Will UConn's Azzi Fudd be the No. 1 pick in 2026 WNBA Draft?

Mitchell Northam, USA TODAYMon, April 13, 2026 at 9:07 AM UTC

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PHOENIX — Ahead of the Final Four and with the 2026 WNBA Draft looming, ESPN’s Andraya Carter had a simple response to a question about one of the biggest stars of the Women’s NCAA Tournament.

Could UConn’s Azzi Fudd be picked No. 1 overall by the Dallas Wings?

“Yeah, of course,” Carter told USA TODAY Sports. “Why not?”

Pressed further, Carter explained Fudd’s value.

“She's a specialist when it comes to being a shooter — the ability to hit shots, the ability to space the floor,” Carter said. “There's so many things that when you have a floor spacer, just that skill set alone is an amazing opportunity to have success at the WNBA level. Even on nights if she's not hitting (3-pointers), she can attack long close outs, which puts the defense in scramble mode. When the defense is in scramble mode, somebody's going to be open.”

In this year’s WNBA draft — which will be held Monday night in New York — there seems to be a clear separation between the top four prospects and everyone else.

There’s 6-foot-7 UCLA center Lauren Betts, who just powered the Bruins to the national championship. There’s TCU point guard Olivia Miles, a wizard with the ball in her hands who can dish out neck-breaking assists and swish open shots from deep range. There’s also Awa Fam, the 19-year-old 6-foot-6 center from Spain who is a bit unpolished, but brings sky-high potential.

1 / 0Our WNBA mock draft could be full of future stars

With the Women's Final Four complete, all eyes turn towards the 2026 WNBA Draft. The WNBA draft takes place Monday, April 13, in New York, and this year's event has a different feel. Unlike the last two drafts, where Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers were consensus No. 1 overall picks, this year's top spot is up for grabs. After an exciting March Madness, it's time to see who helped their stock and who fell down the draft board. Is Awa Fam still at the top? Is Azzi Fudd a top-five draft pick? Who vaulted into the first round? Here's USA TODAY's latest 2026 WNBA mock draft: 1. Dallas Wings: Lauren Betts, C, UCLA - After a stellar NCAA Tournament run, Betts has done enough to earn consideration for the No. 1 overall pick. While the Bruins center will need to work on shooting more baskets in the mid-range and later from deep, she can be inserted into Dallas's lineup when the season starts on May 8. Her length and size make her an immediate threat in the post, along with her passing abilities and rebounding prowess.

And then there’s Fudd, a product UConn − the most successful program in women’s college basketball. Should the Dallas Wings take her with the top pick, she would be the seventh player coached by 12-time champion Geno Auriemma to go No. 1 overall.

“I look at Dallas and I wonder, are they going to focus more on positional need for the future? Because when it comes to post players, it's been a little inconsistent, right? So that's the only cause for pause that I have,” ESPN’s Chiney Ogwumike, a former No. 1 overall pick in 2014 said. “Are they going to take the best shooter or for-sure player, or are they going to look a little bit more positionally?

“It’s tough. I see Azzi’s skill set and she’s a sure bet. And one thing that translates is shooting.”

Like any draft prospect, there are arguments for and against Fudd having success in the WNBA.

The positives start with her offensive abilities. Fudd nearly had a 50-40-90 season this year for the dominant Huskies, shooting 48.1% from the floor, 44.7% from 3-point land and 95.5% from the free throw line. In a more prominent scoring role this year for UConn, she averaged 17.3 points and 3.1 assists per game.

Since 2009 — which is as far back as the databases for the women’s basketball analytics and statistics website Her Hoop Stats goes — Fudd is one of four players to average at least 17 points, three assists and 6.5 3-point attempts per game while shooting better than 44% from behind the arc. The others were Army’s Kelsey Minato in 2015-16, Gianna Kneepkens last season at Utah and Oklahoma’s Taylor Robertson in the 2021-22 campaign.

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She’s underrated as a defender too, and this season ranked third in defensive win shares (2.8) and was 15th nationally in defensive rating (72.4).

Fudd was an All-American this season and is a two-time All-Big East selection. Last year, she was named the Most Outstanding Player at the Final Four after scoring a combined 43 points in wins over UCLA and South Carolina en route to UConn’s first national title since 2016.

“That’s who I would take No. 1 if I was a general manager,” ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo told USA TODAY Sports. “She's gonna fit in seamlessly. She's one of the greatest shooters we've seen in college. Her efficiency of movement, the way she has expanded her game — it's not just 3s. She's incredible in the mid-range, she's become a really next level defender out on the perimeter. I think she is WNBA-ready today. I think she has WNBA All-Star potential as a rookie.”

The knocks on Fudd begin with her injury history. She was tabbed as the high school National Player of the Year in 2019 and in 2021 was a McDonald’s All-American. A product of St. John's College High School in Washington, D.C., ESPN ranked her as the best prospect in the 2021 class.

But after the end of her high school season in 2019, Fudd tore the ACL and MCL in her right knee while competing in a 3-on-3 tournament. Her senior season of high school ball was limited by a foot sprain.

The injury bug followed her to UConn. She missed 11 games as a freshman due to a foot injury, then 22 games of her sophomore season due to a knee injury. She played two games in the 2023-24 season before tearing the ACL in her right knee again.

For the past two seasons, Fudd has been healthy and helped UConn go 75-4 with a national championship.

While Fudd avoided injuries this season, she didn’t finish strong. In her final three games for the Huskies — the Sweet 16 through their Final Four loss to South Carolina — Fudd averaged 10.3 points per game on 32% shooting from the floor while turning the ball over 2.6 times a game.

Experts believe that WNBA teams shouldn’t be deterred from drafting her high.

“She's a great fit anywhere. When you can shoot the way she can shoot — it's different than a post player,” Lobo said. “Everybody can use a shooter and somebody who has the versatile skill set that she has.”

Fudd proved at other points this season she can shine under bright lights. She tallied 27 points and seven assists in a win over Tennessee, scored 31 points in a narrow non-conference win over Michigan and dropped a career-high 34 points in a second-round March Madness victory over Syracuse.

Should Fudd get selected with the top pick by the Dallas Wings, it will reunite her with former UConn teammate Paige Bueckers and put her in new coach Jose Fernandez’s scheme that emphasizes constant motion on offense and 3-pointers.

“I’m interested in what Jose’s going to be able to do in Dallas,” Carter said. “Obviously, Paige and Azzi have played together before, so you trust that chemistry on the court. I think any system that he tries to put in place, having a knock down 3-point shooter would be helpful.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Will UConn's Azzi Fudd be the No. 1 pick in 2026 WNBA Draft?

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