GSV draft prospects 6 & 7: Azzi Fudd and Sedona Prince
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Don’t miss the index for the entire 2025 Valkyries Draft Prospects series.
Apricot: I am including all candidates that are put in the mock drafts because they are stellar prospects. However, guard your expectations. I question whether players will come out for the 2025 Draft if they have more college eligibility, because (1) there will be a new collective bargaining agreement for the 2026 season and they will likely want to enter the draft with the higher rookie salaries; and (2) with the rise of NIL deals, they may be able to make as much or more money than the WNBA by staying in college.
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Azzi Fudd, SG, UConn
How can the defending champs get even better? Most of that will be addressed in free agency, when we’ll see if the Liberty can re-sign Breanna Stewart, but until then, it’s worth considering which potential draftees would best fit next to her, Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones. Fudd is one of the best jump shooters in the country, and while she’s not as strong of a defender as Kayla Thornton, who the Liberty lost in the expansion draft, her tertiary creation skills and off-ball movement would be maximized playing alongside New York’s top-end talent. Fudd needs to prove she can stay healthy first, but if she makes it through the rest of her graduate season unscathed, the Liberty shouldn’t have many reservations about drafting her.
ESPN:
This could be seen as a peculiar pick because Fudd has played only 42 college games. She has yet to return to the court for UConn after missing last season because of a knee injury; she's expected back in December. So there is a lot unknown about Fudd.
But when healthy, she is a spectacular shooter. If Fudd can stay on the court this season at UConn and then decides to declare for the draft -- she has a year of college eligibility left after this season -- the Sky under new coach Tyler Marsh might pick her. Marsh wants the Sky, who averaged a league-worst 4.8 3-pointers per season last year, to be a much better team from long range.
Fudd is another standout who has been dealt an awful hand with devastating injuries. In 2022-23, she missed 22 games with a knee injury. After appearing in three games last season, she suffered a torn ACL and meniscus at practice.
Connecticut is understandably taking a cautious approach to her return in 2024, but her history shouldn't overshadow her star power. Fudd earned multiple National Player of the Year honors as a high school sophomore. She was a Big East All-Freshman Team selection and is a career 38.6 percent 3-point shooter.
The Valkyries are building something new and need star power to do it. When healthy, Fudd can be a major building block for an expansion team.
Similar to Citron, Fudd will function as a smooth shotmaking off-ball guard at the next level. She’s a dynamic shotmaker, shooting 38.6% on 12.1 3-point attempts per 100 possessions throughout her college career. Her playmaking has been strong to open the new UConn season, posting an absurd 4.5 assist-to-turnover ratio in five games.
Fudd’s health will be something to monitor, as she’s missed entire seasons due to injury. Any team drafting her must keep this in mind. The defending champions already have a stacked roster and could handle any missed time Fudd may face as she develops and acclimates to the WNBA level.
Fudd is incredibly talented, but she's only played 42 games in college and has had extensive knee problems, including multiple torn ACLs. She has not played yet this season, but is expected to return "soon," according to Geno Auriemma. If Fudd looks like her old self when she gets back out there, she could certainly play herself into a higher draft spot. As of now, there's too much risk to take her early in the first round. But if she's still on the board at No. 10, her shooting alone would make her a great pick-up for the Sky.
Sedona Prince, PF, TCU
ESPN:
The situation with Prince is unique: Between injuries and the COVID-19 waiver, she is in her seventh year in college and will turn 25 next May when the WNBA season starts.
When healthy, her talent is enormous, as shown with her 31 points and 16 rebounds in TCU's victory over NC State on Sunday. Her health has been a continuous roller coaster.