WNBA Rookies 2025: Another Talented First-Year Class Roars Into the League

[Editor’s note: This article is from Athlon Sports’ 2025 WNBA Preview print magazine. Order your copy today online, or pick one up at retail racks and newsstands nationwide.]

Few leagues have experienced the kind of explosion in popularity that the WNBA enjoyed in 2024. And most of that attention, skyrocketing television ratings and contribution to the national zeitgeist — for good and for ill — came courtesy of a single rookie, Caitlin Clark.

Advertisement

Clark, of course, returns for her second season in Indiana, still the object of fascination for fans around the world. But 2025 promises to bring rookies who will continue to elevate the league, just as surely as the talented players who preceded Clark helped create the perfect conditions for her to light up the WNBA sky.

We start with the No. 1 overall pick.

Interestingly, the career of Paige Bueckers is set to begin a year after Clark’s, positioned as a sequel. Both entered college for the 2020-21 season, and they eventually faced one another in the NCAA Tournament as freshmen — but an injury gave Bueckers a fifth year, one that she used to great advantage, winning a national title with Connecticut. Meanwhile, Clark, on the heels of back-to-back visits to the title game with Iowa, elected to turn pro in 2024.

Athlon’s 2025 WNBA team previews:

Aces | Dream | Fever | Liberty | Lynx | Mercury | Mystics | Sky | Sparks | Storm | Sun | Valkyries | Wings

Advertisement

Bueckers, it should be remembered, was actually ranked slightly ahead of Clark coming out of high school on most public recruiting lists, and around the league, general managers have the two ranked roughly equally when it comes to their future ceilings, though Clark is projected ahead of Bueckers as of today due to injury histories alone.

But Bueckers’ head coach at UConn, Geno Auriemma, sees similar traits in Bueckers to those of another generational UConn talent: the just-retired Diana Taurasi.

“Obviously there’s a lot of similarities,” Auriemma said on April 3, prior to UConn’s Final Four appearance in Tampa, Florida. “There’s so many differences as well. In the best sense of the word, No. 1, they’re both exceptional con artists. They can spin things so that it goes their way about 99.9% of the time. So they live in that world, which I admire that, because winners do that. They have to be right. They have to be at the top. They have to be unchallenged. So they’ve got that going for them.

Advertisement

“They’re both extremely outgoing. They both enjoy other people’s company. They’re accommodating to other people. They’re respectful. They’re great team players. They’re both generous to their teammates, both on the court, off the court.

“They have a flair for the moment. They can summon up something that’s needed at the time when it’s exactly needed. They take responsibility for what happens. They’re not afraid of the criticism that might come if they fail. And I don’t think anybody loves being in the gym more than those two.”

For all of Taurasi’s success at the college level, Bueckers’ profile already exceeds what Taurasi accomplished in many ways. In their senior seasons, Taurasi averaged a true shooting percentage of nearly 60%, while Bueckers checked in at 63.2. Bueckers’ assist percentage was slightly higher, while her turnover percentage, an unfathomably low 7.7, was roughly half of Taurasi’s. Bueckers is already a better rebounder, a better shot-blocker and a far superior on-ball defender.

This is Diana Taurasi we’re talking about here, on the short list of the best players in WNBA history. And to be clear, Bueckers needs to go out and do it for the next 20 years to surpass Taurasi’s legacy. But she’s ahead of where Taurasi was at the same point in their respective careers.

Advertisement

Another area where the two vary is in how they are perceived by opponents. Other players and teams respected Taurasi, who never stopped trying to beat them while also providing a running commentary about how she was doing it.

Bueckers, meanwhile, engenders affection around the sport that is rare — Clark, for instance, is a lot closer to Taurasi’s reputation at this point in her career. Bueckers made it clear that is by design when she was asked how she’d like to be remembered.

“As a great teammate, a great leader. I think those are the two most important things to me, just being somebody that people love to play with, make their teammates better, wears a UConn jersey with pride,” Bueckers said. “Every single time I stepped on the floor, I gave it my all and played with energy, effort, passion and joy that was contagious, not just amongst my teammates but in the entire UConn community.

“Giving back to the community was also a huge thing for me, just giving to people who have given so much to me. And just being an inspiration as much as I’ve had adversity throughout my career, a person who was resilient and just bounced back from everything that life threw its way and a winner and a competitor and just a person who played with all my heart.”

Advertisement

But Bueckers is far from the only noteworthy rookie headed to the WNBA.

