The Sparks honor Lisa Leslie with a bronze statue outside the arena

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lisa Leslie left her mark on the Los Angeles Sparks franchise as one of the top players in its history.

The organization honored her Sunday with a bronze statue outside the arena, immortalizing the WNBA great.

She became the 16th person honored with a statue in Star Plaza in a ceremony that featured Magic Johnson, Candace Parker and Michael Cooper and others.

“I am beyond happy with how beautiful The First Lady looks because they listened to me,” the three-time MVP said. “She has her lipstick on, she has on earrings, she has my family’s names on my bracelets, which probably people can’t see because she’s so big. It’s gorgeous, and I just love that she has her ponytail, and when little girls walk around and get a chance to see it, they see a woman, The First Lady statue out there. That just means so much to me.”

Leslie, who starred for the Sparks from 1997-2009, is the first Sparks player to be honored with a statue. The 11-foot statue with a 4 1/2 foot base depicts Leslie's signature dunk that was the first in WNBA history.

“First of all, she’s cute,” Leslie said of the statue when it was unveiled. “I was so worried. I did not want to look like a linebacker up here. But she’s cute. I wanted to make sure that this statue was a perfect blend of fearlessness and the competitor that I was and I am and I’ll always be. But also ... I wore my ribbons, I had my nails polished, which y’all can’t see, but the girl got her polish on because I never wanted the boys or the men to think that I was a boy."

Leslie helped the Sparks win consecutive titles in 2001 and 2002.

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