success over the last several years and we look forward to her continuing to contribute for us in 2021."

OFFICIAL: LaToya Sanders and Natasha Cloud to opt out of 2020 season. 📰 >> https://t.co/Zl0MCt1MVx pic.twitter.com/NMUFhCSJBW
— Washington Mystics (@WashMystics) June 22, 2020

The 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year in her senior season as a Tar Heel, Sanders was the 13th pick in that year's WNBA Draft. In addition to her professional career in the U.S., she has been a member of Turkey's National Team and has also played professionally there.

Sanders is the fourth Tar Heel to become a WNBA champion, following Nikki Teasley (Los Angeles, 2002), Camille Little (Seattle, 2010) and Erlana Larkins (Indiana, 2012).

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