10 Incredible Photos of Retired WNBA Star Sue Bird in St. Thomas

The athlete posed for the magazine in 2022 alongside four other pro basketball players.

Cara O’Bleness | Feb 21, 2023

Sue Bird was photographed by Laretta Houston in St. Thomas.

Laretta Houston/Sports Illustrated

Arguably one of the best WNBA stars of all time, Sue Bird was featured in the SI Swimsuit Issue last year. The now-retired basketball player participated in a group photo shoot in St. Thomas alongside four additional WNBA athletes: Breanna Stewart, DiDi Richards, Nneka Ogwumike and Te’a Cooper.

The athlete was drafted No. 1 by the Storm in 2002 and played her entire professional career with the Seattle-based team. Bird retired in September after an epic 20-year career, during which she and her team won four WNBA championships.

In December, the five-time Olympic gold medalist and her partner, USWNT star and 2019 SI Swimsuit model Megan Rapinoe, launched A Touch More, a production company that aims to elevate the voices of those who “move culture forward.”

As for her SI Swimsuit feature, Bird said she was “floored” and “super excited” when she got the call about appearing in the magazine.

“To actually be invited, to know what they’re celebrating, it’s amazing... I feel like I was lucky in that we did the group shots first, so it was kind of like a good way to be around other people to get used to being in front of the camera in your suit,” she shared. “So now that it’s the individual day, I feel like a little more relaxed and kind of ready for it.”

Below are 10 stunning images from Bird’s photo shoot in St. Thomas with photographer Laretta Houston.

Sue Bird — Laretta Houston/Sports Illustrated

Published Feb 21, 2023

CARA O’BLENESS

Cara O’Bleness is a writer and editor on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit. Prior to joining SI Swimsuit in 2022, she worked as a writer and editor across a number of content verticals, including food, lifestyle, health and wellness, and small business and entrepreneurship. In her free time, O’Bleness loves reading, spending time with her family and making her way through Michigan’s many microbreweries. She is a graduate of Michigan State University’s School of Journalism.