Tamika Catchings’ basketball career is coming to a conclusion at the end of this WNBA season. Her Indiana Fever are playing their final regular season game on Sunday against the Dallas Wings. It happens to be a home game, and the team, along with Paul George, are pulling out all the stops to try and send Catchings off with a bang. George has purchased 5,000 tickets for the Fever game that will be given out for free to fans.
The tickets are for balcony seats, and the process of giving them away began on Friday afternoon. Each person was limited to four free tickets. The Fever did clinch a playoff spot for a WNBA-record 12th straight season, so Catchings’ career doesn’t end Sunday, but this is a chance to really celebrate her career.
Much as how George has become the face of the Indiana Pacers, Catchings has been the face of the Fever pretty much since she was drafted by the franchise third overall in 2001. She played her entire career with Indiana, winning one MVP, and one Finals MVP in 2012, while also making 10 All-Star teams and being named Defensive Player of the Year five times. She’s also a four-time Olympic gold medalist, and she and George both ended up winning golds this year in Rio.
It’s a cool gesture for George to buy these tickets to make them available for local fans to go to the game for free. Hopefully it works out and Catchings gets the farewell she deserves.
(Via NBA.com)
