Every basketball player has her own pregame routine. Few, however, have one as challenging as Candace Parker's.
Before the next WNBA game, Parker will listen to Jay-Z, stretch and take some shots with her Los Angeles Sparks teammates. Then she will return to the locker room, pull out her breast pump and get down to business.
"This is something I think I can keep doing for Lailaa," Parker said of avoiding formula for her 8-week-old daughter.
The WNBA's reigning MVP is not the first player in the league to have a baby. In fact, on her team alone, there are five mothers. Yet, Parker is pushing the envelope in one important way: She is starting her family at the beginning of her professional career, rather than putting it off until her late 20s or 30s. And she is trying to do it without taking much of a break.
Unlike teammate Lisa Leslie, who took a full year off after having her baby, Parker is pushing herself to miss as little playing time as possible. Last Sunday, just 7 1/2 weeks after giving birth to her first child and less than a week after attending her first postpartum practice, Parker scored six points in a 104-89 loss to the Phoenix Mercury.
"I think you can still be a great mom and do what you want to do," Parker said. "I think following my passion is good for me and good for my daughter."
Parker didn't plan for it to happen this way. Neither did her team, her sponsors and the league's publicity machine. All were shocked last January when Parker announced that she and her husband, Timberwolves forward Shelden Williams, were expecting. The 6-4 Parker had just won the Rookie of the Year and WNBA MVP awards in the same season. She was being touted as a once-in-a-lifetime player, a female Michael Jordan who would bring a whole new generation of fans to the WNBA.
Parker continued to work out until three days before giving birth and took two weeks off afterward only because the doctors ordered her to. She says she can do everything now that she used to, just not as well. "My core is not as tight and my legs are coming back but are not under me 100 percent," she said, "but every day I am getting stronger."
Coach Michael Cooper said after Sunday's game that the Sparks expect Parker's recovery will take some time.
"I wish Michael Jordan could give birth and come out and play," Cooper said. "The only thing he had to do was fight a cold and then throw up against Utah."
Parker admits that some days are easier than others. She still gets up in the middle of the night to feed her daughter, and she remembered a day a couple weeks ago when she physically didn't think she could drag her body into the gym, let alone work out.
Parker believes a lot of working mothers have experienced what she is going through. She is planning to take her daughter to her away games. She is hoping that her comeback can inspire other mothers who want to follow their dreams and have a career and family.
Said Parker: "I feel that people are rooting for me. I think they want me to succeed. I never wanted to sacrifice my career for my family or family for my career. I think there are a lot of mothers out there who have the same dreams and I would encourage them to follow them."
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