Latest news with #Mystics'
NBC Sports
6 days ago
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Opportunity in Washington helped Mystics rookies Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen become WNBA All-Stars
WASHINGTON — When Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen were drafted by a rebuilding Washington team, it was clear they'd have a chance to make a quick impact. It turned out to be a historic one. Citron and Iriafen bothw were WNBA All-Stars, becoming the first pair of rookie teammates to achieve that since 1999. Their inclusion was an acknowledgement of how quickly they've established themselves in the league — and the way they've helped improve the Mystics' outlook. 'From the beginning, Slim (guard Brittney Sykes) told me like, 'You're not a rookie. We drafted you for a reason, we drafted Kiki for a reason, so you guys just go out and do what you do,'' Citron said. That's not something rookies — even first-round picks like Citron and Iriafen — can take for granted. The WNBA famously is a tough league to break into. For every immediate rookie star like Paige Bueckers, there's another high pick facing a slower adjustment timeline. Bueckers, Citron and Iriafen all were All-Stars, the first time three rookies made it since 2011. But they're the only rookies averaging over 10 points per game this year. Some of that comes down to opportunity. After finishing 14-26 last year, Washington brought in Jamila Wideman as its general manager and Sydney Johnson as its coach. Then the Mystics took Citron out of Notre Dame with the third pick in the draft and Iriafen out of Southern California with the next pick. Having both become All-Stars was pretty much the best-case scenario. Especially since both had a chance to go to Indiana and spend time with some of the game's biggest stars. 'I think there's another couple of jumps that they're looking to take, and I think they were rubbing elbows with some of those players that they aspire to be like, to outperform,' Johnson said. The 6-foot-3 Iriafen scored 17 points in the game and Citron, a 6-1 guard, added 11. Citron also took part in the 3-point contest — and the winner, Sabrina Ionescu, said she'd give half her winnings to the Washington rookie. Johnson said observing how players like Ionescu go about their business is valuable. 'Sabrina put on a show with the 3-point contest. Sonia knows how good of a shooter she is — Sonia is — and then you look, and there's like a whole other level there with Sabrina,' Johnson said. 'That's respecting Sonia, but that's calling it what it is. Just seeing pro habits, how they approach the game, how competitive they are, how they're on all the time.' Now the challenge for Citron and Iriafen is to maintain their level of production. Citron is averaging 13.8 points per game, second on the team behind Sykes, another Washington All-Star. Iriafen is averaging 12 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds. They won't be sneaking up on anyone after being named All-Stars. In the first game back from the break, Washington lost to Los Angeles. Citron was held to seven points, but Iriafen contributed 13. 'Not being one-dimensional, and finding different ways to impact the game,' Iriafen said of her challenge the rest of the way. 'Maybe it is scoring, maybe it's being more of a defensive threat. Just not relying on what I did in the first half, and just continuing to get better.' The Mystics (11-12) were in eighth place, a half-game ahead of expansion Golden State (10-12) and not far behind Las Vegas (12-11) and Indiana (12-12). The loss to the Sparks was the start of a five-game homestand that could be crucial to Washington's postseason hopes. The Mystics won the 2019 championship but haven't posted a winning record since 2022 and have missed the playoffs the last two years. Whatever the stretch run has in store, Washington can look forward to the future after what the Mystics have seen from their rookie All-Star duo. 'I think it's amazing,' Citron said. 'I think me and Kiki work really hard, and it's just cool that people are seeing that.'
