LaToya Thomas

:"A LaToya Thomas was a subject of the "Autopsy" documentary series as a subject falsely convicted in a murder. This is not the same person."

infobox WNBA Player
name = Latoya Thomas

---

position = Forward
height_ft = 6 | height_in = 2
weight_lbs = 165
nationality = USA
birth_date = birth date and age|1981|7|6
birth_place = Greenville, Mississippi
college = Mississippi State University
number = 32
team = Minnesota Lynx
draft = 1^st overall
draft_year = 2003
draft_team = Cleveland Rockers
career_start = 2003
career_end = Present
former_teams = Cleveland Rockers
San Antonio Silver Stars
Los Angeles Sparks
Atlanta Dream
Detroit Shock
awards = 4 time Kodak All-American, ESPN and ESPN Magazine 2002 Power Forward of the Year, 2 time Associated Press First Team All-American, 3 time AP All-SEC team, 2 time AP SEC Player of the Year, SEC Freshman of the Year, SEC Newcomer of the Year, and Sports Illustrated for Women Freshman of the Year
scoring = First woman to lead the SEC in scoring four consecutive seasons

LaToya Monique Thomas (born July 6, 1981 in Greenville, Mississippi) is a professional basketball player. She currently plays for the Minnesota Lynx in the WNBA.

College Years

Thomas was a standout four-year starter at Mississippi State University.

Thomas was the eighth freshman in the 25-year history of Kodak All-America honors to earn the award and first Lady Bulldog to be named a Kodak All-American. She went on to become just the sixth player in women’s basketball history to be a four-time Kodak All-American. She left her mark in the SEC as well, becoming the first player in the conference to lead the league in scoring all four years of her career. Thomas was a three time-finalist for the Naismith Award and she was also a four-time first team all-SEC and AP all-SEC selection. Thomas was a finalist in 2003 for the Margaret Wade Trophy given each season to the top female college player. Diana Taurasi won the Wade Trophy in 2003.

Thomas is the all-time leading scorer at Mississippi State for both men and women with 2,981 career points. She holds the Lady Bulldog records for field goals made, field goals attempted, field goal percentage, free throws made, free throws attempted, free throw percentage, rebounds and blocked shots.

In addition to her numerous all-America honors, Thomas was named the Senior CLASS Award winner, 2003 Mississippi Amateur Athlete of the Year and 2003 SEC Female Athlete of the Year. Upon graduation, she became the first athlete from the state of Mississippi to be taken as a top pick in a professional draft, going No. 1 to the Cleveland Rockers in the 2003 WNBA Draft [http://www.mstateathletics.com/doc_lib/wbk_0607mg_history.pdf] .

WNBA career

Thomas was selected by the Cleveland Rockers with the #1 overall pick in the 2003 WNBA Draft. During her first WNBA season, she became the Rockers single-season rookie leader in rebounding with 164 and ranked second on the Rockers single-season rookie scoring list with 347 points. She started all three playoff games for the Rockers against Detroit, averaging 13.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in 33.3 minutes per game.

When the Cleveland franchise folded following the season, Thomas was selected #3 overall in the 2004 dispersal draft by the San Antonio Silver Stars, for whom she played from 2004-2006. She had six 20-plus point games in her first season with the Silver Stars.

On February 6, 2008 Thomas was selected in the expansion draft by the Atlanta Dream. She was later traded to the Detroit Shock along with the eighteenth pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft for Ivory Latta. On June 22, 2008 Thomas was traded to the Minnesota Lynx for Eshaya Murphy.

Other Professional Experience

* 2004-05: Spent part of the off-season playing in Russia for BC Enge Kazan in the FIBA Europe Cup.
*2003-04: Spent the off-season playing in Korea for the Hyundai Hyperion.

Personal

* Full name is LaToya Monique Thomas
* Majored in educational psychology
* Niece of Henrine Nichols
* Earned all-state honors her last three seasons in high school
* Named Mississippi's Player of the Year her junior and senior seasons
* Earned [http://all-americans.parade.com/2006_girl_basketball/wnba_players.html Parade All-American] status her senior season
* Also played softball
* Named to the honor roll her junior and senior years
* Earned a perfect attendance award as well as a good citizenship honor.

External links

* [http://www.wnba.com/playerfile/latoya_thomas/index.html WNBA Player Profile]
* [http://www.wnba.com/draft2003/prospect_latoya_thomas.html 2003 WNBA Draft Prospectus]
* [http://www.mstateathletics.com/index.php?s=&url_channel_id=17&url_subchannel_id=&url_article_id=8025&change_well_id=2 MSU Women's Basketball Media Guide]
* [http://all-americans.parade.com/2006_girl_basketball/wnba_players.html Parade All-Americans in The WNBA]
* [http://www.wnba.com/dream/expansion_analysis_080206.html Atlanta Dream expansion draft results/analysis]
* [http://www.startribune.com/sports/lynx/20633259.html?page=2&c=y Thomas traded to the Minnesota Lynx]