Notre Dame’s Sonia Citron, pride of Scarsdale, New York, is the prototypical wing, capable of burying 3-pointers, defending bigger guards and smaller bigs alike at 6-foot-1. She makes very few mistakes, with a turnover rate of just 13%. Opponents who send her to the line quickly regret it — Citron made 89% of her free throws last season.

Dominique Malonga, a 6-foot-6 big, is expected to make an impact immediately in the league, a remarkable statement about a French international who is just 19.

“Malonga is a talent,” ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo said. “You know, I’ve been watching film of her, and I can’t wait to get my eyes on her in person, to see a 6-foot-6 player with the versatility that she has and the ability to come off flare screens and hit 3s at her size and her length. We’ve seen her with her dunk in the French league, the way she can move in space. She’s an incredible talent.”

Advertisement

Nor is Malonga alone among international rookies who can make an impact right away — wing Justė Jocytė and forward Ajša Sivka possess skills that should translate immediately, too.

Then there’s guard Te-Hina Paopao of South Carolina, whom head coach Dawn Staley has molded into a two-way contributor during her two seasons on campus after transferring from Oregon.

“Her defense has come a long way,” Staley said. “She chose to come to South Carolina for these moments, but also she knew that defensively, there was a hole in her defensive game, and she knew we were going to force her to play defense.”

Advertisement

While her true shooting percentage was down somewhat in her final South Carolina season from her 61.2% mark during the Gamecocks’ run to the 2024 national championship, Paopao is clearly ready to help at the next level at both ends of the court.

Staley sees the same thing for big Sania Feagin and wing Bree Hall. All three have the advantage of having played for Staley, who routinely molds her players into WNBA contributors.

“They’re just great human beings,” Staley said of the trio. “They’ve allowed me to coach them being my uncensored self. Not a lot of coaches are able to just be who they are. I could have real conversations with them that maybe would probably hurt other people’s feelings, and they allow me to be me because they know I’m just coming to them from a place of wanting them to get better, wanting them to continue their winning ways and also preparing them for the next level.

“Because when you go to the next level, it is sink or swim. It’s probably not going to be from a coach’s tongue, more so probably from a teammate, from somebody that is highly motivated, highly competitive and wants to win. Hopefully I’ve prepared them to be able to take in that and have some staying power at the next level.”

Advertisement

There are other incoming rookies with some obvious pro skills, including the NC State duo of Saniya Rivers and Aziaha James. Rivers offers elite multipositional defense, while Rivers brings shot creation to the table. At 6-foot-1, Rivers is the likelier first-year contributor.

Despite all of her success, including leading NC State to a Final Four in her junior season, Rivers has not lost her humility.

“Everyone knows I had points where I didn’t know if I wanted to play professionally,” she told reporters in late March. “So I went to Kelsey Plum’s camp and changed my perspective. So I think for me, it’s just going all around. If you had asked me if I would have expected to be on a Final Four team or be part of a championship team or cut down nets or be drafted in the WNBA (I hope), I don’t think I ever would have seen any of this. Like I said, I never expected to be here.”

Advertisement

But she is now, and folks around the league have taken notice.

“Saniya is very intriguing,” Andraya Carter of ESPN told reporters on April 10. “I’ve talked to a few different GMs and coaches just with how athletic she is, her ability to defend, her versatility, size. She can get to the rim on one or two dribbles, and the style that she plays, the athleticism. Obviously, some player development would need to happen with her jump shot and that level of consistency, but her athleticism alone and her ability to defend, I think, would be huge.”

There isn’t an obvious weakness in 6-foot-2 guard Shyanne Sellers’ game. The Maryland product drives to the rim, shoots effectively from midrange — 39.6% on volume outside of 10 feet, per CBB Analytics — defends, rebounds and passes with the wisdom of a veteran.

The issue with Sellers is health. But even that feels overstated: she played more than 30 games in each of her four seasons at Maryland, always at max effort.

Advertisement

“Having a kid in your program for four years isn’t the norm anymore, and Shy has been someone who has been incredibly loyal when you talk about her trust and her love for our program,” Maryland head coach Brenda Frese said after Sellers and the Terrapins nearly knocked off top-seeded South Carolina in the Sweet 16 of this year’s NCAA Tournament. “I mean, she is a competitor. She is a person that we’ve been able to challenge throughout the course of her career, and she has risen to the occasion every single time. Just a special kid from a special family. I’m going to really miss her family. I’ve enjoyed the time that I’ve had with them, but just so grateful for how she has represented us for the past four years.”