Washington Post
7 days ago
- Sport
- Washington Post
Opportunity in Washington helped Mystics rookies Citron and Iriafen become WNBA All-Stars
WASHINGTON — When Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen were drafted by a rebuilding Washington team, it was clear they'd have a chance to make a quick impact. It turned out to be a historic one. Citron and Iriafen were both WNBA All-Stars last weekend , becoming the first pair of rookie teammates to achieve that since 1999. Their inclusion was an acknowledgement of how quickly they've established themselves in the league — and the way they've helped improve the Mystics' outlook. 'From the beginning, Slim (guard Brittney Sykes) told me like, 'You're not a rookie. We drafted you for a reason, we drafted Kiki for a reason, so you guys just go out and do what you do,'' Citron said. That's not something rookies — even first-round picks like Citron and Iriafen — can take for granted. The WNBA is a famously tough league to break into. For every immediate rookie star like Paige Bueckers, there's another high pick facing a slower adjustment timeline. Bueckers, Citron and Iriafen were all All-Stars, the first time three rookies made it since 2011. But they're the only rookies averaging over 10 points per game this year. Some of that comes down to opportunity. After finishing 14-26 last year, Washington brought in Jamila Wideman as its general manager and Sydney Johnson as its coach. Then the Mystics took Citron out of Notre Dame with the third pick in the draft and Iriafen out of Southern California with the next pick. Having both become All-Stars was pretty much the best-case scenario. Especially since both had a chance to go to Indiana and spend time with some of the game's biggest stars. 'I think there's another couple of jumps that they're looking to take, and I think they were rubbing elbows with some of those players that they aspire to be like, to outperform,' Johnson said. The 6-foot-3 Iriafen scored 17 points in the game and Citron, a 6-1 guard, added 11. Citron also took part in the 3-point contest — and the winner, Sabrina Ionescu, said she'd give half her winnings to the Washington rookie. Johnson said observing how players like Ionescu go about their business is valuable. 'Sabrina put on a show with the 3-point contest. Sonia knows how good of a shooter she is — Sonia is — and then you look, and there's like a whole other level there with Sabrina,' Johnson said. 'That's respecting Sonia, but that's calling it what it is. Just seeing pro habits, how they approach the game, how competitive they are, how they're on all the time.' Now the challenge for Citron and Iriafen is to maintain their level of production. Citron is averaging 13.8 points per game, second on the team behind Sykes, another Washington All-Star. Iriafen is averaging 12 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds. They won't be sneaking up on anyone after being named All-Stars. In the first game back from the break, Washington lost to Los Angeles on Tuesday night. Citron was held to seven points, but Iriafen contributed 13. 'Not being one-dimensional, and finding different ways to impact the game,' Iriafen said of her challenge the rest of the way. 'Maybe it is scoring, maybe it's being more of a defensive threat. Just not relying on what I did in the first half, and just continuing to get better.' The Mystics (11-12) were in eighth place entering Thursday's action, a half-game ahead of expansion Golden State (10-12) and not far behind Las Vegas (12-11) and Indiana (12-12). The loss to the Sparks was the start of a five-game homestand that could be crucial to Washington's postseason hopes. The Mystics won the 2019 championship but haven't posted a winning record since 2022 and have missed the playoffs the last two years. Whatever the stretch run has in store, Washington can look forward to the future after what the Mystics have seen from their rookie All-Star duo. 'I think it's amazing,' Citron said. 'I think me and Kiki work really hard, and it's just cool that people are seeing that.' ___ AP WNBA:
Newsroom
15-06-2025
- Sport
- Newsroom
Mystic connection: Rookie steps up for her injured idol
If there's one player in world netball right now who Sophia Lafaiali'i looks up to, it's Australian Diamond Donnell Wallam. Up until now, she's always admired the strong, agile, sharp shooter from afar. 'I love watching her play – she's a beast, she's so strong. I'd watch her in the Australian league and think, 'Wow, how did you just do that?'' So when the 20-year-old criminology and business student from east Auckland was called up to replace Wallam in the champion Mystics side, the scenario felt almost surreal. Two weeks on, Lafaiali'i is still wrapping her head around it. Not just at making her ANZ Premiership debut for the Mystics, but in the place of her injured idol – who then yelled encouragement and advice to her from the bench. Lafaiali'i took the league by storm last weekend, starting and then playing at goal shoot for the full 60 minutes of the Mystics' clash with the Pulse. She missed just one of her 46 shots – and scored a buzzer-beater two-pointer – while under intense pressure from Silver Ferns defenders Kelly Jackson and Parris Mason. And her calm, confident performance helped the Mystics bounce back from their first loss of the season. She took it all in her stride: 'I didn't want to psych myself out knowing I was up against two amazing Silver Ferns. I treat it like, 'Hey, they're just defenders, so go out and play your own game'.' Just a fortnight earlier, Lafaiali'i was content playing for the Northern Marvels in the National Netball League, the tier below the premiership. Her season goal was to be the best shooter in that competition. Then came the call-up to the next level – after Wallam, who filled Grace Nweke's shoes in the Mystics' line-up this season, badly injured her hand falling out of court in the Mystics' one-goal win over the Steel. 