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WNBA names Wings star Bueckers Rookie of the Year

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Clock Icon1 hourBasketball

The Dallas Wings selected Paige Bueckers with the first pick of the 2025 WNBA draft, and the dynamic guard promptly put together one of the best seasons ever by a first-year player in league history.

Bueckers was recognised for her excellence on Tuesday, when the WNBA announced she was named Rookie of the Year.

Bueckers finished her first season ranked fifth in the WNBA in scoring (19.2 points), sixth in steals (1.6) and ninth in assists (5.4) to be the only player in the league in 2025 to rank in the top nine in those statistics. She also averaged 3.9 rebounds while shooting 47.7 per cent from the field, becoming the first rookie in league history to average 19 points or more while shooting at least 47 per cent from the floor.

She essentially wrapped up the top rookie award on August 20, when she set a rookie scoring record by pouring in 44 points against the Los Angeles Sparks. In that game, she made 17 of 21 shots (81.0 per cent) to become the first player in WNBA history to score 40 or more points while shooting at least 80 per cent.

That was part of a stretch in which she opened her career with 30 straight double-digit scoring games - the third-longest streak in WNBA history behind A'ja Wilson (33 games in 2018) and Candace Parker (32 games in 2008).

In 36 games, Bueckers racked up 692 points and 194 assists, which were both the third most in each category by a rookie in WNBA history.

Given all she accomplished this season, capturing the Rookie of the Year Award was no huge surprise, also considering she was also honoured as the WNBA Rookie of the Month in June, July and August. In July, she became just the 10th rookie in WNBA history to start an All-Star Game.

In all, Bueckers received 70 of 72 votes from sportswriters and broadcasters for WNBA Rookie of the Year, with Washington Mystics guard Sonia Citron receiving the other two votes.

 

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Dallas WingsWNBA