UConn women's basketball lands 18 alumni on WNBA camp rosters: Where to find the former Huskies
Published in Basketball
HARTFORD, Conn. — The UConn women’s basketball team became the first program to produce 50 WNBA draftees when three players were selected in the 2025 draft, and the Huskies have a league-leading 18 alumni participating in training camps this season.
UConn players will be represented on 11 of the WNBA’s 13 teams when camp begins on Sunday, and the vast majority of former Huskies are expected to make the final 12-player rosters. The Minnesota Lynx have a league-high three participating in their training camp, while five other teams — the Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Golden State Valkyries, Seattle Storm and Washington Mystics — enter camp with two.
The headliner for Huskies fans this season is rookie superstar Paige Bueckers, who became UConn’s sixth No. 1 overall pick all-time when she was selected by the Dallas Wings. The Wings also took Lou Lopez Senechal out of UConn in the first round of the 2023 WNBA draft, but the former Huskies won’t get to reunite this year with Lopez Senechal opting to remain overseas in 2025.
Aubrey Griffin was drafted alongside Bueckers in the third round by Minnesota, but she opted not to participate in training camp this year. Griffin was never 100% healthy during the 2024-25 college season after returning from an ACL tear, and the Lynx already have limited space on their final roster with nearly all of their contributors returning from last year’s WNBA Finals run. Minnesota maintains Griffin’s rights as an unsigned draftee through 2026, so she is able sign and report to camp next season. They Lynx also have seven unrestricted free agents entering 2026, so preserving guaranteed rights until then is ultimately more valuable to the team than waiving a player this year.
Former Husky Nika Muhl also won’t participate in the WNBA this season. Muhl was drafted in the second round of the 2024 draft by the Seattle Storm but suffered an ACL tear while competing in the Turkish Super League for Besiktas in October. She is suspended for the 2025 season to complete her recovery.
Here’s where to find every UConn alumni in the WNBA during 2025 training camp:
Chicago Sky
— Moriah Jefferson, 2012-16, guard: Jefferson, entering her ninth year in the league, was traded from Connecticut to the Sky in the middle of last season. She played just 23 games in 2024 after undergoing ankle surgery in June and averaged 8.9 minutes for Chicago following her return.
— Kia Nurse, 2014-18, guard: Nurse started 27 games for the Los Angeles Sparks and averaging 7.6 points shooting 33% on 3-pointers in 2024. She signed with Chicago as a free agent for her seventh WNBA season.
Connecticut Sun
— Tina Charles, 2006-10, forward: Charles, an eight-time WNBA All-Star and the 2012 league MVP, returns to the Sun for her 14th season after she previously played for the franchise from 2010-13. Charles averaged 14.9 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists for the Dream in 2024.
— Olivia Nelson-Ododa, 2018-22, forward: Nelson-Ododa looks to take on a bigger role for the Sun in 2025 after averaging just 11.8 minutes per game last season. She has never started over two seasons in Connecticut but is one of just three returners on this year’s roster.
Dallas Wings
— Paige Bueckers, 2020-25, guard: Bueckers joins four other draftees on a new-look Dallas team led by first-year coach Chris Koclanes and first-year GM Curt Miller. The Wings return just three players from 2024, headlined by three-time All-Star Arike Ogunbowale.
Golden State Valkyries
— Kaitlyn Chen, 2024-25, guard: Chen was drafted in the third round by the Valkyries after starting 40 games for UConn and averaging 6.9 points plus 3.4 assists in her lone season as a graduate transfer.
— Tiffany Hayes, 2008-12, guard: Hayes will be a veteran leader for the brand-new franchise after Golden State selected her in its expansion draft. She enters her 13th season in the WNBA after averaging 9.5 points shooting 50% from the field and 40.2% on 3-pointers to earn Sixth Player of the Year with the Aces in 2024.
Las Vegas Aces
— Kiah Stokes, 2011-15, forward: Stokes enters her 10th season in the league and fifth with the Aces after helping the franchise win back-to-back WNBA championship in 2022 and 2023. Stokes averaged 1.4 points and 4.7 rebounds in 2024.
Los Angeles Sparks
— Azura Stevens, 2017-18, forward: Stevens missed the first half of the 2024 season with an arm injury but returned to start 19 games and average 9.6 points plus seven rebounds shooting 35% from 3-point range. She enters her eighth WNBA season fresh off winning the inaugural Unrivaled championship with Rose BC.
Minnesota Lynx
— Napheesa Collier, 2015-19, forward: Collier was the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year and finished runner-up in MVP voting after averaging 20.4 points, 9.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.4 blocks. She led the Lynx to their first WNBA Finals appearance since 2017 and won the inaugural Unrivaled 1v1 tournament during the offseason.
— Dorka Juhasz, 2021-23, forward: Juhasz enters her third WNBA season after helping lead Beretta Familia Schio to the quarterfinals of the EuroLeague tournament. She averaged 4.8 points and 3.8 rebounds in 16 minutes per game for the Lynx last year.
— Christyn Williams, 2018-22, guard: Williams has never played a WNBA game but signed a training camp contract with Minnesota after competing in Athletes Unlimited this offseason. She was drafted by the Mystics in 2022 and signed a hardship contract with the Mercury in 2023, then participated in Phoenix’s training camp in 2024.
New York Liberty
— Breanna Stewart, 2012-16, forward: Stewart won her third WNBA championship in 2024, leading the Liberty to their first title in franchise history. The six-time All-Star averaged 20.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks to finish top three in MVP voting for the fifth straight year.
Phoenix Mercury
— Anna Makurat, 2019-21, guard: Makurat is from Poland and left UConn after two years to begin her professional career back home. She has played for several pro clubs and the Polish national team in the last four years, but the Mercury gave her her first WNBA training camp contract in 2025.
Seattle Storm
— Katie Lou Samuelson, 2015-19, forward: Samuelson averaged just 18 minutes per game and mostly came off the bench for the Indiana Fever in 2024, her first season back after giving birth to her daughter in 2023. She signed with Seattle as a free agent after previously playing for the team in 2021.
— Gabby Williams, 2014-18, guard: Williams hasn’t played a complete WNBA season since 2022 but returns to Seattle full-time this year after earning Defensive Player of the Year in the Turkish Super League and leading Fenerbahce to the championship. She averaged 10.3 points, four rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.7 steals in 12 games with the Storm in 2024.
Washington Mystics
— Stefanie Dolson, 2010-14, forward: Dolson, a two-time All-Star and 2021 WNBA champion, enters her 12th season in the league after averaging 9.5 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists for the Mystics in 2024.
— Aaliyah Edwards, 2020-24, forward: Edwards was impactful as a rookie after Washington drafted her No. 6 overall in 2024, averaging 7.6 points and 5.6 rebounds in less than 22 minutes per game. She’s poised to take on a bigger role this season under first-year head coach Sydney Johnson.
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