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Azzi Fudd reunites with her former UConn Huskies teammate Paige Bueckers as the Dallas Wings earned their first overall pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft on Monday night.
And Fudd comes in with a historic salary in the league.
After a new collective bargaining agreement was signed between the league and players’ association last month, Fudd is set to earn $500,000 in her first year — a huge pay raise from the $78,831 the Bueckers earned last season as the No. 1 overall selection in the WNBA draft.
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Azzi Fudd poses with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert after being selected first overall by the Dallas Wings in the 2026 WNBA Draft at The Shed in New York on April 13, 2026. (Angelina Katsanis/Getty Images)
This comes as the salary cap for WNBA teams also increased from $1.5 million in 2025 to $7 million, which also led to the first-ever $1 million contracts. From league veterans to draft newcomers, the best in the game get paid.
While Fudd will certainly be happy to see her paychecks, she’s also excited to make an impact with the Wings and the WNBA.
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“I’m not really sure I have words to describe the feeling,” Fudd said after being drafted, via ESPN. “I don’t think it’s fully sunk in. It’s nothing I could have imagined. The feeling of sitting with my family, with Morgan (Valley), hearing your name called, going up there. Such a surreal feeling.”
Fudd was also excited when discussing her reunion with Bueckers.
“Paige is an incredible player, everyone knows that,” she explained. “He’s someone who makes playing basketball easier.”
Olivia Miles poses with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert after being selected second overall by the Minnesota Lynx in the 2026 WNBA Draft at The Shed in New York on April 13, 2026. (Angelina Katsanis/Getty Images)
With Fudd taken, the Minnesota Lynx locked Olivia Miles out of TCU – Fudd’s biggest competition for that first overall pick. But Miles isn’t missing payday, as she’s projected to earn $466,913 as the second overall pick.
Center Awa Fam Thiam from Spain joined the Seattle Storm and will receive a salary of $436,016 for the 2026 WNBA season. Then, national champions Lauren Betts (Washington Mystics), Gabriel Jacquez (Chicago Sky) and Kiki Rice (Toronto Tempo) rounded out the top six.
UCLA also broke UConn’s record of four players drafted in the first round, set in 2002 by the Huskies. Angela Dugalić rounded out the field after Washington took their ninth overall spot, keeping her with Betts as they enter the league.
Another notable name was LSU guard Flau’Jae Johnson, who was taken eighth overall by the Golden State Valkyries, but she was traded to the Storm for the rights to TCU’s Marta Suarez. The Storm took her with the first pick of the second round. The Valkyries also received a 2028 second-round pick in the deal.
Lauren Betts poses with WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert after being selected with the fourth pick in the first round by the Washington Mystics in the 2026 WNBA Draft at The Shed in New York on April 13, 2026. (Angelina Katsanis/Getty Images)
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Overall, every drafted player who is on a team entering the regular season will earn more than any WNBA player during the 2025 season, with a minimum salary $270,000 higher than last year’s maximum salary of $249,244.
