Edwards won’t be starting very many games right now, but she is scoring efficiently and is on track for a bigger role in the future.
Washington Mystics rookie forward Aaliyah Edwards is playing a smaller role on her professional team than at UConn, where she was a college star. That’s not unusual. But some local fans have grumbled saying that Washington should have selected Angel Reese, who ultimately went to the Chicago Sky with the No. 7 overall pick, right after Washington selected Reese.
Both play the same position, so I’m not surprised to see the comparisons. It’s easy to point out that Reese is having a better start because she is averaging 12 points and 8.7 rebounds per game while starting all of Chicago’s games. But Reese is also shooting 33 percent from the field and doesn’t have much shooting range, and she has only played three games so far. That’s a smaller sample size that the five games Edwards played so far.
Edwards is shooting 45.2 percent from the field overall. She had a near double double last Sunday against the Seattle Storm (9 points and 11 rebounds) and shot 5-of-7 from the field and scored 10 points last Tuesday against the Los Angeles Sparks. Also, Edwards is facing a bit more competition for minutes with Shakira Austin and Stefanie Dolson starting at both post positions.
Edwards hasn’t had a true breakout game yet and it is also frustrating to see that the Mystics haven’t won a regular season game yet. However, I think Edwards has had a good start to her professional career, and it’s important to note that the current WNBA season is still very young.