For anyone who knows me even a little will know my obsession with Paige Bueckers and how I manage to pull her name into every conversation. After all, they have seen every crash out, endured endless facts about her and even got a glimpse of my notes titled “Paige’s passing instinct being a gift from basketball god”. One of my friends even told me that she doesn’t watch basketball, but she knows all of Paige’s accolades by heart from my constant ranting.
Well, with Paige doing whatever she is best at, the rant is not gonna stop anytime soon, and definitely not without talking about her rookie year at the pros.
Paige Bueckers was crowned the 2025 WNBA rookie of the year, and the news came as the least shocking headline of the season. She received 72 of 74 votes from the national sportswriters and broadcasters, while the remaining went to Sonia Citron, guard of the Washington Mystics.
While the world reacted with applause, I reacted the way most people would react if one direction got back together( just know if that happens, then it’s happiness that killed me): I was annoyingly happy, unreasonably loud and probably added one more reason to the list why I should be kicked out of the hostel.
Well, the reaction is justifiable if you have been running a one-person PR campaign for Paige Bueckers and have predicted the news long ago, before she even began her pro career.
Paige got drafted by the Dallas Wings as the No. 1 pick after leading UConn to its 12th national championship title. Going into the league, Paige didn’t shatter the expectations despite the Wings tying with the Chicago Sky for the worst record in the league.
So yes, I am annoyingly happy about the news after watching her put up her best fight for the team and still end up on the losing side.
If you have followed her journey, then you know the story. She missed the entire 2022-23 season due to a torn ACL and returned to lead the Huskies to their 12th championship. The way she carries herself on court and her team-first mindset are what makes her a leader.
And as a rookie, she was leading the records and making history, reminding us why she is the best fit for the award. She is a player who balances aggression with composure, which makes her unstoppable in court. Paige plays the game like she is having fun, and the way she moves on the court will make you feel like you can play too, until you actually try and realise, nope, that’s just Paige being Paige.
Here is a thing, though. Paige sure plays like she is the best in the league, getting all those buckets with the swagger look, which is true, but that’s not even the part I love most about her. Maybe the swagger look caught my eye, but it’s mostly how she is as a person off the court that makes her special.
She is best for her midrange game and no-look passes, but what makes it even better is that she does them without the ego you’d expect from someone this good. Her UConn teammates described her as the most selfless person they know, and I can agree on that. She can make the threes by herself, and no one would ever question it, but she still looks for the open teammate and celebrates their three louder than her own.
Paige has always made sure she is looking out for the community and giving back. She made sure her partnership with any company must include charity or community engagement so that she can give back. She signed a NIL deal with Chegg, an education technology company, with the purpose of fighting food insecurity for students. She is using her NIL deals to make a difference by donating the money to charities and wants to support people who support her play on the court. Paige uses her platform to advocate for her teammates as well. She made sure her teammates got trending card deals in conjunction with her exclusive multi-year deal with Panini America, making it the first time the collectibles company has entered such a deal.
So tell me how I am not supposed to be obsessed with someone who keeps finding opportunities to give back to people and wants her legacy in NIL space to be about what she shares with others. She shows me that your light never dims when you shed it on others, and honestly, she is the reason I am trying to be a better person, even if I finish off my favourite snacks before sharing them.
So Paige may be leading the basketball stats and breaking records, but she is also being selfless and humble to a fault, which makes her a perfect fit for the Rookie of the Year. I will most probably receive a few eye rolls from my friends for writing about Paige Bueckers, but at least now they’ll know one of the many reasons why I look up to her.