NCAAW: A healthy Azzi Fudd could be the best shooter in 2025 WNBA Draft

For UConn Huskies guard Azzi Fudd, the 2024-25 NCAA season will be one of proving that her name belongs among those of the best players in the country.

That’s not something often said of players who were at the top of their respective recruiting classes, but Fudd’s circumstances are unique. One of the most highly-touted high school recruits of the social media age, Fudd received her first scholarship offer when she was in sixth grade, and she was widely considered a can’t-miss prospect by the time she finally committed to UConn, thanks to a pristine jumpshot and a mental approach to the game that far exceeded her years.

After an impressive freshman campaign, however, Fudd’s career was been disrupted several times by injury. As a sophomore, Fudd played just 15 games in between knee injuries, and she played in only two as a junior before tearing her ACL—a serious setback that cost her over an entire year of action.

When factoring in ACL and MCL injuries suffered during high school, Fudd has not only missed a significant amount of games over the years, but has also faced mounting doubt about her future availability. It’s difficult for players with a history of lower-body injuries to shed the “injury-prone” tag bestowed upon them—often unfairly—and Fudd is now firmly at a point where she must prove that she can stay on the court, much less make a major impact for the championship-hopeful Huskies.

But, if Fudd can? There’s no telling how much of a boost it would give UConn, which is currently 6-0 and ranked No. 3 in the country by the Associated Press. It would also give Fudd the boost she needs on WNBA Draft boards, because there’s plenty to like about her game at the next level, regardless of whether Fudd herself ends up being a calculated risk.

Honors and statistics

The 2019 Gatorade National Player of the Year and a 2021 McDonald’s All-American, Fudd was ranked as the No. 1 overall recruit in the class of 2021 by ESPN HoopGurlz. She had achieved considerable international success before college, winning gold medals for Team USA in the 2017 U16 Women’s AmeriCup and the 2018 U17 World Cup along other budding talents such as Caitlin Clark, Aliyah Boston and future UConn teammate Paige Bueckers.

Fudd largely lived up the hype as a freshman, her shooting in particular proving to be as good as advertised. She averaged 12.1 points per game, shooting 43 percent on 3-pointers and 91.2 percent on free throws, both of which ranked in the 98th percentile according to Her Hoop Stats. Fudd earned a spot on the Big East’s All-Freshman Team, and was named to the Bridgeport All-Region Team in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.

Even as Fudd spent the next two years rehabbing from injury, she was shown respect by Big East coaches, who voted her to the Preseason All-Big East Team for the 2024-25 season. She was also named to preseason watch lists for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award, given to the best shooting guard in the country, and the Wooden and Naismith National Player of the Year Awards.

Fudd’s shooting versatility and feel for the game set her apart

There’s one area of the 5-foot-11 Fudd’s game that stands out immediately to anyone watching her, and that’s her jumpshooting. There are plenty of players who are considered to be elite shooters, but Fudd stands out thanks to a mechanically flawless and lightning-quick release that minimizes the amount of space she needs to get her shot off. Whether she’s spotting up, coming off a screen or pulling up off the dribble, Fudd makes even tightly contested shots look effortless.

It’s worth emphasizing just how versatile Fudd’s jumper is. She’s far more than a catch-and-shoot specialist; according to Synergy Sports, as a sophomore (the last season in which Fudd played more than a handful of games), 17.2 percent of her offensive possessions came on spot-up opportunities, 15.9 percent off screens, 15 percent on handoffs and 12.3 as the pick and roll ball handler. She also knows how to move without the ball—something that often separates good shooters from great ones—which puts pressure on defenses even when she doesn’t get a touch.

This kind of offensive malleability makes Fudd a perfect fit for a UConn program that is rarely short on star power. Though she’s been the star of the show for much of her playing career, Fudd doesn’t need the ball on every possession to help her team, and that’s something that UConn head coach Geno Auriemma is a big fan of.

“People know she’s a great shooter, but I don’t think they realize what a terrific basketball player she is and how many things she can do,” Auriemma commented after Fudd scored 18 points in a UConn win over Ole Miss, needing just 11 shots to do so.

Highlights: Azzi Fudd at the 2023 NCAA Tournament

Part of what Auriemma was likely referring to in his comments is Fudd’s advanced feel for the game, which has been lauded since she was young. Once likened to a hybrid of Kara Lawson and Katie Smith—two outstanding scorers who also had lengthy professional careers due to strong work ethic and mental fortitude—Fudd plays at the pace of a true veteran. She has a knack for playing off each of her teammates, which usually involves her gravity as a shooter, but she’s also a threat going to the basket as a cutter, converting on 65.9 percent of her rim attempts as a sophomore. This adds yet another wrinkle to a UConn offense that likes using its frontcourt players to initiate offense at the top of the key, and Fudd takes full advantage.

Fudd may have been hailed as the nation’s next superstar out of high school, and there’s still a chance she can reach that level. Her strengths, however, lend themselves to being a top-tier complementary player in the WNBA—which, to be clear, is not a bad thing. An off-ball maestro who can shoot it at an elite clip and use that gravity to maximize the talents of her teammates is a kind of player any WNBA team would love to have, and if Fudd can finish her final season at UConn strong, she’ll have plenty of suitors in the 2025 WNBA Draft.

Watch her play

The Huskies will be participating in the Women’s Champions Classic in Brooklyn, NY, an event in which they’ll take on the No. 24 Louisville Cardinals on Dec. 7 (FOX). UConn will then renew its storied rivalry with the No. 3 Notre Dame Fighting Irish in a must-see matchup on Dec. 12 (ESPN); how Fudd plays against Notre Dame’s potent backcourt of Olivia Miles and Hannah Hidalgo will be something to watch.

Towards the end of the calendar year, UConn will play the No. 15 Iowa State Cyclones on Dec. 17 as part of the Basketball Hall of Fame Women’s Showcase (FS1). The Huskies will then wrap up their non-conference schedule with a game against the No. 6 USC Trojans on Dec. 21 (FOX).

All statistics, team records and rankings for the 2024-25 NCAA season are current through Saturday, November 30, 2024.