For three straight seasons, the Rookie of the Year award went to the first-overall draft pick. Paige Bueckers entered the season as the overwhelming favorite to win the award and keep the streak going. Since then, Washington Mystics rookies Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron have made strong cases for the award. ESPN even unanimously voted Iriafen to win the award.
A concussion slowed down Bueckers’s rookie season, but she recently put together a string of big games, including a 35-point performance against Phoenix. The Wings are also finally on a win streak, beating the Golden State Valkyries and Connecticut Sun.
Facing the Washington Mystics for the first time this season isn’t just a chance for Bueckers to help her team to another win. It’s also a chance for her to set herself apart from her top competition in the Rookie of the Year race.
The Rookie of the Year race will be a close one this season
In some seasons, the rookie of the year is more obvious than in others. This year, it won’t be an easy choice. Bueckers is averaging 18 points, 4.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 2.1 steals per game, impressing despite the Wings’ brutal start to the season.
Iriafen is averaging 13 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists while Citron is putting up 13.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and one steal per game. On top of the great numbers they are putting up, Iriafen and Citron are also helping their team win. The Mystics have a 5-8 record and currently sit in ninth place in the regular-season standings. A playoff spot may be well within reach. Behind Brittney Sykes, Iriafen and Citron have been the driving force behind the Mystics’ success.
Meanwhile, the Wings have the second-worst record in the league.
The first game between the Wings and Mystics could give one player a leg up
The Wings and Mystics haven’t met yet this season. This game will be the first time Paige Bueckers will have to go up against other top rookies. The game’s outcome could have major implications for the Rookie of the Year race. For Bueckers, it’s a chance to create some separation and prove why she was the favorite to win the award before the season had even started.
A big game—bigger than Iriafen and Citron—could cement Bueckers as the best rookie in the league this season, especially if her performance leads to a win. Citron and Iriafen are talented, all-around players, but neither one of them has put up the kind of scoring numbers Bueckers reached recently.
Bueckers cannot squander this opportunity to make a massive statement.