June 21, 2025
Locked On Women’s Basketball: Early All-Rookie team picks
By The Next
Adler: 'This is the deepest rookie class we have seen in a long time'
On the latest episode of Locked On Women’s Basketball, host Hunter Cruse is joined by Emily Adler and Lincoln Shafer to make some early predictions for the 2025 WNBA All-Rookie Team. They also make some predictions for other awards coming down the pike.
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“This is the deepest rookie class we have seen in a long time,” Adler says to start out the show. “Part of that is adding an expansion team, but there are 35 players classified as rookies who have played one minute, and there’s already 17 rookies that have played 100 minutes.”
The first rookie the team selects to make the team, to no surprise, is Paige Bueckers of the Dallas Wings. “She’s played a few games less than the other rookies with that concussion,” Shafer points out. But, as Adler says, Dallas heavily relies on her. The trio goes onto discuss other rookies that they believe should get WNBA All-Rookie Team recognition, like Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron of the Washington Mystics, Janelle Salaün of the Golden State Valkyries, and Monique Akoa-Makani of the Phoenix Mercury, among others.
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To finish up the show, Cruse asks Adler and Shafer who they would pick for Coach of the Year, if they had to choose today. Per Adler, it’s either Nate Tibbetts of the Mercury or Natalie Nakase of the Valkyries. And Shafer doubles down on Nakase.
Make sure to subscribe to the Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast to keep learning about women’s college basketball, the WNBA, basketball history and much more!
Your business can reach over 3 million women’s sports fans every single month!
Here at The Next and The IX, our audience is a collection of the smartest, most passionate women’s sports fans in the world. If your business has a mission to serve these fans, reach out to our team at editors@thenexthoops.com to discuss ways to work together.
