Braxton was a 10-season WNBA veteran who played for the Detroit Shock, Tulsa Shock, Phoenix Mercury and New York Liberty.
PORTLAND, Ore. — Kara Braxton, a former WNBA All-Star and two-time champion with the Detroit Shock, has died at the age of 43.
The WNBA mourned her passing Sunday in a post on X, celebrating Braxton as a 10-season veteran who played for the Detroit Shock, Tulsa Shock, Phoenix Mercury and New York Liberty.
Braxton was killed in a car crash in the Atlanta area, according to the Cobb County Police Department. Authorities said in a release she was involved in a single-vehicle crash on I-285 on Saturday afternoon. Her vehicle collided with the concrete median wall on the left shoulder. The department did not further detail what may have caused her to initially veer off.
She was transported to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said.
Braxton went to the University of Georgia and was the No. 7 pick in the 2005 WNBA draft.
The New York Liberty also posted on X Sunday, saying Braxton’s “presence and passion left a lasting impact on our organization and the women’s game.”
Braxton was born Feb. 18, 1983, in Jackson, Michigan, where she played her freshman year of high school before transferring to Westview High School in Portland, Oregon. She and her twin sister, Kim, later enrolled at Westview together, where Braxton earned Oregon Gatorade Player of the Year honors as a senior.
She went on to play college basketball at Georgia for two-and-a-half seasons before entering the WNBA Draft.
Braxton was named to the WNBA’s All-Rookie team in 2005 after averaging 6.9 points and 3.0 rebounds as a key reserve for the Detroit Shock. The following year she helped the Shock win the WNBA title, and in 2007 became Detroit’s starting center after the team traded Ruth Riley to the San Antonio Stars.
After retiring from professional basketball, Braxton worked for Nike in Oregon before relocating to the Atlanta area.
Her son, Jelani Thurman, played tight end on the Ohio State football team that won the national championship in 2024. Thurman transferred to North Carolina in January. Braxton is survived by her husband, Jarvis Jackson, and two sons, Thurman and Jream Jackson.
