WNBA preseason is underway, and Saturday’s slate featured a matchup between the Indiana Fever and Atlanta Dream. Obviously one of the top billings of this game is second-year Fever star Caitlin Clark who is coming off a historic rookie season in the WNBA. But there was another guard who stole the show in this particular preseason game, Dream rookie Te-Hina Paopao.

Early in the game between the Fever and the Dream, Te-Hina Paopao had a couple of highlight worthy plays, including a couple of times when she went at Clark and scored. On one play, Paopao drove past Clark to get the rim and finish while drawing the foul. On the other play, she hit a step back three-point shot with Clark guarding her.

If this game is any indication, Paopao has a bright future in the league, and the Dream picked up a rookie capable of being a key contributor from the get-go. Initially projected in some mock drafts as a first round pick, Paopao was selected by the Dream with the No. 18 overall pick in the second round of the 2025 WNBA Draft.

Paopao is a true combo guard, capable of playing both point guard and shooting guard. While Paopao’s spot on the Dream roster is not guaranteed, and she’s essentially fighting for a spot in camp, she has a very strong chance at making the final roster.

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The Dream currently have 14 players in camp and must cut that down to at least 12 players by the start of the regular season. The team could use immediate help at guard too as Jordin Canada recently suffered a knee injury and is sidelined indefinitely.

Paopao is coming off her second season at South Carolina after playing three years at Oregon. She was a key member of the Gamecocks’ 2024 championship team. During her final season, she appeared in 39 games at a little over 25 minutes per game.

She averaged 9.4 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals with splits of 44.4 percent shooting from the field, 37 percent shooting from the three-point line and 73.7 percent shooting from the free-throw line. During the preseason game against the Fever, Paopao finished with 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field and 3-of-4 shooting from the three-point line.