Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers was named the 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year, the league announced Tuesday.
Bueckers is the seventh former UConn player to win the award, receiving 70 of 72 first-place votes from a media panel, while Washington Mystics guard Sonia Citron got the other two.
Bueckers was the No. 1 selection in April’s draft after helping the Huskies win their 12th national championship earlier that month.
A starter in all 36 appearances for the Wings, Bueckers averaged 19.2 points, 5.4 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.6 steals while shooting 47.4% from the floor and 88.8% from the free throw line. She led all WNBA rookies in total points (692), points per game, total assists (194) and assists per game. She was the only WNBA player this season who finished ranked in the top 10 in points, assists and steals per game.
Bueckers’ 44 points against the Los Angeles Sparks on Aug. 20 set a WNBA single-game rookie record. She made 17 of 21 shots from the field (81%), becoming the first player in WNBA history to score 40 or more points and shoot at least 80% from the field in a game.
The Wings went 10-30 and missed the playoffs but will be in the draft lottery again next season.
Bueckers joins Diana Taurasi (2004), Tina Charles (2010), Maya Moore (2011), Breanna Stewart (2016), Napheesa Collier (2019) and Crystal Dangerfield (2020) as UConn players who have earned this honor.
The rookie award has been given out since 1998, the second year of the WNBA. Bueckers is the 16th player drafted No. 1 who was voted Rookie of the Year.