On today’s episode of Locked On Women’s Basketball, co-hosts Hunter Cruse, Lincoln Shafer and Emily Adler talk all things WNBA rookies. First, they touched on Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers, who has quickly become one of the most impactful WNBA rookies in this class, and a key part of the Wings strategy, even as her personal scoring hasn’t quite translated yet:
“Her importance is super high, even if, I don’t want to say the feel isn’t there, but the sort of getting into a rhythm with with the shots, is not there yet,” Adler said. “It’s Paige Bueckers, [her shooting] will get there. But really it just goes to show how much she means to any offense, that she is so integral and so efficient without being a good shooter yet.”
Shafer added: “Paige is second on the Wings in points per game right now, first in assists and the first non-center in rebounds per game. So she is continuing her trend of being good at everything that is asked of her. Like Emily said, the shot’s not really falling, she’s only shooting 37%, but … she’s making things happen everywhere on the floor all the time … she’s a fantastic basketball player.”
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Then, they talked about Washington Mystics rookies Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen:
“Citron, in her debut against Atlanta, first WNBA game, 24 minutes (because of foul trouble): 19 points, six of seven from the field, five of six at the free throw line, the most efficient debut in league history. That’s kind of just Citron’s game, efficiency on both ends,” Cruse said.
“She looks comfortable,” Shafer added. “Playing her with the starting lineup, putting her next to Brittany Sykes creates so much defense, so much length and so [many] fun things happening on the court for a Washington team that still might not be very good, but is [2-1].”
As for Iriafen, Adler explained how her game has translated to the pro level so far:
“This is another example of a player who, I think, at least through three games, the skill set has not and the impact has not deteriorated as much as I expected going from college to the pros. So to me, it’s not necessarily that she’s really standing out at anything, or that she looks like she’s flashing different things … Rather, it mostly looks like she’s doing just like the same things [as she did at USC], but it’s just not dropping off as much as I would have expected.”
“As far as the fouls, turnovers, stuff like that I think you’re okay with,” Cruse added. “She’s been aggressive, so I think that’s what Washington’s looking for right now. Just giving her the minutes.”
Tune in to hear more about this season’s class of WNBA rookies, who is already making strides and who still has a long road ahead of them. Make sure to subscribe to the Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast to keep learning about women’s college basketball, the WNBA, basketball history and much more!