The UConn Huskies have made history at the WNBA Draft.
On Monday night, the Dallas Wings selected UConn star Azzi Fudd with the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft, a year after the team selected her former teammate, Paige Bueckers, with the top pick last season.
“I’m not really sure I have words to describe that feeling what that meant,” Fudd said of getting drafted via ESPN.
“I don’t think it’s fully sunk in. It’s nothing I could have imagined. The feeling of sitting with my family, with [UConn assistant] Morgan [Valley], hearing your name called, go up there. Such a surreal feeling.”
Fudd and Bueckers will reunite with the Wings after dominating at the college level.
“Paige is an incredible player, everyone knows that,” Fudd said. “She’s someone that makes playing basketball with easy.”
The selection is historic, not only because it’s just the second time in history that a team has produced the top pick in back-to-back WNBA Drafts, but for several other reasons, as well.
Fudd’s selection gives UConn a record seven players who were selected with the No. 1 overall pick as she joins Sue Bird (2002), Diana Taurasi (2004), Tina Charles (2010), Maya Moore (2011), Breanna Stewart (2016), and Bueckers last year.
While UConn did make history, the Huskies did see one of their records broken, as well.
UCLA saw five players selected in the first round, with stars Lauren Betts and Gabriela Jaquez selected in the top five. Kiki Rice was then selected with the No. 6 overall pick by the Toronto Tempo, while Angela Dugalić went ninth to Washington and Gianna Kneepkens was selected by Connecticut with the last pick of the first round.
With these five selections in the draft, UCLA broke UConn’s record of four players drafted in the first round, a mark the Huskies set in 2002.
About Dave Kelsey
Contributing author to The Comeback.