Nigerian-born female basketball star, Nnemkadi Chinwe Victoria Ogwumike (aka Nneka) has had a portion of the training ground of Los Angeles Sparks BC named in her honour, following her retirement from the game of giants that brought her fortune and fame.
Sports247 reports that the section named after Ogwumike was announced minutes after she played her last game for the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) outfit, during which she hit her 19th double-double of the season and 134th of her illustrious career.
Unfortunately, Ogwumike’s spirited efforts in her last game for The Sparks could not save her team, who will now miss out on the WNBA playoffs for the sixth straight season, as they fell 76-75 to Golden State Valkyries during a pulsating game on Thursday night.
At a point during the game, Ogwumike missed a foul shot that would have cut their deficit to three points, after a burst away from the play foul and Rae Burrell’s three at the buzzer provided the final rally in the last regular season game of 2026 and last of her career.
A report by Sean Lehuy revealed, “Nneka Ogwumike played her final game in the WNBA on Thursday night as Los Angeles Sparks lost 76-75 to Golden State Valkyries.
“The 36-year-old Ogwumike announced in August that she is retiring after the season, ending a 15-year career that includes a WNBA title, WNBA MVP, 11 All-Star appearances and eight All-WNBA honours, among numerous other awards.
“After Thursday’s game, The Sparks honoured Ogwumike, who was drafted No. 1 overall by the team in 2012 and saw her return to Los Angeles this season after two years with Seattle Storm.
“As part of the post-game ceremony, The Sparks announced that a player sanctuary inside the team’s new practice facility will be named after Ogwumike and the news brought her to tears.”
Ogwumike, who scored 17 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and dished out 5 assists in her final game, declared: “This is goodbye, not forever, but I’m always gonna be your LA Spark. I love you guys.
“I wouldn’t go down any other way; which is competing hard in LA against great competition. It’s such a privilege and an honor to be in this league, to be a woman in sports, and especially to wear the Sparks’ jersey.
“I’m still thinking about how I wish I could’ve left you guys with a win, but I do want you to know that I left my heart here and I’m really happy that I got to share a lot of this with my teammates. You guys really helped me through this season.”
Sports247 reports further that Thursday’s game marked a splendid exit for Ogwumike, who was hooked by The Sparks first overall in the 2012 draft and spent her first 12 seasons with the team, during which she emerged as WNBA MVP for the 2016 season.
The former USA national team star also won the WNBA Finals the same year and was in 2021 named to the league’s list of top-25 players of its first 25 years, which came long after she popped into the limelight at the WBCA High School All-America Game in 2008.
She was was named to the WBCA All-American squad after recording 17 points and six rebounds, then earned MVP honors for the White Team, after averaging 16.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2.4 steals and 0.8 blocks per game during the 2007/2008 season at Cy-Fair High School.
Ogwumike was also a member of USA’s women’s U18 team that won gold at the FIBA Americas Championship in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where they defeated the hosts to win the championship in July 2008, during which she enacted a record of 15 rebounds in the final.
Incidentally, Ogwumike helped USA win the 2014 World Championship when they beat Spain 77-64 in the final but, though she tried to switch nationality to represent Nigeria and withdrew from America’s squad in 2020, she lost three appeals for the change of allegiance.
 has had a portion of the training ground){kind=link}