Kayla Thornton
 Thornton with the Dallas Wings in 2021
| |
| No. 5 – New York Liberty | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward / power forward |
| League | WNBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born |
October 20, 1992 Germany |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Irvin (El Paso, Texas) |
| College | UTEP (2010–2014) |
| WNBA draft | 2014: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2014–present |
| Career history | |
| 2015 | Washington Mystics |
| 2015–present | Cheongju KB Stars |
| 2017–2022 | Dallas Wings |
| 2023-present | New York Liberty |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Kayla Thornton (born October 20, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). In college, Thornton played for the University of Texas at El Paso.
Thornton was traded to the New York Liberty on January 16, 2023, as part of a 3-Team trade.
Career
Thornton was El Paso's all-time leading scorer. She led the team to a record 29 wins.
Thornton was not selected in the 2014 WNBA draft, but she played 10 games with Washington that season. Thornton is known for her defensive play, and her ability to guard players in any position.
In the WNBA off season, Thornton has played in Australia, Israel, Puerto Rico, South Korea, and Italy.
Career statistics
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
WNBA
Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Washington | 10 | 0 | 8.8 | .333 | .000 | .667 | 2.1 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 2.2 |
| 2017 | Dallas | 34 | 1 | 17.2 | .412 | .279 | .800 | 3.3 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 6.8 |
| 2018 | Dallas | 34 | 32 | 28.6 | .447 | .355 | .860 | 4.0 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 1.1 | 9.2 |
| 2019 | Dallas | 27 | 25 | 30.4 | .343 | .272 | .931 | 5.3 | 1.8 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 1.6 | 10.4 |
| 2020 | Dallas | 22 | 14 | 25.3 | .429 | .347 | .875 | 5.1 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 1.1 | 7.3 |
| 2021 | Dallas | 31 | 25 | 27.6 | .421 | .349 | .849 | 5.6 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 1.0 | 7.5 |
| 2022 | Dallas | 36 | 35 | 29.2 | .471 | .329 | .829 | 5.9 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 8.0 |
| Career | 7 years, 2 teams | 194 | 132 | 25.4 | .414 | .322 | .847 | 4.7 | 1.4 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 7.9 |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Dallas | 1 | 0 | 6.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| 2018 | Dallas | 1 | 1 | 30.0 | .571 | .000 | .000 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 8.0 |
| 2021 | Dallas | 1 | 1 | 16.0 | .000 | .000 | .000 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| 2022 | Dallas | 3 | 3 | 26.3 | .526 | .500 | 1.000 | 4.7 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 8.3 |
| Career | 4 years, 1 team | 6 | 5 | 21.8 | .424 | .308 | 1.000 | 3.3 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 5.5 |
College
Source
| Year | Team | GP | Points | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| 2010-11 | UTEP | 30 | 210 | 42.8% | 14.3% | 67.8% | 5.8 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 7.0 |
| 2011-12 | UTEP | 32 | 315 | 48.0% | 38.1% | 73.0% | 7.3 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 9.8 |
| 2012-13 | UTEP | 32 | 491 | 41.0% | 28.5% | 70.5% | 8.7 | 1.2 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 15.3 |
| 2013-14 | UTEP | 34 | 663 | 43.0% | 27.7% | 77.7% | 10.1 | 2.0 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 19.5 |
| Career | 128 | 1679 | 43.3% | 28.5% | 73.6% | 8.1 | 1.2 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 13.1 |