REAL SPORTS 2015 Sportsperson of the Year

Winner

2015 WNBA champion Maya Moore has won three titles, an MVP award, a Rookie of the Year award, and an Olympic Gold Medal in her first five seasons in the WNBA league. No NHL, NBA, NFL, or MLB player has ever done that. She’s also excelled overseas. In 2012, she won both the Spanish league title and EuroLeague title playing for Ros Casares Valencia. From 2013 to 2015, Moore also won the Chinese league title every year.

Maya Moore at the 2015 WNBA All-Star game held at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville CT
Photo credit: Danny Karwoski (Karwoski Facebook) CC BY-SA 3.0 

As for 2015, the Minnesota Lynx were the best team in the Western Conference through the regular season on their way to their third championship.

In 2006 and 2007, Moore was named the Naismith Prep Player of the Year. She was the John Wooden Award winner in 2009 after leading UConn to an undefeated season and a national title. The following season, Moore led Connecticut to its second straight and in the 2010–11 season, she led the Huskies to an NCAA record (all divisions) of 90 wins. On May 18, 2011, Moore became the first female basketball player to sign with Jordan Brand.

Here career exemplifies a sports person of the year and her accomplishments this year led REAL SPORTS to selecting her as the 2015 Sportsperson of the Year.

Follow Maya Moore at http://mooremaya.com  

Most Important Moments in Sports

# 1 Calling It As He Sees It

It takes guts to say the emperor has no clothes.  Adam Silver, who took over as NBA commissioner in February 2014, said the equivalent regarding the WNBA just prior to the 2015 WNBA Playoffs, when he called into question the fans, the media and the foundation upon which the league is based. 

Brittney Griner dunking at the 2015 WNBA All-Star game held at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville CT
By Danny Karwoski (Karwoski Facebook) CC BY-SA 3.0 

His comments were direct, honest and reflective. He said the league has not lived up to its potential, criticized the lack of press coverage and pointed to poor profitability. The things he said did not sit well with some in the media, some of the fan base and were seen by many as a lack of endorsement for then-WNBA President Laurel Richie.  It was no surprise when Richie stepped down later in the year. 

Ex-commissioner David Stern had propped up and kept the league alive, but now Sliver can raise questions without the challenges of being the founding father, as it were. An added element of credibility for Silver is he one of the league’s behind-the-scenes architects.  But the WNBA needs to a new wardrobe!

WNBA Average Game Attendance

2015: 7,318

2014: 7,578

1998: 10,864

1997: 9,662

Read more about Adam Silver's comments: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/09/adam-silver-on-wnba-we-thought-it-would-have-broken-through-by-now

Most Important Moments in Sports

#3 Another First for Serena

At 34 years old, Serena Williams continues to set records in the Women’s Tennis Association.  At one point during the season, Serena had more than twice the number of points as her next closest competitors, the first time in WTA history. 

By Tourism Victoria from Australia (Australian Open 2015) CCBY2.0

Serena also completed her second “Serena Slam,’ having won the Australian, French and Wimbleton this year to coincide with last year’s U.S. Open. All told, Serena collected more than $10.5 million in prize money in 2015. On Dec. 14, she was named Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year, the first solo female to win the honor since Mary Decker in 1983.

Read more about her Sports Illustrated selection: http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/tennis/2015/12/15/serena-williams-explains-idea-behind-sports-illustrated-cover/77391104/

REAL SPORTS Most Important Moments in Sports 2015 Countdown

#9 Backing Winners

Kudos to Oracle for having Carli Lloyd meet and greet attendees at its 60,000-person Oracle Open World Conference. 

Carli Lloyd's pubic appearance at Oracle Open World on  October 28, 2015

Women athletes are a bargain for corporate sponsorship programs, and as evidenced by the around-the-booth line hours before her scheduled appearance, quite the draw as well.

See Carli's Goals: http://nesn.com/2015/07/carli-lloyd-scores-ridiculous-world-cup-goal-hat-trick-in-16-minutes-videos/ 

REAL SPORTS Most Important Moments in Sports 2015 Countdown

#10 Parity at the Senior Golf Ranks

The U.S. Golf Association announces it will launch a Senior Women’s Open in 2018. 

According to USGA President Thomas O’Toole Jr., every championship conducted by the U.S. ruling body for golf has a women’s counterpart with the exception of the U.S. Senior Open, which began in 1980.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-golf-usga-women-idUSKBN0LB0L420150207