Helen Luz
Encyclopedia
Helen Cristina Santos Luz (born November 23, 1972 in Araçatuba
, Brazil
) is a recently retired Brazilian professional basketball
player. A starting guard on the great Brazilian women's national teams of the 1990s and early 2000s, she played for the Washington Mystics
in the Women's National Basketball Association
(WNBA) in 2001-2003, and in the Spanish Liga Femina for Zaragoza (2003–2004), Barcelona (2004–2006), Rivas (2006–2007), Cadi La Sue (2007–2008), and Hondarribia-Irun (2008–2010). She finished her career in one final season with the Brazilian team Americana, in São Paulo State, announcing her retirement at the end of February 2011. Upon retirement, she told interviewers that her hopes were to move into sports management -- but probably not coaching -- and, especially, motherhood.
Helen retired from the national team after the 2006 World Championship games, but returned in 2009 to help lead the team to victory in the FIBA Americas Championship. In the 4 games of the tournament she led the Brazilian team in points per game (12.0, 10th in the tournament) and was second on the team in assists per game (3.6, 3rd in the tournament).
Araçatuba
Araçatuba is a city located in the northwest of São Paulo state, Brazil. The city has 181.579 inhabitants and 1,167.4 km² of area. The city name comes from the Tupi language and means "abundance of araçá "...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
) is a recently retired Brazilian professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
player. A starting guard on the great Brazilian women's national teams of the 1990s and early 2000s, she played for the Washington Mystics
Washington Mystics
The Washington Mystics is a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C., playing in the Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association . The team was founded prior to the 1998 season. The team is owned by Monumental Sports & Entertainment , who also owns the Mystics'...
in the Women's National Basketball Association
Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. It currently is composed of twelve teams. The league was founded on April 24, 1996 as the women's counterpart to the National Basketball Association...
(WNBA) in 2001-2003, and in the Spanish Liga Femina for Zaragoza (2003–2004), Barcelona (2004–2006), Rivas (2006–2007), Cadi La Sue (2007–2008), and Hondarribia-Irun (2008–2010). She finished her career in one final season with the Brazilian team Americana, in São Paulo State, announcing her retirement at the end of February 2011. Upon retirement, she told interviewers that her hopes were to move into sports management -- but probably not coaching -- and, especially, motherhood.
Brazilian national team career
Helen played on the Brazilian women's national teams that competed in the Olympics in Barcelona in 1992 (7th place), Sydney in 2000 (bronze medal), and Athens in 2004 (4th place), and in the World Championships in Australia in 1994 (Gold medal), Germany in 1998 (4th place), China in 2002 (7th place), and Brazil in 2006 (4th place). Her teams were South American Champions in 1991, 1993, 1997, 1999, 2005,2006 and 2010. She was MVP in the 2001 Copa América in Brazil and 2005 in Paraguay.Helen retired from the national team after the 2006 World Championship games, but returned in 2009 to help lead the team to victory in the FIBA Americas Championship. In the 4 games of the tournament she led the Brazilian team in points per game (12.0, 10th in the tournament) and was second on the team in assists per game (3.6, 3rd in the tournament).
WNBA career
Helen signed as a free agent with the Washington Mystics prior to the start of their 2001 training camp. She averaged 13.4 minutes per game over three seasons, usually coming off the bench as a 3-point specialist. She was a fan favorite for her enthusiasm and intelligent, unselfish play; the moment she stood up to approach the scorer's table, the MCI Center would resound with shouts of "Luz!" (A story in the Washington Post reported that she initially thought she was being booed, and wondered why.) She finished her WNBA career with a quite respectable .377 3-point shooting percentage -- .500 in 4 playoff games.Pro League career
Helen played in the Brazil Pro League from 1994 through 2002, with her clubs winning several championships. In 2004 she played with Novosibirsk in the Russian Pro League. From 2003 through 2010 she played in the Spanish Pro League, winning a championship with Barcelona in 2004-5 and Supercopa in 2005 before moving to Cadi in 2007 and then to Hondarribia-Irun in 2008.Vital statistics
- Position: Point Guard/Shooting Guard
- Height: 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
- Weight 144 lbs. (65 kg)
- Born 23-11-1972
External links
- WNBA Player Profile
- Irmãs Luz
- Sportalents Sports Management Agency
- Hondarribia-Irun team in Spanish Liga Femenina
- “Mystics' Luz Plays Name Game; Brazilian Lets Court Work Talk as She Handles Language, Cultural Barriers”
- Interview with Photos (in Portuguese)
- Helen, Alessandra and outcast Iziane return for Brazil
- Helen planeja encabeçar retorno de jogadoras brasileiras ao país
- FIBA Americas Championship 2009
- Helen de Volta Americana
- Interview discussing retirement -- nice photos
- Videotape of interview
- Appreciation from Spanish Basketball Federation