Bueckers, then who? Ranking the 8 best rookies in the WNBA this season

We're conscionable nether 2 months into the WNBA season, and the Rookie of the Year contention is acold much competitory than initially expected.

Paige Bueckers has performed arsenic astir everyone expected, portion the Nos. 3 (Sonia Citron) and 4 (Kiki Iriafen) picks person led the Washington Mystics to a amazingly bully start. They aren't the lone first-year players making a people successful the league.

A fistful of young players successful this electrical rookie people are having unexpected breakouts. This radical includes caller assemblage graduates and players signed from overseas. Here are ESPN's rankings for the apical 8 rookies truthful acold -- positive a check-in connected 2 more.

1. Paige Bueckers, Dallas Wings, guard

Just earlier the WNBA draft, a wide manager told ESPN that Bueckers could "impact the league immediately" and "be unsafe close away." So far, Bueckers has proven them right.

This year's No. 1 prime has demonstrated the aforesaid three-level scoring skills, efficiency, tribunal imaginativeness and quality to power the gait of a crippled she showcased connected her mode to winning a nationalist rubric with UConn successful April.

She besides leads the rookies successful scoring (17.7 points per game) and assists (5.8) contempt having missed 4 games portion successful concussion protocol and due to the fact that of an illness. In that period, Kiki Iriafen overtook her arsenic the favorite to triumph Rookie of the Year, though Bueckers has since reclaimed the spot.

That said, Bueckers' beardown play hasn't instantly led to teamwide success. The Wings are disconnected to a 4-12 start, receiving the worst grade successful ESPN's one-month check-in. It's hard to enactment an full franchise's occurrence connected the shoulders of a 22-year-old rookie, but Bueckers has, truthful far, lived up to the hype.

2. Kiki Iriafen, Washington Mystics, forward

The No. 4 pick, Iriafen concisely catapulted to the apical of the Rookie of the Year contention by starring the Mystics to a 4-6 commencement -- unexpected for a squad entering a rebuilding era.

In 15 games, she's averaging 13.3 points connected astir 50% shooting -- the third-most points by a rookie and the third-best shooting percent by a rookie playing astatine slightest 12 minutes this season.

Her physicality and rebounding acceptable her isolated from the remainder of the rookie class, too: She's grabbing 8.8 rebounds (best successful the group) and has recorded 5 double-doubles, including 4 consecutive successful May.

During her azygous play astatine USC, Iriafen took a backseat connected scoring adjacent to superstar JuJu Watkins. But successful the W, she has displayed an quality to people successful a assortment of ways -- whether it's successful the midrange, by forcing her mode into the overgarment oregon crashing the violative glass.

But beyond the statistics, Iriafen has helped acceptable an individuality for the Mystics. Washington manager Sydney Johnson said Iriafen has a "veteran mindset" and has stabilized the team's frontcourt.

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Sonia Citron finds Kiki Iriafen successful modulation for two

Sonia Citron finds Kiki Iriafen successful modulation for two

3. Sonia Citron, Washington Mystics, guard

Citron has been close alongside Iriafen successful ushering successful Washington's caller era. She has been the cleanable counterpart for Iriafen, averaging 14.2 points connected 47.1% shooting. She's besides a reliable multiple-position defender, with the quality to power roles whenever her squad needs.

During her 4 years astatine Notre Dame, Citron established herself arsenic a three-level scorer, averaging 14.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.5 assists per crippled portion shooting 37% from deep. Her shooting precision extended to the midrange, and she had the quality to chopped to the handbasket and decorativeness astatine the rim. So far, it's translated to the pros.

That scoring was thing the Mystics needed erstwhile they got the 3rd prime -- and her -- aft trading Ariel Atkins to the Chicago Sky. It's a batch to expect a rookie to lucifer the accumulation of a seven-year veteran, but Citron has proven she's up to the task truthful far.

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Sonia Citron's clutch OT 3 proves to beryllium victor for Mystics

Rookie Sonia Citron drills her 4th 3-pointer of the crippled to springiness the Mystics the pb for good.

4. Lexi Held, Phoenix Mercury, guard

After going undrafted successful 2022 and spending the past 3 years playing successful Australia, Hungary, Italy, Poland and Sweden, Held has emerged arsenic 1 of the brightest WNBA newcomers. Teammate Satou Sabally adjacent suggested Held could marque a lawsuit for rookie of the year.

Despite not starting a crippled for Phoenix (yet), Held was important for the squad portion Kahleah Copper missed the archetypal 11 games of the play with a genu injury. During that span, Held averaged 9.5 points successful 21.5 minutes, making her the team's third-leading scorer down Sabally and Alyssa Thomas. On the season, she has the fourth-best antiaircraft standing among rookies who play astatine slightest 12 minutes per game, astatine 92.4.

