Monique Currie, Mystics forward, retires from WNBA

Washington Mystics veteran forward Monique Currie announced her retirement from the WNBA on Monday.

Currie played 8-and-a-half of her 13 WNBA seasons with the Mystics, her first stint lasting from 2007 to 2014. She then returned to the Mystics for the 2018 season, part of the team made its first WNBA Finals appearance in franchise history.

Currie, who turned 36 Monday, announced in an Instagram post that she is moving to Portland, Oregon, to accept a job at Nike headquarters.

“This is a sneaker head’s dream come true!” Currie wrote.

View this post on Instagram

It’s my birthday today but 2019 has really been a tough year for me! Shed more thug tears these past two months than I’ve done in my entire life. I lost my grandma in January and my uncle this month so it’s been rough. Despite it all there’s much to be grateful for and I’m excited about my 36TH year on this earth! So many changes to come! I’m officially retired from the WNBA and will be moving to Portland to work at NIKE’s headquarters! This is a sneaker heads dream come true! Thank you to all that have supported me along the way, I appreciate you more than you know. Let the turn up begin 🤗 Meet me at my favorite spot tonight! You already know 😎

A post shared by Monique Currie 🌎🌏🏀🏀🍗🍗🍪🍪 (@mocurrie) on Feb 25, 2019 at 8:07am PST

She gave a shout out to her fans and supporters in the post, writing, “Thank you to all that have supported me along the way, I appreciate you more than you know.”

Currie also revealed she had lost her grandmother and her uncle since the turn of the calendar year, making it an emotional 2019 so far.

Currie finishes her career with 4,253 points, 30th in WNBA history, and her 411 career games played ranks 21st all-time.

A native of the District, Currie went to Bullis School in Potomac, Maryland, for high school. 

The Charlotte Sting selected her third overall in the 2006 WNBA Draft out of Duke, but that team dissolved after a year. 

Currie went to Chicago, who soon traded her to Washington. That made three teams in a very short span, but Currie found her place with the Mystics and started for them for several seasons.

Currie came off the bench during the 2018 playoffs as the Mystics made their strongest run in franchise history before losing to the Seattle Storm in the WNBA Finals. She averaged 6.6 points and 3.0 rebounds over 16 minutes per game as a 35-year-old.

Mystics coach Mike Thibault tweeted a statement thanking Currie and wishing her well.

“A special thank you to Mo Currie for being a consummate pro and for all her contributions to the Washington Mystics over her career,” Thibault wrote. “A pleasure to coach and a great person to be associated with. Good luck in your next career!”

The Mystics return to the court this spring. Their 2019 season opener is May 25 at the Connecticut Sun.