• Source: Aaliyah Edwards

Aaliyah Edwards (born July 9, 2002) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball at UConn. She was selected 6th overall by the Washington Mystics in the 2024 WNBA draft. Edwards has represented Canada since her cadet years and has been playing for the senior Canadian national team since she was 16 years old.




High School


Edwards played high school basketball at Crestwood Preparatory College, in Toronto, Ontario, where she led her school to three championships.




College career


Edwards graduated after playing with the UConn Huskies women's basketball team for four seasons. As a junior, she averaged double-double of 18.3 points and 11 rebounds per game, an improvement from her sophomore season, when she averaged 7.9 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. The sturdy junior forward became the first UConn player with 20 points and 20 rebounds since Maya Moore in 2010. Edwards was selected first-team All-Big East and second-team All-America as a senior, a season in which UConn narrowly lost against Iowa in the Final Four after playing to a record-breaking 14.4 million ESPN basketball viewers.




Professional career






= WNBA

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Washington Mystics (2024–present)

On April 15, 2024, Edwards was selected in the first round of the 2024 WNBA draft as the sixth pick by the Washington Mystics. On April 18, she signed her rookie scale contract with the team. On May 15, 2024, in an 80–85 loss to the New York Liberty, Edwards made her debut, recording 6 points and 2 rebounds in 14 minutes off the bench. She made her first career start on May 19, 2024, in a 75–84 loss to the Seattle Storm, posting 9 points and 11 rebounds. Edwards had her best game of the season on June 6, 2024, in a 71–79 loss to the Chicago Sky, where she scored career-highs in points (23), rebounds (14), and blocks (4). Throughout the season, Edwards alternated between starting and playing off the bench, usually replacing the original starting center Shakira Austin, who struggled with injuries. Edwards herself missed three games in June and the final three games of the season in September due to back and ankle injuries, respectively. Overall, in her rookie season, she played in 34 games and started 17, averaging 7.6 points and 5.6 rebounds in 21.8 minutes per game.




= Unrivaled

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On October 29, 2024, it was announced that Edwards would appear and play in the inaugural 2025 season of Unrivaled, the women's 3x3 basketball league founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart.




National team career


Edwards made her international debut with the Canadian junior national team at the 2017 FIBA Under-16 Women's Americas Championship, where she won a silver medal. She also joined the national team for the 2018 U17 FIBA World Cup and the 2019 U19 FIBA World Cup, where she was the youngest player on both teams.
In 2019, at the age of 16, Edwards made her senior national team debut at an exhibition tournament in Belgium and later that summer, she helped Canada secure a silver medal at the 2019 FIBA Women's AmeriCup. In November 2019, Edwards helped Canada win the Americas pre-qualifying tournament for the 2020 Summer Olympics.
She was once again the youngest member of the team for the 2021 FIBA Women's AmeriCup, where Canada finished fourth. In July 2021, Edwards was named to team Canada's roster for the Tokyo Olympics. She was the youngest member of the team. In the Olympic tournament, Edwards played only 31 seconds across two group stage games, as Canada failed to advance to the quarterfinals.
In the 2023 FIBA Women's AmeriCup, Edwards was one of the key players on the team that won bronze medals. Over the course of seven games, she averaged 26.4 minutes, 10.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game.
In July 2024, Edwards was named to team Canada's roster for the 2024 Summer Olympics. In the Olympic tournament, Edwards played in all three group stage games, averaging 3.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 1.3 steals in 20.8 minutes per game. However, Canada once again failed to progress to the quarterfinals.




Career statistics






= WNBA

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Regular season

Stats current through end of 2024 season




= College

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Personal life


Edwards was born in Kingston, Ontario, to Jacqueline and Stanford Edwards. She wears purple and yellow braids to pay homage to the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant, and her late brother Jermaine. She is of Jamaican descent.




Awards and honors


Big East All-Tournament team (2023)
AP Third Team All-American (2023)




References






External links



Career statistics and player information from Basketball Reference
Aaliyah Edwards at FIBA (archive)
Aaliyah Edwards international stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Aaliyah Edwards at UConn Huskies
Aaliyah Edwards at Olympedia
Aaliyah Edwards at Olympics.com
Aaliyah Edwards at Team Canada
Aaliyah Edwards on Instagram

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Kidz Bop
• Amerika Serikat pada Olimpiade Musim Panas 2024
• Aaliyah Edwards
• 2023–24 UConn Huskies women's basketball team
• 2024 WNBA draft
• Paige Bueckers
• Aaliyah (given name)
• UConn Huskies women's basketball
• 2024–25 UConn Huskies women's basketball team
• Caroline Ducharme
• Rock the Boat (Aaliyah song)
• UConn Huskies women's basketball statistical leaders