'It's a bit freaky to be replacing Nelly [Wallam],' Lafaiali'i says. 'I really appreciate it, but at the same time, it's so far removed from what I thought would ever happen.' Lafaiali'i, a netballer since she started in west Auckland at the age of five, also grew up idolising Mystics shooters Maria Folau and Cathrine Tuivaiti, both of Samoan descent like her. 'I love seeing people who look like me, or are from the same culture, really own their space on the court,' she says. But what's been even more special for Lafaiali'i is the guidance she's now receiving from Wallam – the third Indigenous Australian to play for the Diamonds. 'She's been so awesome,' she says. 'She comes to training, still putting in the hard yards even though she can't play at the moment, and she's still finding time to help me with cues and little reminders,' she says. In her first appearance in the Mystics blue dress, coming off the bench during their 61-50 loss to the Tactix, Lafaiali'i received advice from Wallam on the bench. 'I love getting feedback, so I was looking to her to tell me things.' She played 15 minutes and scored seven of her eight attempts (she sets herself high standards of 90 percent accuracy each game). Sophia Lafaiali'i takes a one-handed catch in the Pulse v Mystics ANZ Premiership clash. Photo: Michael Bradley Photography Wallam still isn't ready to return to the court for Monday night's home game against the Magic, so Lafaiali'i will remain in the side. In fact, Mystics head coach Tia Winikerei says she's now with the team for the rest of the season. 'I want to keep her in so she can build on her experience looking to what's possible for her in 2026. She can grow so much from just being in this environment,' she says. Lafaiali'i's sudden promotion may have come as a shock, when other franchises have turned to retired players to fill in for injuries this season. 'We want to continue to work to the philosophy to build our own, train our own and make them better,' says Winikerei, who saw the young woman's potential a year ago. The former St Kentigern College student, in the school's premier netball side for four years, became a training partner for the Mystics at the end of last season. Then Winikerei and assistant coach Rob Wright invited her to join the team at the Otaki pre-season tournament in April. 'Sophia was developmentally brand new, but it turned out to be a great decision,' Winikerei says. 'She's very good with her hands, and takes the ball strongly and with finesse. She can shoot from anywhere. But most of all, she has a strong solid profile, yet she's very nimble on her feet and moves into spaces swiftly. 'Over the years, players who've come out of St Kentigern's have a lot to thank coach Nicola Lewis for. They've all been trained to have great footwork.' They include current ANZ Premiership players Tayla Earle, Carys Stythe, Amorangi Malesala and Tori Kolose. The Mystics have been affected by injury this season, but are still in the top three of the ANZ Premiership table. Photo: Michael Bradley Photography In only her second appearance for the Mystics, Lafaiali'i stayed on court for the full 60 minutes – surprising herself after making an early faux pas. 'I have this bad habit of catching with one hand – I don't know why it's become a habit – and maybe my third catch of the game, I dropped the ball,' she says. 'Straight away I thought, 'You're off, you're done'. 'All week it had been stressed in my training: 'Catch with two hands, Fia'. And I did exactly what they'd told me not to do. So I love that they had the confidence to keep me on. 'But I knew to just cherish whatever time I had on court and give it 100 percent while I was on there.' Winikerei laughs: 'All week at training, I told her 'God gave you two hands to catch with!' But she performed exceptionally well for a youngster; well beyond what I expected of her. 'We didn't put any pressure on her, and she demonstrated the ability to cope out there.' Both coach and shooter acknowledge the support wrapped around her – from senior players Michaela Sokolich-Beatson, Peta Toeava and Earle, as well as her goal attack, Filda Vui. 'Tayla and Peta worked the ball fabulously and tirelessly throughout the game so Sophia could shoot with confidence and calmness. They showed genuine trust in her ability,' Winikerei says. Vui, who leads the competition with 19 successful two-point shots, stepped up in the game. 'It was the first time I've seen Filda take the leadership role in the circle, when we really needed her to,' says Winikerei. Sophia Lafaiali'i is supported by her Mystics attacking team-mates, like Tayla Earle (left, with the ball). Photo: Michael Bradley Photography Few netballers will have the chance to be on the receiving end of a pinpoint long bomb or miraculous no-look pass from Toeava, and Lafaiali'i admits she's had her fan-girl moments on court. 'Sometimes it's a little bit scary,' Lafaiali'i laughs. 'And sometimes I get really excited when she passes to me – I'm like, 'Oh that's so pretty'; then I just have to remember where I am,' she laughs. 