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Ex-WNBA great Pondexter safe after going missing following release from jail

Will Navarro / National Basketball Association / Getty

Former WNBA standout Cappie Pondexter was found safe Thursday after going missing following her release from a Los Angeles jail, her representative Chuck Walton told The Athletic's Lyndsey D'Arcangelo.

Pondexter was arrested Tuesday on a battery charge and released earlier Thursday, Los Angeles police confirmed to USA Today's Josh Peter.

Pondexter's agent Chuck Brown had said her whereabouts were unknown after she wandered off following her release. He also expressed serious concern for her safety.

"She was very angry," Brown told Peter. "She was saying a lot of stuff that really didn't make sense. Just out of respect for her privacy, I don't want to reveal some of the stuff that she said. But it was very consistent with her being on something."

Pondexter is currently receiving assistance from her family and friends, D'Arcangelo adds.

The Rutgers product played in the league from 2006-18, most notably with the Phoenix Mercury, New York Liberty, and Chicago Sky. She last appeared during the 2018 season when she split time between the Los Angeles Sparks and Indiana Fever.

Pondexter averaged 16.4 points, 3.8 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and a steal per game en route to two titles and a 2007 Finals MVP award with the Mercury. The 5-foot-9 guard also captured Olympic gold with Team USA at the 2008 Beijing Games.

Pondexter, 37, is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of her era. In 2011, the WNBA named her one of the league's top 15 players of all time; she subsequently made the "WNBA Top 20@20" list during the league's 20th season in 2016.

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