The new WNBA season is here. These Gamecocks are on opening day rosters
The 2025 WNBA season kicks off Friday night. South Carolina women’s basketball will have plenty of representation across the league this year.
Nine of Dawn Staley’s former players are on opening day rosters. The Atlanta Dream and Las Vegas Aces both have two former Gamecocks on their respective teams.
The WNBA’s opening night will consist of three different games: Atlanta vs. the Washington Mystics (7:30 p.m.), the Minnesota Lynx vs. the Dallas Wings (7:30 p.m.) and the Los Angeles Sparks vs. the Golden State Valkyries (10 p.m.).
All three games will air on ION.
Here’s where you can find each former Gamecock playing in the WNBA:
Atlanta Dream
Gamecocks on the roster: G Allisha Gray, G Te-Hina Paopao
Gray is entering her ninth year in the WNBA and third with the Dream. She’s earned a WNBA All-Star nod in the last two seasons. A year ago she averaged 15.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Gray was drafted by the Dallas Wings in 2017 and spent the first six years of her career there. She was named Rookie of the Year in 2017.
Paopao was taken with the No. 18 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft. Paopao averaged about 20 minutes of action in the Dream’s two preseason games. She scored seven points in the first game and 14 in the second.
Chicago Sky
Gamecocks on the roster: C Kamilla Cardoso
Cardoso is coming off a successful rookie campaign with the Sky after being selected with the No. 3 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft. She earned an All-WNBA Rookie Team nod after 9.8 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks for Chicago last season.
She started in 29 of 32 games for the Sky in 2024.
Dallas Wings
Gamecocks on the roster: G Tyasha Harris
Harris is entering her sixth year in the WNBA and her second stint with the Dallas Wings. She was chosen with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2020 WNBA Draft by the Wings and spent two three seasons with the franchise.
In 2023 she was traded to the Connecticut Sun, where she played in 79 games across two seasons. Harris had a career-year last season with the Sun, averaging a career-high 10.5 points and three assists per game.
Harris returns to the Wings this season after she was part of a massive four-team trade in February that sent her back to Dallas.
Indiana Fever
Gamecocks on the roster: C-F Aliyah Boston
Boston has seen nothing but success in her young professional career. She’s entering her third year in the league after going No. 1 overall in the 2023 WNBA Draft.
Boston was named the WNBA Rookie of the Year in 2023 and has been named a WNBA All-Star in each of her two years in the league. She’s averaging 14.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game in the last two seasons.
Las Vegas Aces
Gamecocks on the roster: G Tiffany Mitchell, C A’ja Wilson
Mitchell is entering her 10th year in the WNBA. She was selected with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2016 WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever and earned an WNBA All-Rookie Team nod that year.
She played seven seasons with the Fever — averaged 9.6 points across 209 games — before she was traded to the Connecticut Sun in 2024. Mitchell’s lone season in Connecticut was cut short while recovering from sepsis and abdominal issues. Mitchell has since competed in Israeli D1 League before signing with the Aces in February.
Wilson, arguably the best player in women’s basketball, is entering her eighth year in the WNBA.
She’s coming off her third MVP season where she recorded a career-high 26.9 points and 11.9 rebounds per game. Wilson is a six-time All-Star, three-time MVP, two-time Defensive Player of the Year and two-time WNBA champion with the Aces. She also has her own signature shoe with Nike.
Los Angeles Sparks
Gamecocks on the roster: F Sania Feagin
Feagin is just beginning her career in the pros after she was taken with the No. 21 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft by the Sparks.
She recorded three points and an assist in seven minutes of action during the Sparks’ lone preseason game.
Seattle Storm
Gamecocks on the roster: G Zia Cooke
This will be Cooke’s third year in the WNBA and first with the Seattle Storm.
Cooke was drafted by the LA Sparks with the No. 10 overall pick in 2023. She played her first two seasons with the Sparks and averaged 4.3 points across 68 games. Cooke was waived by the Sparks on Feb. 1 and signed by the Storm on Feb. 13.
Recent free agents
G Bree Hall, F Mikiah Herbert Harrigan and F Laeticia Amihere are all former Gamecocks who were recently waived during WNBA training camp. All three could find a new home in the WNBA this year or in the future.
Hall was the No. 20 overall pick in the second round of the 2025 WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever. She was waived after the Fever’s two preseason games.
Herbert Harrigan was waived by the Dallas Wings earlier this month. She was acquired via a trade in February but never made an appearance for the Wings.
Amihere was waived by the Golden State Valkyries this week. She was signed by the Valkyries, an expansion team in their first year of competition, in February. The move came as a surprise after she scored 20 points in a recent preseason game.
This story was originally published May 16, 2025 at 9:15 AM.
