This year’s WNBA rookie of the year award was given to Paige Bueckers to celebrate her huge impact she has made on the Women’s league in just her first year of playing for the Dallas Wings. She recently graduated from the University of Connecticut, better known as UCOON, after an amazing five years of basketball there.
Bueckers has had an eventful year. She started her fifth season at UCONN strong, taking home many wins. Then, leading up to March Madness, they took home UCONN’s 12th national championship trophy home, beating USC in the last round.
Just a week after Bueckers helped her team with the big win, she was drafted to the Dallas Wings in the WNBA, meaning she will have to pack up and move all the way from Connecticut.
Bueckers has become a huge role model for women and little girls all over the world. Winning the rookie of the year award just shows how powerful she is in her sport, going from back to back season and learning a whole new team directly after winning the national championship.
Bueckers is now on a short break after a long, hard-working year. In April, she will be back and ready for the new 2026 WNBA season. They’ll begin the season with a new coach, but with the same team, adding on their wonderful new rookie.