While Kiki Iriafen’s senior season didn’t end in the storybook fashion she imagined after transferring from Stanford to USC — we’ll forever wonder what would have happened had JuJu Watkins not been injured — WNBA teams are eager to get a closer look at Iriafen, who can score from midrange, possesses a wingspan well beyond her 6-foot-3 height and looks the part of a 4 at the next level. She’ll need to start regularly knocking down perimeter shots and/or show she can guard WNBA-sized centers to truly make an impact as a starter, but the raw tools are there.

All this talent, and we still haven’t discussed TCU’s Hailey Van Lith, who has a motor for days. She needs to improve her defense and consistency from deep, but she will get a chance to help a WNBA team. Nor have we mentioned Sarah Ashlee Barker of Alabama, who scored 45 points in her final collegiate game against Maryland.

We also haven’t yet discussed the best rebounder, passer or perimeter defender in this rookie class.

Advertisement

Let’s start with Aneesah Morrow, the nation’s top rebounder as a senior at LSU. She can score at all three levels, though her shooting accuracy needs to improve. Morrow’s ability to extend possessions on the offensive end and finish them on the defensive end has impressed Dallas Wings GM Curt Miller.

“I personally, in my decade in this league, think that rebounding has translated, and players that rebounded in college ended up rebounding in the pros,” Miller told reporters on April 10. “One of the things that you have, that just pops off the chart when [Morrow] leads the nation in rebounding, is she goes and gets the ball. She’s undersized, so it talks about tenacity. It talks about desire. Rebounding is a big hustle statistic. Systems, coaches will determine what they want her to do at the pro level and whoever ends up with her. But I think using the term in a good way, all of us are looking to add dogs to our locker room. I think we all believe that she’ll be a dog in a locker room.”

When it comes to Georgia Amoore, who followed head coach Kenny Brooks from Virginia Tech to Kentucky, the midrange shot is exceptional. She’s 5-foot-6 but has worked tirelessly on her quick release, she told me, to make certain that she can get the shot off from any distance against any defender. She’s become an elite finisher at the rim, shooting a stratospheric 69.8% this season from close range.

Advertisement

But the ability to run a team is what catches the eye. It’s the true separator for her at the next level, along with her leadership.

“I think always just showing up and being the best version of yourself,” teammate Dazia Lawrence said when asked what she learned from Amoore. “I don’t think I’ve seen G have a bad day in a practice or in a game or anything like that. She’s so mentally strong, and she uplifts us every day. No matter if we just turned the ball over, took a bad shot or anything like that, she just shows up as the best version of herself no matter what she’s going through at home or outside of basketball.”

The eye-popping attribute for West Virginia guard JJ Quinerly isn’t her height — 5-foot-8 — or her shooting, which needs to improve. It is her ability to force turnovers. In all four of her seasons, her steal percentage topped 5%. She led the nation in the category twice.

Just after her season ended in an NCAA Tournament second-round loss to North Carolina, her head coach, Mark Kellogg, gave her WNBA future a full-throated endorsement.

Advertisement

“What I’ve said about JJ all the time is, ball in hand, I think she’s as dynamic as any guard in the country,” Kellogg said. “Defensively, guarding the ball, I think she’s as good of an on-ball defender as anybody, which she’s now up for the Defensive National Player of the Year [won by UCLA’s Lauren Betts]. I think she’s a complete two-way player. She’s going to be a little bit smaller, so somebody is going to have to figure out what that niche is in WNBA. Yeah, I hope she gets her number called on draft night and gets in a training camp and goes and makes us all proud, which she’ll do regardless of what it looks like.

“It’s really hard in the WNBA. There are first-round draft picks that don’t necessarily stick on rosters. The hard work is in front of her, but I think she’s prepared, and the kid works at an ultimate level, always in the gym. She’s put in the time. She wants to be great.”

Of course, as you can see, she is far from alone when it comes to putting in the time or wanting to be great. Not with this rookie class.

Athlon’s 2025 WNBA team previews:

Aces | Dream | Fever | Liberty | Lynx | Mercury | Mystics | Sky | Sparks | Storm | Sun | Valkyries | Wings

Advertisement

Related: Athlon Sports 2025 WNBA Preview Magazine Available Now

Related: Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese Usher in WNBA’s Golden Era

Related: Caitlin Clark Is Rested, Ready to Be Her Best After Offseason Recharge