Swintayla Cash

Swintayla Marie Cash was born on September 22, 1979, in McKeesport, Pennsylvania (a suburb of Pittsburgh) and raised by her mother Cynthia. She has two brothers--Stephen and Kevin Menifee and one sister, Angelique Menifee.

Swin attended McKeesport High School, where she was president of the high school council. She also belonged to the Girl Scouts, Boys and Girls Club, YMCA/YWCA and AAU.

Swin attended the University of Connecticut (UConn) where she majored in Communication Sciene. She played for the Huskies under coach Geno Auriemma.

Swin was an All-American at UConn. She led the Huskies to the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship 2000 and 2002. She also helped lead UConn to an undefeated 39-0 season in 2002.

Swin was the 2nd pick in the first round of the 2002 WNBA draft, chosen by the Detroit Shock. (Her fellow Huskie, Sue Bird, was the #1 pick by the Seattle Storm.)

Swin led the Detroit Shock to their first WNBA Championship title in 2003. She played in the 2003 WNBA All-Star Game and helped the U.S. women's basketball team win the gold medal at the 2004 Olympic Games. In the off-season, Cash has appeared as a studio analyst on ESPN's NBA Fastbreak.

Swin and Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer had a rocky relationship throughout her tenure there, and requested a trade. On February 19, 2008 she was traded to the Seattle Storm for the draft rights of Alexis Hornbuckle in the 2008 WNBA draft.