There are still 33 games left in the 2025 WNBA regular season, but the Rookie of the Year conversation is already becoming a firestorm.
At the heart of it is Paige Bueckers, who’s putting up standout numbers for the struggling Dallas Wings. But instead of celebrating her dominance, fans are pointing to a familiar line of criticism, one that was used against Caitlin Clark just a season ago.
The Dallas Wings are currently sitting at a dismal 1-10, dead last in the league. But that hasn’t stopped Bueckers from putting together a sensational rookie campaign.
Bueckers’ case
According to official WNBA statistics, she’s leading all rookies in points (17.6), assists (6.3), and steals (1.9) per game, while ranking third in rebounds and owning the highest efficiency rating among first-year players at 21.9.
Still, critics have begun pointing to Dallas‘ lack of success as a mark against Bueckers‘ case for Rookie of the Year, just like they did to Caitlin Clark in 2024.
During last year’s ROTY debate, ESPN’s Monica McNutt argued in favor of Angel Reese by emphasizing team performance over individual output.
“My rookie of the year is gonna go based on the standing. Because I think that is how you have the opportunity to measure impact,” McNutt said on air. “The Sky right now are in the playoffs, so you’d have to give the nod, in my mind, to Angel Reese.”
That take didn’t age particularly well. Chicago ultimately missed the postseason, finishing 10th at 13-27, while Clark and the Indiana Fever surged in the second half of the season.
They finished 20-20, clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2016, and saw Clark make WNBA history as the first true rookie to lead the league in assists.
To her credit, McNutt later clarified her remarks, noting on a podcast that if Reese broke the rookie double-double record but Clark had the higher seed, “the award should go to Clark.”
Despite the heated debate, the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year voting process doesn’t formally consider team success. The award, established in 1998, is decided by a national panel of 56 sportswriters and broadcasters who vote on a 5-3-1 point system.
Voters are asked to weigh individual performance, milestones, and impact. Yet, last season’s controversy showed that for some, team success can act as an informal tiebreaker or justification.
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