The Washington Mystics quietly had a strong 2025 WNBA Draft. Washington currently holds a 4-6 overall record, a mark that signals potential for a rather young overall roster. One player who is making a significant difference is Kiki Iriafen. In fact, a vote for the current 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year front-runner from "ESPN's panel" has Iriafen leading the way.
The panel -- made up of four ESPN reporters/writers -- unanimously voted for Iriafen. The ESPN article lists Iriafen's teammate Sonia Citron and Dallas Wings rookie Paige Bueckers as the "top challengers."
Bueckers, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft, was the favorite to win the award heading into the '25 season. In all reality, Bueckers still has a good chance of taking home the award. However, she has missed four consecutive games while Iriafen has continued to play a quality brand of basketball.
Iriafen, a 22-year-old who played her college basketball at USC, has averaged 14.6 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.0 assists per outing through her first 10 games in the WNBA. She is also shooting 52.8 percent from the field.
Citron, meanwhile, is averaging 13.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists per contest. She is shooting 49 percent on her field goal attempts and 37.5 percent on her three-point shots.
As for Bueckers -- who missed three games while in concussion protocol and a recent game due to an illness -- the Wings guard is recording per game averages of 14.7 points, 6.7 assists and 4.5 rebounds per outing while shooting 43.7 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc.
Bueckers could return soon. With all three rookies featuring high ceilings, the 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year race projects to be competitive all season long. If Citron or Iriafen win, then an upset would occur as Citron was selected No. 3 and Iriafen was the No. 4 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.
No. 2 overall pick Dominique Malonga has one of the highest ceilings of any rookie this year, but the Seattle Storm have proceeded with caution in reference to her playing time. Malonga is averaging 4.4 points and 2.0 rebounds per outing while playing only 9.2 minutes per game. Unless Malonga begins to receive more minutes sooner rather than later, the Rookie of the Year will likely come down to Iriafen, Citron and Bueckers.