WNBA team to honor Pat Summitt’s impact, influence – Nashville Post

The Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA will honor a University of Tennessee legend on Thursday when they host Pat Summitt Leadership Night as part of their game against the Phoenix Mercury at the Staples Center.

The event, created with heavy influence from former Lady Vols star Candace Parker, is designed to educate younger generations about Summitt’s legacy in the sport and with women in general. Fans who attend the game will receive a commemorative poster and will have the opportunity to purchase a T-shirt with one of Summitt’s favorite phrases, with the proceeds of those sales to benefit the Pat Summitt Foundation.

Parker, who will wear specially designed shoes during the game to mark the occasion, will speak about Summitt’s influence following the contest.

“We’re going to have a great time,” Parker told the Los Angeles Times. “I think a lot of people will come and I hope they learn a lot. … Kids who are born now, I want them to know Coach Summitt. I want them to know she was a legendary coach and I don’t want her memory to … fade away. So, this is kind of something where there are young kids who don’t know who Coach Summitt is but when they leave, I hope they know.”

Summitt won 1,098 games and eight national championships in 38 seasons as coach of the Lady Vols. She retired prematurely in 2012 after she was diagnosed with early onset dementia Alzheimer’s type. She died in 2016 due to the effects of the illness.

“It means a lot to me,” said Parker, who starred at UT from 2004-08. “This is something that’s been in my mind for the last three years in honoring Coach Summitt’s legacy [and] continuing it on. It’s one thing to honor it. It’s another thing to carry on her legacy and what she … lived every day doing. So, to see it coming to light tomorrow is very special to me.”