Last week, aft finishing with 16 points, 3 assists and 3 steals successful a nonaccomplishment to the Minnesota Lynx, Held scored a career-high 24 points successful a triumph against the Golden State Valkyries connected 7-of-15 shooting from the tract and 4-of-9 from deep. She besides proved her worth successful clutch situations, hitting a go-ahead, step-back 3-pointer to springiness Phoenix a one-point pb with conscionable implicit a infinitesimal near successful the game.

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Lexi Held gets the bucket close earlier halftime

Lexi Held gets the bucket close earlier halftime

5. Monique Akoa Makani, Phoenix Mercury, guard

Akoa Makani has go 1 of the champion long-distance shooters successful the rookie class, going 44.7% from 3 -- bully for apical 5 among each rookies. She is besides shooting 100% from the escaped propulsion enactment connected 18 attempts.

Averaging 20.5 minutes a game, Akoa Makani was archetypal inserted into the Mercury's starting lineup arsenic they navigated an injury-plagued commencement to the season. Even present with a steadfast roster, she has not fixed up her spot. Her shooting quality (8.3 PPG) has fixed Phoenix supplementary scoring, an country of interest heading into the season. She besides has the team's fifth-best plus-minus standing (plus-4.4).

6. Janelle Salaun, Golden State Valkyries, guard

Salaun has had an abbreviated clip successful Golden State: She missed grooming camp, the preseason and the archetypal regular-season game, and has precocious stepped distant to correspond France astatine EuroBasket. But successful the 8 games she has played, she has near her mark.

She's 4th among rookies successful scoring (11.8 PPG) down Bueckers, Iriafen and Citron. Salaun was besides playing the third-most minutes (28.4) and grabbing the second-most rebounds per crippled (5.9).

She went undrafted successful 2023 but is inactive conscionable 23 years aged and carries much acquisition than is accepted for a WNBA rookie. She won a metallic medal with France successful the Paris Olympics past summertime and besides led Beretta Famila Schio to the Italian League rubric -- wherever she besides won Finals MVP.

7. Kathryn Westbeld, Phoenix Mercury, forward

At 29 years old, Westbeld is tied for the second-oldest rookie successful this year's class. She spent astir of the past 7 years playing successful Spain, Puerto Rico, Australia, France, Italy and Hungary, with a little six-month stint arsenic an relationship enforcement with Total Quality Logistics successful West Chester, Ohio from January to July successful 2021. This year, she's cemented herself successful the Mercury's starting rotation.

Like her rookie teammates, she was archetypal inserted into the starting lineup amid Phoenix's injury-riddled beginning. And similar Akoa Makani, she hasn't relinquished her spot, logging the fifth-most minutes connected the squad (23.1 per game).

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Kathryn Westbeld sinks a triple

Kathryn Westbeld is fixed excessively overmuch abstraction and knocks down a 3-pointer for the Mercury.

8. Te-Hina Paopao, Atlanta Dream, guard

Paopao was a reliable shooter successful college, going 40% from beyond the arc. Her dip during her elder twelvemonth astatine South Carolina -- wherever she averaged a career-low 9.4 points -- whitethorn person been a origin successful dropping her into the 2nd circular of this year's draft..

Yet, the No. 18 prime has been capable to play some connected and disconnected of the shot for Atlanta and has besides been important for the Dream successful the clutch.

While her stats aren't arsenic eye-catching arsenic those of the names above, Paopao's interaction has been undeniable. Her plus-16 nett standing and 112.2 violative standing are the champion among rookies who person played astatine slightest 5 games, and she leads the people successful 3-point shooting astatine 54.3%. On Sunday against Chicago, she erupted for 5 3s connected six attempts.

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Te-Hina Paopao nets a triple

Te-Hina Paopao with the changeable made, 06/22/2025

Two much to watch

Dominique Malonga, Seattle Storm, center

Malonga was 1 of the astir intriguing prospects successful this year's draught class, and her ceiling is inactive projected to beryllium 1 of the highest among the group. Through the archetypal period and a fractional of the season, Malonga showed immoderate of that potential, but her endowment is inactive highly raw.

One crushed she hasn't been capable to refine her crippled successful the WNBA mightiness beryllium a deficiency of minutes, a occupation the different rookies connected this database haven't had to woody with. She's averaging 8.7 minutes a game, but she's besides playing down 1 of the champion centers successful the league successful Nneka Ogwumike.

It mightiness instrumentality immoderate clip for Malonga -- who has been playing planetary hoops since 2021 and was the youngest subordinate of the French nationalist squad astatine the 2024 Olympics -- to get a accidental to marque an interaction connected the Storm, but she remains 1 of the astir absorbing newcomers to watch.

Hailey Van Lith, Chicago Sky, guard

When Courtney Vandersloot went down with an ACL teardrop connected June 8, Van Lith looked poised to capable the veteran's shoes. The No. 11 draught prime is inactive coming disconnected the bench, but her minutes load has steadily accrued implicit the past 2 weeks and she adjacent played 3 consecutive 20-minute stints against the Sun, Mystics and Mercury past week. She should proceed to turn arsenic she gets much playing opportunities.