Driving down an expressway decorated with billboards highlighting Diana Taurasi's many accolades, one passes the brightly-lit olympic medals, 2004's WNBA Rookie of the Year award, the 2007 WNBA Championship trophy, and much more.
It should come as no surprise then that the Chino, California native, who just turned 26 on June 11th is headed back to Olympic play as a member of the USA Women's National Basketball Team.
"Every opportunity I get to play in the Olympics is unbelievable," claims Taurasi. "Whenever it comes up, I take full advantage of it."
Taurasi, a vital member of the 2004 USA Women's team that captured the gold medal in the sport, says she's looking even more forward to a return she hopes is triumphant.
"This summer's going to be another great opportunity," she adds. "How are you going to compare the Olympics with anything else?"
It won't conflict with her WNBA play. Taurasi's Phoenix Mercury, along with the rest of the league are suspending play for most of August. Some, like Mercury teammate Penny Taylor are taking the pre-Olympics portion of the WNBA season off solely to practice for the summer games. Taurasi will likely play against Taylor should Australia and the U.S. meet in competition, as was the case in 2000 and '04.
Taurasi says while the WNBA is the league she likes playing in the most, the Olympics are as good as the gold up for grabs in them.
"The Olympics isn't just a basketball tournament," she says. "You're kind of...not kind of...you're going out there to represent the country you're from, where you were born, and are from. To me that means a lot!"
The inverse of the Penny Taylor situation also becomes a reality for her in Olympic play. Taurasi often finds herself teammates again with former college friends like Swin Cash and Sue Bird, both of whom play for WNBA competitors. Bird will again be Dee's U.S. teammate this year.
"I get an opportunity to go with a lot of my good friends, and at the same time play in a basketball tournament that's going to be one of the most competitive in many years," she claims.
The womens' squad for 2008 so far includes veterans Lisa Leslie (Los Angeles Sparks), Katie Smith (Detroit Shock), WNBA rookie sensation Candace Parker (Los Angeles Sparks), Cappie Pondexter (Phoenix Mercury), and Sylvia Fowles (Chicago Sky).
The complete 12-player roster will be released July 1, 2008. Taurasi looks forward to it, as she'll know who she'll be visiting China with.
"I've been to China before!" she recalls, having gone with NBA players in 2004. "It's got incredible cities, like Beijing."
The Summer Olympic games run from August 8th to the 24th, 2008.
