The fifth and sixth week of the WNBA regular season saw the rise of several teams while other teams suffered major losing streaks and injuries. The contrast between the top teams in the league and the bottom became quite evident in these past two weeks. As it hasn’t been quite clear enough already of how much this rookie class has done in terms of growing interest, we saw the first returns of the All-Star voting and three of the rookies were in the top 30. That is definitely unique and interesting to see a rookie class recieve more votes than league stars.
It is now time to recap the fifth and sixth week of WNBA Rookies Watch. You can read the previous week here.
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WNBA Rookies Watch – Rookies Adapting to the League
As we continue these WNBA Rookies Watch posts, please be aware only a small handful of WNBA rookies are getting extended minutes to play while other rookies are not. This is not to dismiss their talent. There is just strong competition and it is tough to compete against WNBA veterans who have experience and have also played overseas.
*Note – These are games played from June 12th, 2024 to June 23rd, 2024*
1.Angel Reese – Forward, Chicago Sky
Angel Reese has continued to play well with the Chicago Sky. She has now set the WNBA rookie record for most consecutive double-doubles with eight. She had her best game of her season when she scored a career high 25 points to go along with 16 rebounds in a recent win against the Indiana Fever. In their one point win over the Indiana Fever, she scored a driving layup in the final minute to give the Sky the lead. In their earlier loss against the same team, the Indiana Fever, she finished with a career high of five assists. In these last two weeks, only twice has she struggled to shoot from the field. Once against the Indiana Fever when she shot 30.8% in the loss and the second time against the Washington Mystics in which she she shot 30%. She’s continued to improve and show why she’s one of the best rookies in this star-studded class.
2. Caitlin Clark – Guard, Indiana Fever
Caitlin Clark struggled in the first game in week 5 when she shot 27.3% from the field versus the Atlanta Dream but then quickly rebounded in a win over the Chicago Sky in which she scored 23 points, 8 rebounds and 9 assists. She had her second and third double-double performance of the season when she scored 18 points, had 12 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals in a win against the Washington Mystics. Her third double-double of the season came in a recent loss versus the same team, the Chicago Sky. She scored 17 points, had a franchise record of 13 assists, six rebounds and four steals. She continues to be incredible. Turnovers are still a concern as she averaged six turnovers in these past two weeks.
3. Kamilla Cardoso – Center, Chicago Sky
Kamilla Cardoso has begun to recieve extended minutes as she averaged 29.6 minutes per game in the last two weeks and she has risen to be the third best rookie for week 5 and week 6! She recorded her first two double-doubles these past two weeks. The first double-double came in an earlier loss to the Fever in which she scored 10 points and 10 rebounds. The second double-double came in a recent win over the same team, the Indiana Fever in which she scored 16 points and had 10 rebounds. She had two near double-doubles against the Connecticut Sun in which she scored 10 points and had 9 rebounds and the other one was against the Dallas Wings in which she scored 9 points and had 11 rebounds. She is starting to show why she was chosen as the third overall pick in this year’s draft.
4. Rickea Jackson – Guard, LA Sparks
Rickea Jackson struggled in the first game of week 5 when she shot 12.5% in their loss to the Seattle Storm, but then quickly bounced back in their next game against the Minnesota Lynx in which she recorded her first rookie double-double of the season. She finished with 19 points, 10 rebounds and 3 assists. She followed up on that performance by scoring in double-digits in the next two games versus the Atlanta Dream and the Connecticut Sun in which she scored 16 points and 10 points and 7 rebounds respectively. She slipped in the previous two games versus the New York Liberty in which she scored six and seven points in each of them. The Sparks have currently lost six in a row and lost Cameron Brink to injury as she suffered a torn ACL. Rickea Jackson will have alot to deal with in these upcoming weeks.
5. Sevgi Uzun – Guard, Dallas Wings
The last spot for week 5 and week 6 of WNBA Rookies Watch flipped back and forth between Sevgi Uzun and Jacy Sheldon of the Dallas Wings. Both rookies had terrific performances as the Wings have gone on a major losing streak as they have lost 11 straight games. Ultimately, it was Sevgi Uzun who got the fifth spot. She started off week 5 on a slow note as she scored just 2 points in games against the Seattle Storm and the Connecticut Sun before she scored a career high 17 points and six assists in the game against the Minnesota Lynx. Her ability to score, rebound and assist is what sets her apart and makes her stand out. She scored 8 points, had five rebounds and dished out six assists in their game against the Chicago Sky. In their game against the Washington Mystics, she scored five points, had four rebounds and five assists. She continues to improve and get better under difficult circumstances.
Honourable mention
Li Yueru and Jacy Sheldon
Both Li Yueru and Jacy Sheldon recieve honourable mention for week 5 and week 6. They both played well when they both were presented oppurtunity to do so. Li Yueru was given extended minutes due to fellow rookie Cameron Brink’s injury and stepped up by providing some extra scoring help and in rebounding. Jacy Sheldon stepped up for the Dallas Wings by becoming a part of the starting lineup to provide scoring for the team when there has been a ton of injuries to their players. She scored a career high of 16 points and 5 rebounds in their recent loss to the Washington Mystics.
Last note – Want to know some more fun facts about this year’s rookies? Read this Threads post by Jeremy Gathing, a fellow Threads user to keep you informed!
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