Sue Bird Officially Returning for 19th Season With Storm

It’s official—Bird is back. 

Sue Bird is returning for her 19th season in the WNBA, all of them spent with the Storm. The four-time WNBA champion had previously discussed potentially retiring after Seattle's loss in the playoffs.

“This is the first time where I'm really going to have to sit back, see how I feel, weigh some things. I know for sure that I want to let the emotion of the season die down,” Bird said, per Yahoo Sports. “I don't want to make some emotional decision.”

As the buzzer sounded at the end of Seattle’s playoff appearance last season, fans could be heard chanting “one more year” at the Storm star. 

Throughout her 549 career games, Bird has averaged 12 points, 2.6 rebounds and 5.6 assists. She is the all-time WNBA assists leader, the all-time WNBA leader in career starts (549), a 12-time WNBA All-Star and a five-time All-WNBA first team member. Bird has played on five Olympic gold-medal-winning squads, the latest bringing home the dub from Tokyo. 

Per Yahoo Sports, Bird is currently an unrestricted free agent and cannot start negotiating a contract with Seattle until the free-agency period begins on Jan. 15.