The Washington Mystics' 2025 season is over, but there are still a couple of loose ends to tie up. The WNBA will announce end-of-season awards over the coming weeks, and head coach Sydney Johnson wants to see a couple of his stars get the shine they deserve.
The 51-year-old said during Wednesday's exit interview that while Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers is “wonderful,” it would be a shame if Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen don't get real consideration for Rookie of the Year. Bueckers finished the regular season atop the rookie list with 692 points and 194 assists despite missing eight games, while Iriafen led with 376 rebounds and was third with 584 points. Meanwhile, Citron was second with 657 points and led with a 44.5 three-point percentage.
Citron and Iriafen played the full 44-game slate, while Bueckers played 36 due to injury. The latter player won the AP Rookie of the Year award on Friday, which is separate from the WNBA's official award, and all three earned All-Rookie honors.
Will the WNBA awards be the same in that regard?
Mystics' late struggles hurt case for Sonia Citron, Kiki Iriafen
The fact that Bueckers topped the rookies in scoring and assists despite missing time makes it hard to argue against her. The one knock is that the No. 1 overall pick didn't contribute to winning basketball as the Wings finished 10-34, tied with the Chicago Sky for the WNBA's worst record.
On the other hand, Washington also missed the playoffs after losing its final 10 games, finishing 16-28. The club floated around .500 before the August 7 Trade Deadline, but its performance nosedived after shipping out veteran guard Brittney Sykes and second-year forward Aaliyah Edwards.
The Mystics made those moves with the future in mind as they now have three 2026 first-round selections and 2024 No. 5 overall pick Jacy Sheldon to go with Citron and Iriafen. However, they worsened the case for their rookies to win Rookie of the Year over Bueckers.
The only veteran left on the team who averaged double-digit scoring after the moves was Shakira Austin, who finished the season with 12.7 points per game on 46.5 percent shooting. Citron posted 14.9 on a 47 percent clip, and Iriafen had 13.3 on 48.8 percent. That wasn't enough to consistently win without Sykes, who averaged 15.4 points on 37.9 percent over 25 games with the team.
Had Washington made the playoffs, Johnson could've argued that his rookies contributed to a contender, thus making their statistics more valuable. But that's not the case.
Bueckers finished with the third-highest points and assists totals for a rookie in WNBA history, which are also franchise rookie records. Additionally, the UConn alum is just the second rookie in WNBA history to earn AP All-WNBA honors, joining Caitlin Clark (2024) and Breanna Stewart (2016).
Citron and Iriafen also entrenched their names in the history books. Iriafen became the first rookie in WNBA history to tally 550-plus points, 350-plus rebounds, and 50-plus assists in a single season, while Citron is one of three rookies ever to notch 650-plus points with a true shooting percentage above 55. The others are Clark and Bueckers.
Furthermore, Citron and Iriafen each set the franchise single-season records for points and rebounds, respectively. Iriafen also broke the franchise record with 16 double-doubles.
Meanwhile, Bueckers has the advantage in points and assists, and her 47.7 percent clip slightly bests Citron's. The 23-year-old shot just 33.3 percent from deep, but she made up for that in multiple ways. For one, she finished second among rookies with 57 steals and had 72 turnovers against Citron's 91 despite recording 90 more assists.
Comparing Bueckers to Iriafen is harder due to them playing different positions. Still, Bueckers' superior point total on only slightly worse efficiency gives her the advantage, especially because Iriafen shot 107 fewer threes.
Considering this data, it would make sense for the WNBA to name the Wings' superstar Rookie of the Year, with the Mystics' duo easily earning All-Rookie status. At the same time, that doesn't discount Citron and Iriafen's success, which gives the franchise a foundation to build on.
