MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - NOVEMBER 01: Liz Cambage DJ's in the Lavazza Marquee on Melbourne Cup Day at Flemington Racecourse on November 1, 2016 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images for the VRC)
Liz Cambage was part of a three-player trade on Thursday, May 16 in which she was sent from the WNBA’s Dallas Stars to the Las Vegas Aces in exchange for forward Isabelle Harrison and guard Moriah Jefferson. Here are five fast facts that Las Vegas fans should know about the newest addition to the Aces’ roster.
1. Cambage Holds the WNBA Single-Game Scoring Record
Cambage, who will turn 28 on August 18, has at least one notable WNBA record already on her résumé. On July 17, 2018 in a game for Dallas against the New York Liberty, Cambage scored 53 points. She went 17/22 from the field that day, including 4/5 from 3-point range. Her scoring was part of a double-double performance with 10 rebounds. She also added five blocked shots in what will be remembered as one of the greatest individual single-game performances in WNBA history. The 6’8″ center would follow that up with a 35-point game against the Washington Mystics on July 20, 2018, breaking Maya Moore’s two-game scoring record of 80 points. Cambage’s scoring proficiency not only led the league in 2018 but led to her second WNBA All-Star appearance, between which there was a considerable time gap.
2. Cambage Didn’t Play in the WNBA for Five Years
After being selected by the Tulsa Shock in the 2011 WNBA Draft, Cambage made it clear that she did not want to play for Tulsa but reluctantly did so for the 2011 season, making her first All-Star appearance as a rookie. Cambage, a native of Australia, took a break from the WNBA like many other players to represent her country in the 2012 Summer Olympics. That would prove to be the end of her time with the Shock, as she decided not to return to finish the 2013 season and the team soon after moved to Dallas and rebranded as the Wings.
Cambage was absent from the WNBA for the next four seasons, playing for three different Chinese Basketball Association teams during that span. Prior to the 2018 WNBA season, she signed her current contract with the Wings, which she will now play for the Aces under.
3. Cambage Has Used Basketball Career to Achieve Celebrity Status
Since picking up a basketball at the age of 10, Cambage was groomed to play the game at a high level in Australia. She had a roster spot on the Australian National Team by age 17 and held onto that spot through the 2012 Olympics, in which she became famous for successfully completing a one-handed dunk against Russia. Cambage has nearly 120,000 followers on Instagram and over 36,000 followers on Twitter. She was one of Adidas’ brand representatives at this year’s Coachella and she has been romantically connected to AFL player Alex Lee.
4. Cambage Used Basketball to Fit In as a Child
After Cambage was born in London to a Nigerian father, her Australian mother separated from Cambage’s father and returned to her native country when Cambage was three months old. Cambage hit a growth spurt in her tween years, reaching six feet by age 10. Her mother encouraged her to try basketball because she was bullied by her classmates for her height and it has proven to be some of the best advice she has gotten from her mother.
5. Cambage Might Still Not Be Happy With Her Situation
As rumors swirled about the trade from Dallas to Las Vegas over the course of several days, Cambage took to Instagram and Twitter to relay her feelings on the now-official transaction. They were not positive, communicating that she felt used. It may be that Cambage’s sights are still set on what she has consistently communicated is her ultimate goal of landing a roster spot in one of Europe’s professional leagues, where compensation is the best in the world for female basketball players.
As of now, it seems Cambage is set to open the 2019 season with the Aces. How far Las Vegas will go and how much longer she will play in the WNBA is questionable, but what’s beyond questioning is the talent Cambage brings to the court anywhere.