Kayla Thornton (born October 20, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). In college, Thornton played for the University of Texas at El Paso .[ 1] [ 2]
Career
Thornton was El Paso's all-time leading scorer.[ 3] She led the team to a record 29 wins.[ 3]
Thornton was not selected in the 2014 WNBA draft . She signed with the Washington Mystics for the 2015 season and played in 10 games. She returned to the WNBA for the 2017 season , signing with the Dallas Wings . She spent six seasons in Dallas before being traded on January 16, 2023 to the New York Liberty in a three-team deal.[ 3] [ 4] [ 5]
Thornton is known for her defensive play, and her ability to guard players in any position.[ 3] [ 6] In the WNBA off season, Thornton has played in Australia, Egypt, Israel, Italy, Puerto Rico, Russia and South Korea.[ 6]
Career statistics
WNBA
Regular season
Stats current through end of 2024 season
WNBA regular season statistics[ 7]
Year
Team
2015
Washington
10
0
8.8
.333
.000
.667
2.1
0.1
0.3
0.3
0.5
2.2
2016
Did not play (waived)
2017
Dallas
34
1
17.2
.412
.279
.800
3.3
0.9
0.6
0.2
0.7
6.8
2018
Dallas
34
32
28.6
.447
.355
.860
4.0
1.8
1.0
0.4
1.1
9.2
2019
Dallas
27
25
30.4
.343
.272
.931
5.3
1.8
0.9
0.3
1.6
10.4
2020
Dallas
22
14
25.3
.429
.347
.875
5.1
0.8
0.9
0.2
1.1
7.3
2021
Dallas
31
25
27.6
.421
.349
.849
5.6
1.5
0.8
0.2
1.0
7.5
2022
Dallas
36
35
29.2
.471
.329
.829
5.9
1.8
1.1
0.6
1.2
8.0
2023
New York
40 °
0
17.3
.433
.313
.767
3.5
0.7
0.7
0.3
0.5
4.5
2024 †
New York
40 °
11
20.3
.379
.357
.846
2.6
0.7
0.7
0.2
0.6
5.5
Career
9 years, 3 teams
274
143
23.5
.411
.327
.841
4.2
1.2
0.8
0.3
0.9
7.0
Playoffs
WNBA playoff statistics
Year
Team
2017
Dallas
1
0
6.0
.000
.000
—
1.0
1.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
2018
Dallas
1
1
30.0
.571
.000
—
3.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
8.0
2021
Dallas
1
1
16.0
.000
.000
—
2.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
2022
Dallas
3
3
26.3
.526
.500
1.000
4.7
1.3
0.3
0.7
1.0
8.3
2023
New York
10
0
10.1
.444
.400
1.000
1.5
0.3
0.1
0.2
0.3
3.2
2024 †
New York
11
0
12.5
.333
.176
1.000
1.5
0.1
0.3
0.3
0.1
2.0
Career
6 years, 2 teams
27
5
13.7
.405
.289
1.000
1.9
0.3
0.2
0.3
0.3
3.2
College
NCAA statistics[ 8]
Year
Team
2010–11
UTEP
30
12
19.9
.428
.143
.678
5.8
0.6
1.1
0.2
1.1
7.0
2011–12
UTEP
32
32
24.9
.480
.381
.730
7.3
0.9
1.1
0.4
1.2
9.8
2012–13
UTEP
32
31
31.2
.410
.285
.705
8.7
1.2
1.9
0.4
1.9
15.3
2013–14
UTEP
34
33
31.3
.430
.277
.777
10.1
2.0
2.6
1.0
2.4
19.5
Career
128
108
27.0
.433
.285
.736
8.1
1.2
1.7
0.5
1.7
13.1
References
↑ "Kayla Thornton" . University of Texas at El Paso. Retrieved May 25, 2018 .
↑ Bloomquist, Bret (May 17, 2018). "Ex-UTEP, Irvin basketball star Kayla Thornton set to open WNBA season with Dallas Wings" . El Paso Times . Retrieved May 25, 2018 .
↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Magliocchetti, Geoff (May 17, 2023). "Liberty 2023 Player Preview: Kayla Thornton" . Sports Illustrated New York Knicks News, Analysis and More . Retrieved 2023-06-21 .
↑ Fleurantin, Brian (2023-01-16). "New York Liberty acquire Jonquel Jones and Kayla Thornton in major trade" . NetsDaily . Retrieved 2024-07-16 .
↑ "New York Liberty Acquire Frontcourt Duo of Jonquel Jones and Kayla Thornton in Three-Team Deal" . liberty.wnba.com . WNBA. Retrieved 17 January 2023 .
↑ 6.0 6.1 Fleurantin, Brian (February 22, 2023). "Kayla Thornton talks her career, the Liberty, and more on Pull-Up with Myles and Owen" . NetsDaily . Retrieved 2023-06-21 .
↑ "Kayla Thornton WNBA Stats" . Basketball Reference .
↑ "NCAA Statistics" . web1.ncaa.org . Retrieved 2021-05-26 .
External links