Cue the controversy and strike up the blogger debates. WNBA star Diana Taurasi appears naked on the cover of ESPN magazine’s annual body issue. The Phoenix Mercury guard/forward is one of a bevy of athletes posing in the buff with strategically placed athletic gear for the magazine; among Taurasi’s peers in the issue: tennis star Venus Williams, surfer and hottie Kelly Slater, and MMA fighter Gina Carano. In all likelihood, some critics will suggest the basketball player’s sexy and revealing cover is little more than sports-related sexploitation, but Taurasi says, “I am who I am — whether I have clothes on or off.” However it pans out, we’re happy to see a woman on a magazine cover flaunting her real body. [USA Today]