'But it's so cool to work with her because she sees the game in a totally different way. It's amazing to learn how her brain works. 'You can hear her on TV saying, 'Fia, stay!' She's already seen the play, four or five passes into the future, and knows where I need to be. So I'm learning to listen to her and trust her. And it's growing my understanding of how I should set up for any attacker or feeder.' Lafaiali'i is also getting language lessons from her team-mates. Proud of her Samoan heritage – she's from the villages of Falealupo, Sapunaoa and Vaiala – she'd like to speak the language fluently. 'Peta and Filda will speak to me in Samoan, and I'm like, 'Yep, just give me 10 seconds…okay, got it!'' she laughs. Off the court, she's studying business and marketing at AUT, and this year also picked up criminology. Her mum, Pacific education leader Tuiloma Gayle Lafaiali'i, also studied it, and as a kid, Lafaiali'i was always watching crime shows rather than the Disney channel. 'I believe you should study what you enjoy – because it's a lot of reading if you don't like it,' Lafaiali'i laughs. Now training has picked up to four or five times a week with the Mystics, she's been able to get extensions on assignments. On top of that, she also does social media for the Marvels. 'I feel like the NNL space should get more media because we're the feeder for these ANZ Premiership teams and if no one knows about us, how are you going to develop players?' she says. 'I started doing it last season, and it was amazing to see other NNL teams put a little more effort into their social media, and everyone started promoting their teams more.' Her goal for the year has shifted to securing an ANZ Premiership contract for next season. But she remains humble about the unexpected opportunities that have come her way. 'They could have looked elsewhere, so it's means a lot that they looked to me as the next player.'
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Mystics' Kiki Iriafen makes WNBA rookie history not seen since Tina Charles
The post Mystics' Kiki Iriafen makes WNBA rookie history not seen since Tina Charles appeared first on ClutchPoints. The Washington Mystics are in somewhat of a transition year after losing a lot of their more experienced pieces on the roster, including longtime superstar Elena Delle Donne to retirement, but there are some good signs to build off of early in the year. Advertisement The Mystics had three picks in the top six of the WNBA Draft just before the season, and they are being put to good use. Even while rookie point guard Georgia Amoore sits out for the season with a knee injury suffered during the preseason, rookies Kiki Iriafen and Sonia Citron continue to impress. Iriafen has ben putting up big game after big game for the Mystics, and she did so once again on Tuesday night against the Indiana Fever. The No. 4 pick in the draft scored 20 points on a very efficient 9-of-11 shooting to go along with nine rebounds, but the Fever still got the 85-76 win without Caitlin Clark. Iriafen is still averaging a double-double through eight games with another great game in the books, a marker that puts her in some pretty rare company in the WNBA, via ESPN's Alexa Philippou. 'Kiki Iriafen is the 6th player in league history to average a double-double through their first eight career games and first since Tina Charles in 2010,' Philippou wrote on X, formerly Twitter. Advertisement Iriafen tore up the college game during her time at Stanford playing next to Cameron Brink, but she struggled to fully ingratiate herself into the system at USC last season. Now, however, she appears to have found some more comfort at the WNBA level and has broken out as one of the Mystics' go-to scorers. Coming into Tuesday's clash, Iriafen was Washington's third-leading scorer at 13.9 points per game, while Citron was the second-leading scorer at 14.3 points a night. The two rookies are clearly going places and are making a massive impact already as the Mystics look to remain in the playoff hunt. The two are also making up the Rookie of the Year race at this point while Paige Bueckers makes her way back from a concussion. When the former UConn star does get back on the floor, she will have some work to do to catch up to Iriafen's stellar pace.
News.com.au
01-05-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Rising Australian WNBA star Georgia Amoore suffers ACL injury
Georgia Amoore's WNBA dream has quickly turned to a nightmare with the Australian basketball young gun facing months on the sideline after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury. The No.6 pick in this year's WNBA draft, Amoore's debut season in America could be over before it began after Washington Mystics announced the 24-year-old had injured her right knee during a Wednesday training session. While the severity of the injury remains unclear, the Mystics' statement read Amoore and the team would 'examine treatment and rehabilitation options and provide an update as appropriate'. The Ballarat-born point guard was one of the best players in US college basketball last season, leading Kentucky to its first NCAA tournament berth since 2022, averaging 19.6 points and 6.9 assists. Amoore was the highest Australian-born WNBA draft pick since 2011, when Liz Cambage was selected No.2 overall. She was set to partner fellow Aussie young gun Jade Melbourne in the Mystics' back court in a potential preview of the Opals future. ACL injuries can take between six-12 months recovery time, depending on the severity.
