There is one WNBA rookie who had a major regular season debut last night — and it's not exactly Paige Bueckers. Notre Dame graduate Sonia Citron, the No. 3 overall pick in this year's draft, contributed 19 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists in 23 minutes to help the Washington Mystics take down the Atlanta Dream.
(For the record, Bueckers put in a solid performance with the Dallas Wings and very nearly earned a double-double with 10 points and 7 rebounds.)
The Mystics had a successful draft night
Citron was part of what will likely prove to be an incredibly successful draft night for the Mystics. The team also selected Georgia Amoore and Kiki Iriafen, as well as Lucy Olsen and Zaay Green. Amoore is out for the season with a torn ACL and Green was waived during training camp, but the newest additions to the team will likely prove to be strong additions over the next few years.
Citron has already more than proven she belongs in the WNBA. She hit real buckets and managed to shut down the Dream's defense over and over, something that indicated she was already in professional mode while at Notre Dame.
In fact, Citron played a nearly perfect game of basketball. She was 6-for-7 from the field and WBBTimeline reported she had the most efficient WNBA debut in the league's history — a beyond impressive performance for the newcomer.
Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen showed a strong synergy
It was clear last night that Citron and Iriafen will play well together this season. Citron told the Washington Post after the game that the pair were able to draw support from one another, something she said was "really cool." Iriafen also enjoyed a strong game and in particular showcased her ability to cause trouble for the Dream's Brittney Griner.
Those performances are going to have a big impact for both young women, said the team's coach Sydney Johnson, but "it's nothing that we don't see in our gym quite literally every day." The pair are both "confident" and "coachable," Johnson added.
“They’re just so open to wanting to get better. And they’re so open to their teammates. And usually, when you give yourself that way, you get a lot back. And that’s what we saw tonight, and hopefully we’ll see more of it.”
The Mystics also benefitted from the strong veteran presence of Brittany Sykes, who gave the team a 92-90 lead with 27 seconds left on the clock.