You’ve heard all season about how special this rookie class has been. We’ve done rookie reports on stars like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso. Today, we will look at another rookie who has fought to earn a starting spot and shined in that role: Jacy Sheldon.
Selected at No. 5 overall in the 2024 WNBA Draft, Sheldon is not an unknown player but has been overlooked amidst the hype for Clark, Reese and Cameron Brink. That’s not to say those players don’t deserve that attention or aren’t better than Sheldon is at this moment, but she should be getting more recognition for what she’s done.
She entered a Dallas Wings team coming off its best postseason finish of the Arike Ogunbowale era, hoping to be one of the top four teams in the WNBA. Now that hasn’t materialized, primarily because Satou Sabally missed all games before the Olympics due to injury. Still, players like Sheldon have been a bright spot in a season of darkness.
During the opening parts of the season, Sheldon was doing what many rookies do: ride the bench. She was still playing, but only 13.5 minutes per game, averaging 2.7 points, 1.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists as a bench player. By mid-June, injuries to a number of other players gave Sheldon the opportunity to start, and she has never looked back. She’s continued to start and is playing 28.6 minutes per game, totaling 6.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists as a starter. These stats put her in the top 10 in rebounds and scoring in this rookie class.
The numbers might not be as shocking as Clark’s scoring or as dominant as Reese’s rebounding, but Sheldon is the quintessential star in her role. As the Wings have looked for solid play at the guard position, she’s provided a spark and a baseline of consistency uncommon for a rookie.
I’m impressed with Jacy Sheldon.
Sheldon had 8 pts, 4 asterisks 3 stls, 1 reb
Stats won’t show the full picture of how much energy she puts in defending the opposing team’s best perimeter players.
I asked her about finding her niche and her intangibles.#WNBA| @WingsBulletin pic.twitter.com/uQhdZDAYbM
— Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) September 1, 2024
With Dallas appearing outside of the playoff race, they’ll have to figure out how to regroup from this disappointing year. The good news in Texas is that the core of a solid team is present. They have Ogunbowale as a superstar guard and Sabally as a presence at the forward position. Now, Sheldon is a complementary piece that can be part of this franchise’s future.
