Azzi Fudd taken first in WNBA draft by Dallas Wings in UConn reunion with Paige Bueckers
Azzi Fudd was selected by the Dallas Wings with the first pick of the WNBA draft on Monday night, capping a 12-month ascent from NCAA champion to the top overall choice and setting up a reunion with former University of Connecticut teammate Paige Bueckers,The 5ft 11in guard, who led UConn to last year’s national title and was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player, is the seventh player from the program to go No 1,Bueckers, the top selection by Dallas in the 2025 draft and the reigning WNBA rookie of the year, watched Fudd’s name called from a sold-out crowd at the Shed, the $500m cultural center at Hudson Yards on Manhattan’s west side,“I’m not really sure I have words to describe the feeling, what that meant,” Fudd said,“I don’t think it’s fully sunk in.
I don’t really have words,”Fudd’s selection comes at the onset of a reshaped draft landscape, with the league’s new collective bargaining agreement substantially escalating rookie salaries,The top pick is set to earn about $500,000, a significant hike from previous seasons and more than six times higher than what Bueckers received as the No 1 pick last year,Unlike last April, when Bueckers was the clearcut choice, this year’s draft featured no consensus top pick,Fudd separated herself late in the process as Dallas addressed their frontcourt needs during the condensed free-agency period after the prolonged CBA negotiations, adding two experienced post players in defensive star Alanna Smith and Jessica Shepard.
Complete draft orderFirst round1 Dallas Wings – Azzi Fudd, G (UConn)2 Minnesota Lynx (via Chicago) – Olivia Miles, G (TCU)3 Seattle Storm (via Los Angeles) – Awa Fam Thiam, C (Spain)4 Washington Mystics – Lauren Betts, C (UCLA)5 Chicago Sky (via UConn) – Gabriela Jaquez, G (UCLA)6 Toronto Tempo – Kiki Rice, G (UCLA)7 Portland Fire – Iyana Martin Carrion, G (Spain)8 Golden State Valkyries – Flau’jae Johnson, G (LSU) – traded to Seattle for the rights to Marta Suarez and a 2028 second-round pick9 Washington Mystics (via Seattle) – Angela Dugalic, F (UCLA)10 Indiana Fever – Raven Johnson, G (South Carolina)11 Washington Mystics (via New York) – Cotie McMahon, F (Mississippi)12 Connecticut Sun (via Phoenix) – Nell Angloma, F (France)13 Atlanta Dream – Madina Okot, F (South Carolina)14 Seattle Storm (via Las Vegas) – Taina Mair, G (Duke)15 Connecticut Sun (via Minnesota) – Gianna Kneepkens, G (UCLA)Second round16 Seattle Storm (via Dallas) – Marta Suarez, F (TCU) – traded to Golden State for the rights to Flau’jae Johnson17 Portland Fire (via Chicago) – Frieda Buhner, F (Spain)18 Connecticut Sun – Charlisse Leger-Walker, G (UCLA)19 Washington Mystics – Cassandre Prosper, G (Notre Dame)20 Los Angeles Sparks – Ta’Niya Latson, G (South Carolina)21 Chicago Sky (via Portland) – Latasha Lattimore, F (Mississippi)22 Toronto Tempo – Teonni Key, F (Kentucky)23 Golden State Valkyries – Ashlon Jackson, G (Duke)24 Los Angeles Sparks (via Seattle) – Chance Gray, G (Ohio State)25 Indiana Fever – Justine Pissott, G/F (Vanderbilt)26 Toronto Tempo (via New York) – Saffron Shiels, G (Australia)27 Phoenix Mercury – Ines Pitarch-Granel, G (France)28 Atlanta Dream – Indya Nivar, G (North Carolina)29 Las Vegas Aces – Janiah Barker, F (Tennessee)30 Washington Mystics (via Minnesota) – Darianna Littlepage-Buggs, G/F (Baylor)Third round31 Dallas Wings – Zee Spearman, F (Tennessee)32 Chicago Sky – Tonie Morgan, G (UConn)33 Connecticut Sun – Serah Williams, F (UConn)34 Washington Mystics – Rori Harmon, G (Texas)35 Los Angeles Sparks – Amelia Hassett, F (Kentucky)36 Toronto Tempo – Charlise Dunn, G (Davidson)37 Portland Fire – Taylor Bigby, G (TCU)38 Golden State Valkyries – Kokoro Tanaka, G (Japan)39 Seattle Storm – Grace VanSlooten, F (Michigan State)40 Indiana Fever – Jessica Timmons, G (Alabama)41 New York Liberty – Manuela Puoch, F (Australia)42 Phoenix Mercury – Eszter Ratkai, G (Hungary)43 Atlanta Dream – Kejia Ran, G (China)44 Las Vegas Aces – Jordan Obi, G (Kentucky)45 Minnesota Lynx – Lani White, G (Utah)Minnesota selected Texas Christian guard Olivia Miles with the second pick after she returned for an additional college season, transferred from Notre Dame and led the Horned Frogs to a second straight Elite Eight appearance.Seattle followed by taking Spanish center Awa Fam Thiam third, while Washington chose UCLA’s Lauren Betts fourth.Chicago rounded out the top five with UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez, and the expansion Toronto Tempo selected fellow Bruins guard Kiki Rice at No 6, extending UCLA’s presence at the top of the draft just eight days after their national title run.Golden State selected Louisiana State guard Flau’jae Johnson with the No 8 pick, but later agreed to the draft’s first trade, sending her rights to Seattle in exchange for TCU forward Marta Suárez, the No 16 overall pick, along with a 2028 second-round selection.The Bruins’ celebration carried through the night.
Washington added another UCLA player, Angela Dugalić, at No 9, and Connecticut selected Gianna Kneepkens with the 15th and final pick of the first round, giving UCLA five first-round selections – setting a record for the most ever by a single program.UCLA set another mark for most players selected in a single draft when the Connecticut Sun took Charlisse Leger-Walker in the second round, bettering the previous record of five shared by South Carolina (2023), Notre Dame (2019) and Tennessee (1997, 2008).Dallas enter the season seeking a turnaround after consecutive losing campaigns and significant roster turnover.Fudd joins a backcourt that includes Bueckers and All-Star guard Arike Ogunbowale as the Wings attempt to reestablish themselves following an extended dry spell that’s included only one playoff series win since 2010.Fudd’s arrival also extends a connection that predates the draft.
Fudd and Bueckers spent four seasons together at UConn and confirmed last year they are in a relationship, a dynamic that adds an additional layer of familiarity as the Wings build around two No 1 picks.“Our time at UConn was full of injuries – either I was playing and she wasn’t, or she was playing and I wasn’t,” Fudd said of her pairing with Bueckers.“It wasn’t until last year that we really got a chance to play together, and even then it wasn’t a full season.So I feel like there’s still so much left on the table, so much unknown, so much potential – not just with her, but with the entire Dallas Wings roster.”The draft also reflected broader changes across the league.
Expansion franchises Toronto and Portland continued to build their rosters, with multiple teams holding additional first-round picks after offseason trades and expansion-related moves, while increased salaries and additional roster spots under the new labor deal are expected to improve the chances for incoming players to make opening-day teams,Historically, roster spots have been scarce, with only about half of drafted players making final squads,That pressure is expected to ease somewhat as the league expands to 18 teams over the next five years, with Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia all set to join by 2030,The other UConn players to go No 1 overall are Bueckers, Breanna Stewart (2016), Maya Moore (2011), Tina Charles (2010), Diana Taurasi (2004) and Sue Bird (2002),
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