When the all-day lovefest for Sue Bird was over, and the scores of posters expressing pure adulation had been taken down as the record crowd dispersed, the woman of the hour reflected on what it all meant.
Specifically, she was asked what the rookie version of herself would have thought of Sunday’s raucous celebration at Climate Pledge Arena as Bird played her final home regular-season game for the Seattle Storm at the age of nearly 42. It has been 21 years of first earning respect from the fan base (and the league at large), and then admiration, and finally devotion and deep affection.
“I think 21-year-old me would be surprised I’m still going,’’ she said with a laugh. “Not because she didn’t think I had it in me. She wouldn’t have even thought those things. So I think she’d be really proud. And, you know, she’s still inside here.”
