Former Lynx player Candice Wiggins criticizes WNBA, says she was harassed for being heterosexual

Candice Wiggins had what many would consider a dream career in the WNBA: No. 3 overall draft pick out of Stanford in 2008 becomes Sixth Woman of the Year as a rookie and wins the 2011 title with the Lynx.

That success, Wiggins says now, hid a darker reality.

"It wasn't like my dreams came true in the WNBA. It was quite the opposite," said Wiggins, who retired in March at age 30 after an eight-year career with four teams.

Wiggins asserts she was targeted for harassment from the time she was drafted by the Lynx because she is heterosexual and was nationally popular.

"Me being heterosexual and straight and being vocal in my identity as a straight woman was huge," Wiggins said. "I would say 98 percent of the women in the WNBA are gay."

Referring to her rookie season, Wiggins said: "People were deliberately trying to hurt me all of the time. … The message was: 'We want you to know we don't like you.' "

She played her final three seasons for three different teams — Tulsa, Los Angeles and New York.

"There were horrible things happening to me every day," she said.

Wiggins called the WNBA "depressing."

"It's not watched," she said. "Our value is diminished."