WNBA legend Candace Parker recently gave her take on this year’s Rookie of the Year award race, which is currently led by former UConn Huskies star Paige Bueckers. On Wednesday, Aug. 13, Parker weighed in on the matter on the “Post Moves” podcast with her co-host and Indiana Fever stalwart Aliyah Boston.
Parker believes that while Bueckers has certainly made her case to be this year’s best rookie in the league, there is one unfavorable factor that may derail her chances of winning the award. Nevertheless, the 39-year-old affirmed that she still believes Bueckers will win, with only Washington Mystics guard Sonia Citron to look out for.
“I think the only unfavorable check on Paige’s side is that she has missed seven games. There are no rules in the WNBA of an amount of games you have to play to be eligible for postseason awards, like the NBA. But, back in July, Paige became the first player in WNBA history to total 350 points, a hundred assists in the first 20 games of their career,” Parker said (29:06).
“Paige is having herself a season, I think it’s just a matter of her being on the court, which is what all of us want to see. So, this could be interesting. I think I give the nod to Paige Bueckers for Rookie of the Year, but Sonia, make me change my ways,” she added.
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Bueckers is currently averaging 18.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 1.8 steals per contest in the 2025 WNBA campaign. Coach Chris Koclanes’ Wings have an overall record of 9-24 so far, which ranks dead last in the current league standings.
Candace Parker details the rookie rivalry brewing between Paige Bueckers and Sonia Citron
Besides missing some time due to injury, Paige Bueckers is in the running to be the 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year, according to former Los Angeles Sparks star Candace Parker.
While Bueckers is in front of the rankings, Parker believes former Notre Dame Fighting Irish standout and current Washington Mystics guard Sonia Citron is steadily making a case for herself to surpass Bueckers for the first-year nod.
“Paige versus Sonia. Paige has missed a couple of games; she’s missed seven, but head-to-head, their stats are 22 and a half points for Sonia, 18 and a half for Paige; eight rebounds for Sonia, six for Paige; four assists for Sonia, five for Paige. Obviously, that’s just head-to-head. Overall stats, Paige gets the nod with 18 and a half points, and Sonia is at 14.8. I say all that to say that Paige still leads rookies in pretty much every major category and remains the favorite for Rookie of the Year,” Parker said on the same podcast (27:36).
Parker then pointed out that Citron could make the Rookie of the Year award race more interesting with her play in the last six games. Parker feels Citron has become an effective do-it-all perimeter player for coach Sydney Johnson’s squad.
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