Former UConn star Azzi Fudd was selected first overall by the Dallas Wings in the 2026 WNBA Draft. Fudd signed a contract worth $500,000 under the league's new CBA, the highest rookie salary in WNBA history. She joins former teammate and 2025 No. 1 pick Paige Bueckers in Dallas, marking a historic reunion for the Huskies duo.
"I don't think it's fully sunk in. It's nothing I could have imagined," Fudd said. "Such a surreal feeling." Fudd and Bueckers helped lead UConn to a record seven No. 1 overall picks in WNBA history. Bueckers was on hand at the draft, surrounded by several of Fudd's former teammates from Connecticut.
Fudd had a breakout 2025-26 season, averaging 17.3 points per game on 48 percent shooting from the field and 45 percent from beyond the arc. She dished out 3.1 assists per game while making 117 three-pointers, the fourth most in UConn history. Fudd overcame a torn ACL in 2023-24, which limited her to just two games that season.
UCLA dominated the draft, making history with three first-round selections. Lauren Betts went fourth to Washington, Gabriela Jaquez fifth to Chicago, and Kiki Rice sixth to expansion Toronto. The Bruins tied the all-time record for most players drafted in a single year, a mark previously held by Tennessee, Notre Dame, and South Carolina.
Minnesota selected TCU guard Olivia Miles with the No. 2 pick. Seattle picked Spain’s Awa Fam Thiam third before Portland, in its first-ever draft pick as an expansion team, chose Spanish guard Iyana Martin Carrion.
Under the new CBA, second and third-round picks will earn $270,000, a significant increase from the previous maximum salary. No. 8 pick Flau'jae Johnson was traded to Seattle after being selected by Golden State. Johnson said, "I'm just blessed and grateful to come at this time. My goal is to leave it better than I found it."
With the 2026 WNBA season set to begin in May, Fudd and the rest of the draft class will soon take the court. The Wings will look to make an immediate impact with their new core in Dallas.
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