Candace Parker’s wife, Anna Petrakova Parker, sends heartfelt message celebrating historic milestone

Candace Parker’s wife, Anna Petrakova Parker, celebrated the WNBA great's historic milestone with a post on Instagram. The LA Sparks held a special ceremony to retire Parker’s jersey during Sunday’s game against the Chicago Sky.

Parker took the court at halftime as the Sparks immortalized her, putting her No. 3 jersey in the rafters at Crypto.com Arena. Her wife, Anna Petrakova, was beside her, celebrating the achievement. After the game, Petrakova posted a heartfelt message on Instagram, sharing pictures from the jersey retirement.

Anna wrote "Epic" along with a purple heart in one story, which also had a teary-eyed and heart hands emoji. In another, she simply added a "3" to the post.

Anna Petrakova Parker’s Instagram story

The LA Sparks selected Candace Parker with the No. 1 pick of the 2008 draft. She was with the team for 13 seasons, winning two MVPs, the Defensive Player of the Year award, the Finals MVP and a championship.

Parker left LA in 2020 and joined the Chicago Sky in 2021, leading the team to its first championship. After two years in the Windy City, Parker took her talents to the Las Vegas Aces and won another championship in 2023.

She made 410 appearances through 16 seasons. Parker averaged 16.0 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists for her career. Since her retirement, she has been widely considered one of the best players in league history.

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“Imagined being with a Prince Charming”: Candace Parker on how Anna Petrakova made her heart ‘beat differently’

Before her marriage to Anna Petrakova, Candace Parker spent almost a decade with former NBA player Shelden Williams. Parker and Williams got married in 2008 and were divorced by 2016.

The WNBA legend met her wife in 2012 while playing basketball in Russia during the offseason. They started as teammates and grew close over time, eventually marrying in 2019. Speaking to People, Parker noted that spending time with Anna Petrakova made her heart beat differently.

“I just looked at her in a different way and my heart started beating in a different way. I think it was that moment where I realized it," Parker said. "The realization that I always imagined myself being with a Prince Charming over and over and over — and for her too — then now to realize sometimes what you need doesn't come in the box that you expect it to."

Petrakova and Parker got married in a private ceremony in 2019. However, they didn't make their marriage public until two years later, in 2021.

Edited by R. Elahi