# Kennedy Burke

Kennedy Valentine Burke (born February 14, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was drafted by the Dallas Wings in the 2019 WNBA draft, and has played for the Indiana Fever, Seattle Storm, and the Washington Mystics in the WNBA.
Burke completed her college career with the UCLA Bruins of the University of California, Los Angeles in 2019.

## Early life

Burke is from Northridge, Los Angeles. Her father played professional basketball in the Mexican league and competed for the Panamanian national team. Burke attended Sierra Canyon School in nearby Chatsworth. She has an older sister, Kody Burke, who played college basketball at NC State.

## Career

Burke played for UCLA from 2015 to 2019, where she was a standout player. She scored 1,513 points, averaging 11.0 points per game, and was known for her defensive skills. After a stellar college career at UCLA, Burke entered the WNBA in 2019. Initially drafted by the Dallas Wings, she soon found her footing with the Indiana Fever. Over the years, she has also played for the Seattle Storm and the Washington Mystics, and she is currently with the New York Liberty. Burke’s versatility as a guard-forward has made her a valuable asset to her teams.

### Overseas

Burke began her international career in Turkey, playing for Bellona Kayseri Basketbol in the Super League where she averaged 18 points and eight rebounds a game; Kayersi also played in the truncated 2020–21 EuroCup Women competition.
During the 2020–2021 season, Burke played for the Lega Basket Femminile team Dinamo Sassari in Italy. The following year she played for Spar Girona in the Spanish league; they competed in the 2021–22 EuroLeague Women season.
In 2022, Burke joined ESB Villeneuve-d'Ascq in France's Ligue Féminine de Basketball. She has become a breakout star in the league and was named its Most Valuable Player two years in a row (2023, 2024). The team played in the EuroCup and the 2023 EuroLeague Qualifying Round; for the 2023–2024 season, the team was promoted to the EuroLeague and were the runner-ups of the season. Burke was named All-EuroLeague Second Team and MVP of the Month in December, among other honors

## Career statistics

| † | Denotes season(s) in which Burke won a WNBA championship |

### WNBA
#### Regular season

Stats current through end of 2024 season
WNBA regular season statistics :
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
| 2019 | Indiana | 31 | 7 | 13.6 | .385 | .350 | .705 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 4.4 |
| 2020 | Indiana | 22 | 11 | 18.3 | .449 | .313 | .714 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 1.2 | 7.2 |
| 2021 | Seattle | 23 | 0 | 7.7 | .446 | .333 | .625 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 2.9 |
| 2022 | Washington | 16 | 4 | 13.9 | .446 | .344 | .588 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 5.4 |
| 2023 | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA | Did not appear in WNBA |
| 2024$^†$ | New York | 38 | 3 | 12.1 | .409 | .259 | .667 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 3.4 |
| Career | 5 years, 4 teams | 130 | 25 | 12.9 | .423 | .311 | .679 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.7 | 4.4 |

#### Playoffs

WNBA playoff statistics :
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
| 2021 | Seattle | 1 | 0 | 5.0 | — | — | — | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| 2024$^†$ | New York | 6 | 0 | 7.5 | .182 | .167 | .250 | 1.7 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 1.0 |
| Career | 2 years, 2 teams | 7 | 0 | 7.1 | .182 | .167 | .250 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 0.9 |

### College

NCAA statistics :
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | TO | PPG |
| 2015–16 | UCLA | 35 | 0 | 18.5 | .409 | .323 | .566 | 3.7 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 5.8 |
| 2016–17 | UCLA | 34 | 29 | 29.3 | .457 | .286 | .663 | 4.9 | 1.9 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 2.1 | 12.2 |
| 2017–18 | UCLA | 35 | 34 | 29.5 | .434 | .296 | .728 | 4.3 | 2.2 | 1.7 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 10.6 |
| 2018–19 | UCLA | 34 | 34 | 32.7 | .488 | .296 | .732 | 6.2 | 2.3 | 2.0 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 15.4 |
| Career | Career | 138 | 97 | 27.4 | .454 | .298 | .690 | 4.8 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 0.9 | 1.9 | 11.0 |

## Awards and honors
### Overseas

Ligue Féminine de Basketball
* 2x Most Valuable Player (2023, 2024)
* 2x Major 5 Trophy (2023, 2024)
EuroLeague Women
* All-EuroLeague Second Team (2024)
* MVP of the Month (2023)
* 2x Team of the Month (2023–2024)
* 4x MVP of the Round (2023–2024)