NEW YORK – DeLisha Milton-Jones of the Atlanta Dream is the recipient of the 2015 Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award, the WNBA announced today.  Milton-Jones becomes the first Dream player to receive the honor.

The Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award is presented each season to a player who exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court, including ethical behavior, fair play, and integrity.  The award is named for the late Kim Perrot, who helped guide the Houston Comets to their first two WNBA Championships before passing away in August 1999 after a seven-month battle with cancer.

Milton-Jones, who just completed her 17^th WNBA season, received 11 votes from a national panel of 39 sportswriters and broadcasters.  Courtney Vandersloot of the Chicago Sky finished second with six votes. Seimone Augustus of the Minnesota Lynx and Jeanette Pohlen of the Indiana Fever received five votes each, followed by Karima Christmas of the Tulsa Shock with three votes.  The Los Angeles Sparks’ Alana Beard, the Seattle Storm’s Alysha Clark, and the New York Liberty’s Carolyn Swords received two votes each.  Jayne Appel of the San Antonio Stars, Armintie Herrington of the Washington Mystics, and Jasmine Thomas of the Connecticut Sun received one vote apiece.

A 41-year-old Georgia native, Milton-Jones started her WNBA career with the Sparks as the No. 4 overall pick out of Florida in the 1999 draft.  The two-time WNBA All-Star spent 11 of her 17 seasons with Los Angeles, where she won back-to-back WNBA Championships in 2001 and 2002.  Milton-Jones, the WNBA’s career leader in games played (499), is one of six players in league history with more than 5,000 points and 2,400 rebounds.  She ranks fifth all time in steals (619), sixth in rebounds (2,574), ninth in points (5,571), and 13^th in blocks (339).  In July 2011, during the league’s 15^th season, Milton-Jones was one of 30 finalists for the WNBA’s Top 15 Players, which recognized the most influential players since the league’s inception in 1997.

In honor of being named the Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award winner, Milton-Jones will receive $5,000 and a specially designed trophy from Tiffany & Co.  The Dream will donate an additional $5,000 to the charity of her choice.

Below are the voting results of the 2015 WNBA Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award and a list of past recipients.

2015 KIM PERROT SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD RESULTS

11                 DeLisha Milton-Jones    Atlanta Dream
6                   Courtney Vandersloot       Chicago Sky
5                   Seimone Augustus            Minnesota Lynx
5                   Jeanette Pohlen                Indiana Fever
3                   Karima Christmas             Tulsa Shock
2                   Alana Beard                      Los Angeles Sparks
2                   Alysha Clark                     Seattle Storm
2                   Carolyn Swords                New York Liberty
1                   Jayne Appel                      San Antonio Stars
1                   Armintie Herrington           Washington Mystics
1                   Jasmine Thomas              Connecticut Sun

ALL-TIME KIM PERROT SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD WINNERS

2015            DeLisha Milton-Jones    Atlanta Dream
2014             Becky Hammon               San Antonio Stars
2013             Swin Cash                         Chicago Sky (tie)
2013             Tamika Catchings             Indiana Fever (tie)
2012             Kara Lawson                     Connecticut Sun
2011             Sue Bird                            Seattle Storm (tie)
2011             Ruth Riley                         San Antonio Stars (tie)
2010             Tamika Catchings             Indiana Fever
2009             Kara Lawson                     Sacramento Monarchs
2008             Vickie Johnson                 San Antonio Stars
2007             Tully Bevilaqua                 Indiana Fever
2006             Dawn Staley                     Houston Comets
2005             Taj McWilliams-Franklin   Connecticut Sun
2004             Teresa Edwards                Minnesota Lynx
2003             Edna Campbell                 Sacramento Monarchs
2002             Jennifer Gillom                 Phoenix Mercury
2001             Sue Wicks                         New York Liberty
2000             Suzie McConnell Serio     Cleveland Rockers
1999             Dawn Staley                     Charlotte Sting
1998             Suzie McConnell Serio     Cleveland Rockers
1997             Haixia Zheng                     Los Angeles Sparks

About the WNBA

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