World Sport: WNBA Sees Rise In Worldwide Gamers – WNBA

Atlanta Dream
Chicago Sky
Connecticut Solar
Dallas Wings
Golden State Valkyries
Indiana Fever
Las Vegas Aces
Los Angeles Sparks
Minnesota Lynx
New York Liberty
Phoenix Mercury
Portland Hearth
Seattle Storm
Toronto Tempo
Washington Mystics
Because the WNBA begins its thirtieth anniversary season, the league is seeing an inflow of world expertise on the courtroom. 
In line with the Elias Sports activities Bureau, as of Thursday evening, 51 gamers born exterior the USA had performed in no less than one recreation this season. That already marks a league file for a single season, surpassing the earlier excessive of fifty set in 2001.
We’re nonetheless solely per week into the season. With a number of gamers nonetheless fulfilling abroad commitments earlier than becoming a member of their WNBA groups, that file ought to proceed to climb within the weeks to return.
On Thursday, Alex Fowler of Australia made her WNBA debut within the New York Liberty’s 100-82 win over the Portland Hearth. Fowler is the eighth worldwide participant to take the courtroom for the Liberty this season — two shy of the single-team file of 10 set by Golden State final 12 months.
Whereas Australia nonetheless leads the best way in worldwide illustration on WNBA rosters, France continues to emerge as a serious pipeline of expertise, following its push to the brink towards the USA within the gold medal recreation on the 2024 Olympics. By way of Thursday’s video games, 5 of the league’s 32 gamers averaging no less than 15 factors per recreation are from France.
The Liberty and France are each nicely represented amongst these 9 worldwide gamers who’ve stood out in the course of the season’s opening week.
Marine Johannes #23 of the New York Liberty
The sharpshooting Liberty guard leads the league with 15 whole 3-pointers made by 4 video games, whereas her 3.8 made threes per recreation rank second behind Toronto’s Marina Mabrey. Along with her capturing, Johannes is a playmaker, main the Liberty (and tied for tenth within the league) with 5 assists per recreation. Her affect hasn’t been restricted to offense, both, as Johannes ranks fifth within the WNBA in steals at 2.3 per recreation.
Johannes isn’t the one French guard thriving in Liberty seafoam thus far this season. Astier, a 24-year-old undrafted rookie, has been sensible in her first 4 WNBA video games. She is New York’s second-leading scorer behind Breanna Stewart at 16.8 factors per recreation and has shot the lights out — 62.5% from the sector and 45.5% from past the arc — whereas including 4 assists, almost 4 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per recreation.
The No. 2 choose within the 2025 WNBA Draft confirmed flashes of her immense potential as a rookie whereas coming off the bench in all 42 video games, averaging 7.7 factors and 4.6 rebounds in 14.3 minutes per recreation. Now a full-time starter, logging over 26 minutes per recreation in her second season, the 6-foot-6 heart leads the Storm in factors (16.0), rebounds (7.3), and blocks (2.0), that are tied for twentieth, eleventh, and 4th within the WNBA, respectively.
The Liberty isn’t the one staff with a number of worldwide stars close to the highest of their leaderboards. Melbourne is Seattle’s second-leading scorer behind Malonga at 14 factors per recreation on unimaginable effectivity — she’s capturing 61.9% from the sector and 50% from 3-point vary by three video games. Melbourne, the Storm’s 2022 third-round choose, additionally leads the staff in assists (5.0, tied for tenth within the WNBA) and is tied with rookie Flau’jae Johnson for the staff lead with 1.7 steals per recreation.
Kamilla Cardoso #10 of the Chicago Sky
In her third WNBA season, Cardoso is placing up career-best numbers by her first two video games, averaging 15 factors and 10.5 rebounds per recreation (tied for fourth within the league). She is one among solely 5 gamers averaging a double-double thus far this season, becoming a member of Shakira Austin, Aneesah Morrow, Kiki Iriafen, and former Sky teammate Angel Reese.
The highest choose on this 12 months’s enlargement draft, Carleton put up a career-best 26 factors and 5 3-pointers to assist lead the Hearth to their first win Tuesday. By way of three video games, she is averaging 16.7 factors and three.3 triples per recreation (third within the league behind Johannes and Mabrey) whereas capturing 41.7% from deep. She is Portland’s second-leading scorer — behind our subsequent entry — and is tied for sixth within the league in steals at two per recreation.
For the second straight season, Leite was chosen in an enlargement draft — chosen by the Valkyries in 2025 and by the Hearth in 2026. The previous top-10 draft choose had 21 factors in Portland’s first win, following an 18-point effort in her Hearth debut. Leite’s 19.5 factors per recreation rank eleventh within the WNBA, and she or he joins Indiana’s Caitlin Clark as the one gamers averaging no less than 19 factors, three rebounds, and three assists this season.
After taking part in professional ball abroad since 2019, the 28-year-old Serbian guard signed with the Mercury in April and has made a direct affect by her first three video games. Nogic ranks second within the WNBA in 3-point capturing at 66.7% (8-for-12), third on the Mercury in scoring at 12.3 factors per recreation behind veterans Kahleah Copper and Alyssa Thomas, and first on the staff in plus/minus. The Mercury have outscored opponents by 34 factors throughout her 66 minutes on the courtroom.
Janelle Salaün #13 of the Golden State Valkyries
Like Nogic, Salaun has performed professionally abroad since 2019. After becoming a member of the Valkyries for his or her inaugural season final 12 months, Salaun averaged 11.3 factors and 5.1 rebounds whereas beginning 33 of her 36 video games as a WNBA rookie. Regardless of coming off the bench in her first three video games this season, Salaun has been even higher, averaging a team-high 15.7 factors and three.3 3-pointers per recreation on 50% capturing from past the arc.
Marine Johannès
Pauline Astier
Jade Melbourne
Kamilla Cardoso
Carla Leite
Janelle Salaün
Dominique Malonga
Phoenix Mercury
Portland Hearth
Seattle Storm
Chicago Sky
Golden State Valkyries
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