Moore, Parker chosen among WNBA's 20 greatest players

NEW YORK (AP) Maya Moore and Candace Parker have led their teams to record starts. Now the two former MVPs are being honored among the 20 greatest and most influential players in WNBA history.

They were the youngest players on the list, which was selected by a 15-member panel and announced Tuesday.

''I grew up watching the WNBA, and to be in a class of athletes of the caliber that this league has produced over the past 20 years is a huge honor,'' said Moore. ''It's definitely a dream come true. I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to compete at the highest levels and develop my talent to the point that I was even in consideration for this honor.''

Other active players include Moore's Minnesota teammates Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen. Seattle's Sue Bird, Indiana's Tamika Catchings, Phoenix's Diana Taurasi, Chicago's Cappie Pondexter and New York's Swin Cash round out the current players selected.

''It's pretty cool, some of the best players to ever play basketball, and to be a part of that is something that's very special,'' Taurasi told The Associated Press. ''It's huge, you talk about the players that are going to be on that list are the players that I looked up to, that I played with, against, I've learned a lot from being around them, and it's a pretty special moment for, I think, the league in general,''

Former players Cynthia Cooper, Yolanda Griffith, Becky Hammon, Lauren Jackson, Lisa Leslie, Deanna Nolan, Ticha Penicheiro, Katie Smith, Sheryl Swoopes, Tina Thompson and Teresa Weatherspoon were also honored.

Nolan was the only one of the former players not to be selected five years ago among the 15 greatest. Dawn Staley was on that list, but didn't make Tuesday's group.

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AP Basketball Writer Stephen Hawkins contributed to this story from Arlington, Texas.