UConn’s Aaliyah Edwards selected No. 6 by Washington Mystics in 2024 WNBA Draft
Aaliyah Edwards was selected with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft by the Washington Mystics, becoming the 27th first-round selection in UConn women’s basketball history.
Edwards, a 6-foot-2 forward, is the Huskies’ second consecutive first-round pick after Lou Lopez-Senechal went No. 5 overall to the Dallas Wings in 2023. It is the first time UConn players have been selected in the first round back-to-back years since 2018-19. Edwards was the third forward selected behind Stanford’s Cameron Brink to the Los Angeles Sparks at No. 2, South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso to the Chicago Sky at No. 3 and Tennessee’s Rickea Jackson to the Sparks at No. 4.
The Kingston, Ontario native is the 19th Canadian drafted in the WNBA. She entered the draft off of a career senior season at UConn that ended on a miracle run to the Final Four. Edwards averaged a career-best 17.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and a block per game, earning All-American honors from the U.S. Basketball Writers Association and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association. She was one of 10 players to make the national ballot for the prestigious Wooden Award, and she was a finalist for the Katrina McClain Award given to the country’s best power forward.
Edwards was the youngest player to make the Team Canada roster for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics at age 18, and she won a bronze medal with the senior team at the 2023 FIBA AmeriCup last summer. Edwards also helped Canada to silver medals at the 2019 FIBA AmeriCup and in the 2017 U16 World Championship.
Washington is strong at center with Shakira Austin plus veteran UConn alum Stefanie Dolson, so Edwards should factor into the power forward rotation alongside other high-ceiling young players like Queen Egbo and Emily Engstler. The Mystics also signed a second UConn alum, Karlie Samuelson, in free agency in 2024.
The Mystics are looking at a rebuild in 2024 after losing point guard Natasha Cloud to the Phoenix Mercury in free agency, especially with two-time MVP Elena Delle Donne “taking a break” from basketball. The team went 19-21 in 2023, losing in the first round of the playoffs for the second consecutive season in coach Eric Thiabault’s first year.
