Paige Bueckers Didn't Mince Words About Expectations for Final UConn Season
UConn Huskies star guard Paige Bueckers is projected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.
However, Bueckers still has an entire college basketball season to play before that, which could affect her draft stock. But Bueckers isn't concerned with anything about the WNBA at the moment, as she's more focused on bringing UConn its first national championship since 2016.
Legendary UConn head coach and 11-time NCAA national champion Geno Auriemma has joked about Bueckers potentially being the best player he has ever coached to never win an NCAA title.
Bueckers has what will likely be her last opportunity to quell that narrative for good this season. And a quote she had during UConn's media day on Wednesday made it clear that she intends to do exactly that.
"Obviously I feel a sense of urgency. It's definitely National Championship or bust," Bueckers said when asked about her team's expectations this season by SNY's Chelsea Sherrod. "That's always been the case here at UConn.
"But just not focusing on that, focusing on winning every single day we have in front of us, winning our practice, winning in the weight room, just enjoying each other's company, embracing it, taking no day for granted," Bueckers continued. "Every single day I get to wake up, it's one day closer to my career being over... which makes you want to enjoy it, embrace it, and have a whole bunch of fun."
"It's definitely National Championship or bust, that's always been the case here at UConn"@ChelseaSherrod meets with Paige Bueckers on her final Big East Media Day to talk about her sense of urgency this season and how she feels about the 2024-25 UConn squad@paigebueckers1 pic.twitter.com/9m1Yjjeoyo
— UConn on SNY (@SNYUConn) October 23, 2024
So while Bueckers is clearly focused on achieving a championship, she seems keen to not let that pursuit keep her from enjoying her final season of college basketball.
Grant Young covers Women’s Basketball, the New York Yankees, and the New York Mets for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco (USF), where he also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and played on USF’s Division I baseball team for five years. However, he now prefers Angel Reese to Angels in the Outfield.