Rookie Report: The Debuts

First impressions matter. For highly touted rookies, the start of their WNBA careers provides a chance to prove the hype is real. Rookies who live up to the preseason buildup in the form of a Rookie of the Year award historically have tremendous success in the League. Names like Tamika, Diana, Seimone, Candace and Maya come to mind.

With the opening weekend of the 2015 campaign in the books, we look at how some of the top rookies fared in their first WNBA action and give insight into who we believe might follow in the footsteps Chiney Ogwumike, last year’s top rook.

2015 No. 1 pick Jewell Loyd (Seattle Storm)

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, is on Loyd’s side—eight of the last 11 first overall draft selections have gone on to win the award. This first overall pick, though, struggled with her shot in her debut Saturday, scoring seven points on 2-for-10 from the field. Still, the guard from Notre Dame tallied seven rebounds, three assists and a steal in the Seattle Storm’s 86-61 rout of the Los Angeles Sparks. Look for Loyd, one of the top scorers in the NCAA last year, to bounce back as the season goes on.

2015 No. 2 pick Amanda Zahui B. (Tulsa Shock)

A former Minnesota Golden Gopher and a native Swede, Zahui B. was the second overall pick in April’s draft. As a sophomore last year, Zahui B. ranked in the top four in the NCAA in both blocked shots and rebounds. Expect the double-double machine — who recorded six points and six rebounds in Tulsa’s win against Chicago over the weekend — to develop into an inside force for the Shock.

2015 No. 3 pick Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis (Seattle Storm)

Mosqueda-Lewis was Seattle’s “other” top-three pick in April’s draft. The only other player to receive a Rookie of the Year nod in the 2015 WNBA.com GM Survey, KML will look to give the Storm a boost along the perimeter: In her final year at UConn, she set the NCAA Division I record for career 3-pointers en route to helping lead the Huskies to a championship. She didn’t attempt a long ball in her debut—which lasted only five minutes—but look for KML to pair with first overall pick Loyd to inject some youth into last year’s 12-22 squad.

2015 No. 4 pick Elizabeth Williams (Connecticut Sun)

Williams, an aspiring doctor, joins two other former Blue Devils—Jasmine Thomas and fellow rookie Chelsea Gray—in a reunion that Connecticut brass hopes will spark a team that finished 13-21 last year. The fourth overall pick in last year’s draft will be heavily relied upon with defending Rookie of the Year Chiney Ogwumike out for the year. She had five points and five rebounds (in 10 minutes) in her debut on June 5.

2015 No. 7 pick Brittany Boyd (New York Liberty)

Cal’s all-time assist leader is a crafty, high-energy guard who should serve as a spark for a Liberty team that failed to make the playoffs last year. The ninth overall pick said prior to the draft that she hopes to develop a more consistent shot during her WNBA career. In her debut, she shot 57 percent from the field and connected on all of her free-throw attempts.

2015 No. 10 pick Samantha Logic (Atlanta Dream)

Logic logged only six minutes of action in her WNBA debut Sunday, but the tenth overall pick out of Iowa should be the perfect fit on a stacked Atlanta squad. The Wisconsin native averaged 8.1 assists per game for the Hawkeyes last year—good for third in the NCAA—and should be able to distribute the ball with generous regularity to high-scorer Angel McCoughtry and Co.

2014 No. 9 pick Natalie Achonwa (Indiana Fever)

Achonwa, a Notre Dame alum and 2014 draftee, missed last season with a knee injury, but has made an immediate impact this year, scoring in double figures in each of her first three games.

2015 No. 15 pick Natasha Cloud (Washington Mystics)

The second-round pick out of St. Joe’s appears to be on her way to playing a key role for the Mystics. In her first two games, she’s played more minutes than many of her first-round counterparts. She’s also posted more assists than any other rookie. Look for Cloud—perhaps overlooked for playing for a mid-major university—to turn some heads this year.