Dream’s Tina Charles passes Tina Thompson for 2nd on all-time WNBA scoring list

Atlanta Dream center Tina Charles moved into second place on the WNBA’s all-time scoring list Wednesday, passing Hall of Famer Tina Thompson.

Charles entered Wednesday’s game against the Phoenix Mercury with 7,479 career points, trailing Thompson’s career total (7,488) by nine. She tied Thompson with a jumper from the wing in the third quarter for her ninth point of the night. She passed Thompson with a 3-pointer in the fourth quarter for her 12th point of the game, which gave the Dream a 51-48 lead.

The bucket was Charles’ last of the night, which leaves her at 7,491 points and counting. The Dream held on for a 72-63 win.

Charles, 35, has a long way to go to reach the top. Diana Taurasi, who’s still active and took the floor for the Mercury on Wednesday, is the league’s all-time leading scorer. She finished Wednesday’s game well ahead of Thompson and Charles with 10,500 career points.

Taurasi and Charles — friends and former UConn Huskies — embraced ahead of Wednesday’s game.

They shared another embrace on the court after Charles reached her achievement.

Charles’ move into second place further strengthens her certain Hall of Fame résumé. She reached the milestone in her 13th WNBA season after being selected first overall by the Connecticut Sun in the 2010 draft.

She has lived up to the top-pick billing. Charles has made eight All-Star teams and nine All-WNBA teams since joining the league. In the 2012 season that saw her miss the All-Star roster, she was named league MVP in her third year with the Sun.

She’s a two-time league scoring champion and a four-time rebounding champion. She also won two national championships at UConn and has three Olympic gold medals as a member of Team USA. The only hole in her résumé is a WNBA championship.

Now she’s the WNBA’s second-leading all-time scorer.