Vanessa Hayden

Vanessa L'asonya Hayden-Johnson (born June 5, 1982), née Vanessa L'asonya Hayden, is an American former college and professional basketball player who was a center in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) for five seasons in the 2000s. Hayden played college basketball for the University of Florida, and she played professionally for the Minnesota Lynx and Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA.

Vanessa Hayden
Personal information
Born (1982-06-05) June 5, 1982
Orlando, Florida
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High schoolWilliam R. Boone (Orlando, Florida)
CollegeFlorida (2000–2004)
WNBA draft2004 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7th overall
Selected by the Minnesota Lynx
Playing career2004–2009
PositionCenter
Number55
Career history
2004–2008Minnesota Lynx
2009Los Angeles Sparks
Career highlights and awards
  • SEC Defensive Player of the Year (2004)
  • First-team All-SEC (2004)
  • Second-team All-American (2004)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Early years

Hayden was born in Orlando, Florida. She attended William R. Boone High School in Orlando, and played high school basketball for the Boone Braves.

College career

Hayden accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where she played for the Florida Gators women's basketball team from 2000 to 2004. As a senior in 2004, she was a first-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) selection, SEC Defensive Player of the year, and a second-team All-American. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in 2004.

Florida statistics

Source[1]

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
Year Team GP Points FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2000-01 Florida 30 312 52.2 - 47.0 9.2 0.6 1.0 2.3 10.4
2001-02 Florida 29 496 50.6 - 61.5 11.8 1.4 0.8 4.3 17.1
2002-03 Florida 18 197 44.0 - 60.3 9.4 0.8 0.8 3.1 10.9
2003-04 Florida 30 571 52.2 - 59.1 10.6 1.3 0.9 3.5 19.0
Career Florida 107 1576 50.5 - 57.2 10.3 1.0 0.9 3.3 14.7

Professional career

Following her collegiate career, she was selected 7th overall in the 2004 WNBA Draft. As a rookie in 2004, Hayden-Johnson averaged 5.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game. In 2005, she improved, averaging 7.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game.

The 2006 season was a struggle for the third-year center. After reporting to the pre-season training camp 20 pounds overweight, Hayden-Johnson lost her starting job early on and remained prone to foul trouble. With her minutes cut, she averaged 5.4 points and 3.5 rebounds per game.

Hayden-Johnson missed the entire 2007 WNBA season to give birth to her first child. She returned to action in 2008 as a reserve for the Lynx. On January 30, 2009 Hayden-Johnson was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks for Christi Thomas.

European career

Personal life

Hayden was a contestant on Season 16 of the reality competition The Biggest Loser, titled The Biggest Loser: Glory Days, which premiered on September 11, 2014 on NBC.

See also

References

  1. "Women's Basketball Player stats". NCAA. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
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