Aliyah Boston for the win! WNBA names Gamecock great as league’s Rookie of the Year
South Carolina women’s basketball legend Aliyah Boston has been unanimously named WNBA Rookie of the Year, the league announced Monday.
Boston is the first player to unanimously win the award since fellow Gamecock alumna A’ja Wilson in 2018.
“It means a lot, but I think it also shows what coach (Dawn) Staley does at South Carolina and just the top players she produces,” Boston said in a Zoom press conference Monday. “So that’s really exciting to be in that category with A’ja.”
Boston said the Rookie of the Year nod is among the top three proudest accomplishments of her basketball career, right up there with the 2022 NCAA championship and her National Player of the Year award.
Boston was drafted by the Indiana Fever with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 WNBA Draft. What followed was a historic first-year campaign.
Her hot start earned her a starting roster spot in the WNBA All-Star Game, where she’d play alongside All-Star captain and fellow USC alumna A’ja Wilson. Boston became the eighth rookie player to start in the All-Star Game and first since Shoni Schimmel in 2014. The Associated Press named Boston as its 2023 Rookie of the Year on Sept. 12.
Boston ended the regular season as the first rookie to lead the league in field goal percentage (57.8%). She ranks second all-time for most rebounds in a rookie season (335) and third for most field goals made as a first-year player (223).
She set a franchise record for most blocks in a rookie season with 50. Boston recorded the second most steals (53) and points scored (578) by an Indiana Fever rookie as well.
By season’s end, she led all rookies in scoring (14.4), rebounds (8.4), steals (1.3), blocked shots (1.3) and minutes (31.2) per game.
This story was originally published October 2, 2023 at 11:05 AM.
