WNBA No. 1 draft picks Wilson, Stewart, more on rookie years - ESPN

A'ja Wilson swept every national player of the year award as a senior in college. The South Carolina Gamecocks star won an NCAA championship as a junior.

But nothing quite prepared the No. 1 pick in the 2018 WNBA draft for playing against the Minnesota Lynx and two of the league's all-time top rebounders in her rookie season.

«I had watched this lineup win championships together… and here I am, just little rookie A'ja thinking she could get a rebound over Rebekkah Brunson and Sylvia Fowles. I felt like they were playing on a pinball machine with me just in between them bouncing around,» the Las Vegas Aces' Wilson said, laughing. «To say that I shared the court with those Hall of Famers was a 'welcome to the league' moment, in good ways and bad ways.»

Much of the 2024 WNBA season has been focused on welcoming one of the most anticipated rookie classes in league history. Led by No. 1 pick Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever, this year's rookies came into their first season with unprecedented attention and enormous expectations. Clark and the Fever stumbled to a 1-8 record initially but are now 6-10, and she leads all rookies in points, assists and minutes played.

The Chicago Sky's Angel Reese also has received a lot of scrutiny. The No. 7 pick, in part because WNBA coaches and general managers weren't sure how her game would translate to the pro league, Reese so far has proved the Sky's faith in her and ranks first in rebounding and steals among all rookies.

Ahead of the Fever and Sky facing off Sunday (4 p.m. ET, ESPN) for the third time this season, we talked to some of the WNBA's top rookies over the years — all No. 1 picks — about the ups and downs of their first season, and when they knew for sure they were going to