Tina Charles returns to Liberty with title dream

Tina Charles is coming home.

The Liberty acquired the 2012 WNBA MVP and 2010 Rookie of the Year on Monday night from the Connecticut Sun for Kelsey Bone, 2014 first-round pick Alyssa Thomas, and their first-round pick in next year's draft. Charles, a Queens native who was a two-time national champion at UConn, graduated from Christ the King High School in 2006.

"Growing up in Queens, I hopped on different trains and buses and did everything that I could just to end up on a basketball court," Charles said on Tuesday on a conference call from Russia, where she is playing for Dynamo Moscow. "To end up at Madison Square Garden is a dream come true. Not just for me, but for my family, close friends, and any teammate or coach I ever had."

In four seasons with the Sun, Charles averaged 17.3 points and 10.8 rebounds. In 29 games last year, she averaged 18 points and 10.1 rebounds.

"Tina will be one of the cornerstones of this franchise," coach and general manager Bill Laimbeer said. "She's a prolific scorer and an outstanding rebounder. She wants to win very badly, especially in front of her family and friends here in New York."

Charles said coming to New York gives her the best chance to win a title after falling short with the Sun.

"My decision to leave the Sun was based on winning and being in New York," she said. "Coach Laimbeer and New York is headed in the right direction to win a championship in the near future."

The Sun executives said Monday night that their perennial All-Star had threatened not to play if she wasn't traded.

"I did absolutely consider sitting out," Charles said. "Connecticut has great parts and players, but the bigger picture was coach Laimbeer and Cappie [Pondexter] and the New York Liberty and the opportunity they presented."

Charles said that her time at Christ the King prepared her for the high-pressure nature of the Garden, where the Liberty returns after spending the last three seasons at Prudential Center in Newark.

"Being a New Yorker, I don't have any patience," she said. "Christ the King is one of the biggest high schools in New York. If we lost, it was a big thing. I can only imagine what it's going to be like having the Liberty back at the Garden."

Charles won't have to wait long to return to Connecticut. The Liberty opens the preseason May 11 and the regular season May 16 against the Sun at Mohegan Sun Arena.

The Liberty also received the Suns' third-round pick in next year's draft.

With AP