Sheryl Swoopes Ray Amati/Getty Images

Last week, SI writer Richard Deitsch interviewed Sheryl Swoopes for the magazine's Q&A. The three-time WNBA MVP and Houston Comets forward (she's 35) was named this month to the league's All-Decade Team. Here are additional excerpts from their conversation.

SI: Who is the toughest player to guard in the league?

Swoopes: [Indiana Fever forward] Tamika Catchings. I have so much respect for her as a player and person. She's one of the players who does not get the type of recognition she deserves. ... If she's not scoring, she won't slack off defensively. A lot of players won't play defense [if they're not scoring]. But she brings it for 40 minutes.

SI: The Comets of the late 1990s won the first four WNBA championships but are rarely mentioned among the great sports dynasties. Where should you be ranked?

Swoopes: I don't think we get enough credit. I would say we deserve to be ranked in the top five when you think about dynasties in any sport.

SI: What does being named to the All-Decade team say about your career?

Swoopes: Every level that I have ever competed on, I have risen to the top. I have accomplished everything I set out to accomplish when I started playing the sport at 7. And probably even more. For me to be named to the All-Decade team just tops it off.

SI: It's been eight months since you revealed that you are gay. Has the public's reaction been what you expected?

Swoopes: The support I have gotten has been phenomenal. Before the announcement, when they introduced me, I would get claps from fans at away games. This year I've been on five road trips, and I have gotten standing ovations -- and not just from gay women or gay men. It's been very emotional.

SI: Whose support surprised you most?

Swoopes: I was so nervous about going to the NBA All-Star Game in Houston this year. ... One of the things that has been most special to me was Shaquille O'Neal and Kevin Garnett came up to me on different occasions. They hugged me and said, "I love you, I'm proud of you and I have your back. You did what you needed to know for yourself and don't worry about what anybody else has to say." Both of them said if I ever needed anything -- a shoulder to cry on, an ear to listen -- to call them. To hear that from two of the biggest guys in the NBA did so much for me and my confidence.

SI: Will we see a high-profile professional male athlete come out while still playing?

Swoopes: In my lifetime? No. I think high-profile male athletes feel like they have so much more to lose than to gain. People asked me if I was worried about losing endorsements and stuff. My answer was no. The one thing that I gained, which is bigger than any of that, is peace of mind and happiness.