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Becky Hammon Recalls Wanting to Fight ‘Maniac’ Diana Taurasi During Playing Days

Stephen Douglas

Becky Hammon remembers competing against Diana Taurasi.
Becky Hammon remembers competing against Diana Taurasi. / @LoganReeve
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Diana Taurasi announced her retirement on Tuesday, ending a legendary 20-year career. Since the news hit tributes have been pouring in from everyone from Sue Bird to Caitlin Clark. Taurasi's résumé and impact on the sport cannot be questioned.

And neither can her competitive spirit.

Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon has coached against Taurasi the last few years, and also played against her for more than a decade when she was a member of the New York Liberty and San Antonio Silver Stars.

Hammon hilariously recalled what it was like playing against Taurai while speaking with the media on Tuesday.

"She's a maniac. She has what I call the switch," said Hammon. "She got that switch. Kobe had the switch, Michael had the switch, where it was like you step between those four lines. I mean there was times I wanted to fight her. And then she'd be like you want to go and get a beer? I'm like no I want to kill you right now. Because she had that switch. That competitiveness where she sees only winning."

That's incredible praise coming from a Hall of Famer. Taurasi will clearly be missed by everyone who didn't have to guard her.

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Stephen Douglas
STEPHEN DOUGLAS

Stephen Douglas is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in media since 2008 and now casts a wide net with coverage across all sports. Douglas spent more than a decade with The Big Lead and previously wrote for Uproxx and The Sporting News. He has three children, two degrees and one now unverified Twitter account.

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