Each week this summer, we’ll delve into various aspects of this year’s WNBA rookie class. We’ll provide inside access to the youngsters’ seasons, showcasing the impact the game’s future stars are having today.

In this week’s installment, we feature Jewell Loyd, the first overall pick who’s finally finding her footing.

After an uneven beginning to her rookie campaign, 2015’s first overall pick is starting to act the part.

Seattle guard Jewell Loyd, who scored in double-digits just once in her first eight games, has done so in seven of her last 13 and looks increasingly more comfortable playing a prominent role with the team.

“I’ve just been trying to adjust,” the Notre Dame product said. “I think it’s been about finding my pace and getting adjusted to the tempo of the game. I’m here, and I belong here.”

In the 2015 WNBA.com GM Survey, 11 of 12 general managers tapped Loyd as the favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award. History, too, was on Loyd’s side from the start: Eight of the last 11 first overall draft selections have gone on to win the award.

Eight games into the season, however, Loyd was nowhere near the top of the rookie leaderboard in many important statistical categories. The bumpy stretch to start the year was capped off with a 14-minute, two-point, zero-assist outing June 27 against the Stars.

Thanks to the patience of her coaches, Loyd bounced back the following night in Tulsa, logging 28 minutes and scoring a season-high 21 points on 7-for-12 from the field. From then on, Loyd has arguably been the league’s top rookie.

A junior last year, Loyd declared for the WNBA Draft a day after Notre Dame’s title game loss to UConn in April. In the WNBA’s collective bargaining agreement, strict limitations are placed on those who wish to leave school early for the draft. But because Loyd turns 22 in October—during the same calendar year as the 2015 draft—she was eligible to forgo he senior year. The AP All-American selection and 2014-2015 espnW National Player of the Year was the near-unanimous expert selection for first overall pick from the moment she declared.

Is there any added pressure to being a premature draft entrant and the top pick? Loyd thinks not.

“I think my situation is a little different because I left college early,” she said. “No one really expected me to come out a year early and dominate.”

Loyd isn’t the first college star to forgo senior year: Candace Parker left Tennessee before her senior year and became 2008’s first overall draft pick. That year, Parker averaged 18.5 points and 9.5 rebounds and captured the Rookie of the Year and MVP awards. Loyd won’t reach both those heights this year, but her improved play has been promising for a Seattle squad that’s won only five of its first 21 games.

“It’s been really nice seeing her find her feet,” teammate Jenna O’Hea said. “She came in as a bundle of energy, and it took her a couple of weeks to find her groove in this league.”

Loyd is certainly benefitting from Seattle’s strong veteran leadership, and Sue Bird is exhibit A.

“[Bird] has helped me out so much, on and off the court,” Loyd said. “Playing with a legend like her is something people dream of doing. I can’t take it for granted. I’m learning from the best mentors in the world. With them on my side, I can’t really go wrong.”

O’Hea is confident that Loyd’s slow start was just a fluke.

“She’s young, and you can see her progressing each day,” O’Hea said. “She just has so much space for improvement, and she wants to learn. She works hard, and she’s going to be a name in this league for many, many years.”