Sarah Ashlee Barker Drafted by WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks

The former Crimson Tide star's next step in her basketball journey became official Monday.

Mar 24, 2025; College Park, Maryland, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide guard Sarah Ashlee Barker (3) attempts a free throw during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins at Xfinity Center. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images / Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The Alabama women's basketball program has its first WNBA draftee since the Las Vegas Aces selected Brittany Davis in 2023. Guard Sarah Ashlee Barker was selected Monday night with the ninth pick of the first round by the Los Angeles Sparks.

"There's so many great players in the W, and I'm so excited for the competition, for the athleticism, and just a new chapter in my life," Barker said after being picked. "I've been in college for five years, and so I'm just ready to start that next chapter."

Barker, the daughter of former Crimson Tide quarterback Jay Barker, spent three years in Tuscaloosa despite beginning her collegiate career at Georgia. The Spain Park High School graduate departed the Bulldogs after then-coach Joni Taylor (who played at Alabama) was hired by Texas A&M.

Each of the three teams Barker was on at Alabama made the NCAA Tournament; she became a star in the 2023-24 season, where she averaged 16.8 points and 6.3 rebounds a game, good for her first of two consecutive First Team All-SEC selections.

This past season, she expanded on her points-per-game total (18.2) while equaling her rebounding mark. She was one of the SEC's most improved players two seasons ago, and saved her very best for last, scoring a school-record 45 points in a Round of 32 loss to Maryland on March 24.

"It just made me kinda just be so grateful, and grateful that I was even in that position and that I had the opportunity to have such a great game like that," Barker said. "It was in my name, 45, but I take it as an Alabama thing for me."

That loss ended Barker's college career, in which she also made the SEC All-Freshman team at Georgia in 2021. She battled an ankle injury this past season, which cost her more than three calendar weeks of action right at the start of conference play.

Alabama finished 24-9 in its most successful season under head coach Kristy Curry, earning a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Barker, meanwhile, played in 28 games and finished her career as one of the best women's basketball players to wear an Alabama uniform.

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