Irish Breakdown

12 Former Fighting Irish Basketball Players Make WNBA Opening Day Rosters

The 2025 WNBA regular season started on Friday, and 12 former Notre Dame players are on active rosters.

Jared Shlensky

May 9, 2025; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey (3) at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
May 9, 2025; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Connecticut Sun guard Marina Mabrey (3) at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
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The 2025 WNBA season tipped off on Friday, and Notre Dame has a ton of players -- 12 to be exact -- on active rosters.

The only school with more players on active rosters is NCAA powerhouse UConn with 15. Not bad, especially for a school that's not "technically" considered a basketball school like Connecticut, Tennessee, or South Carolina. Let's take a look at each player and see who they play for.

Maddy Westbeld - Chicago Sky

Westbeld was selected by the Sky with the fourth pick in the second round (16th overall) in this year's draft.

After undergoing foot surgery in August, the forward managed to return six months later and still averaged 7.6 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. Westbeld was a five-year starter for the Irish and played in all three of the Sky's preseason games.

Lindsay Allen - Connecticut Sun

Allen left Notre Dame as the program leader in assists and most consecutive starts before getting drafted by the New York Liberty in the second round (14th overall) of the 2017 WNBA Draft.

Allen won a Women's National Basketball League Title (WNBL) and a Finals MVP with the AZS AJP Gorzów Wielkopolski in 2022 and is in her ninth season of professional basketball with the Sun in 2025.

Marina Mabrey - Connecticut Sun

Mabrey was a junior on the 2018 Notre Dame National Championship team and left the program as the school leader in made three pointers after a four-year career.

Mabrey was then drafted by the Los Angeles Sparks in the second round (19th overall) of the 2019 WNBA Draft following her senior season and is in her seventh season as a professional.

Brianna Turner - Indiana Fever

Turner was on the 2018 National Title team but didn't play that season due to a torn ACL the year before. Turner received a fifth year of eligibility due to her injury and made the most of it.

The forward was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year in her final season for the Irish and then selected by the Atlanta Dream in the first round (11th overall pick) of the WNBA Draft. Since then, Turner has played seven seasons of pro ball and has been named to the WNBA All-Defensive First Team twice.

Arike Ogunbowale - Dallas Wings

No matter what Ogunbowale accomplishes the rest of her pro career, she'll always be remembered for her heroics in the 2018 NCAA Tournament.

Ogunbowale hit a game-winning jumper in the Final Four against UConn and then hit a buzzer-beater against Mississippi State to win the National Championship.

Since then, the former first-round pick has been named to the WNBA All-Star team four times, won a pair of All-Star Game MVPs and a scoring title in what is now her seventh season with Dallas.

Jewell Loyd - Las Vegas Aces

The first Notre Dame player to ever go first overall in the WNBA Draft (2015), Loyd is in her 11th WNBA season and first with the Aces. Loyd won a pair of Olympic Gold Medals (2020, 2024) and WNBA Titles with Seattle Storm (2018 & 2020) and might be in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame when she decides to hang up her sneakers.

Loyd is a six-time All-Star and three-time All-WNBA selection who has also won Rookie of the Year (2015) honors and a scoring title (2023).

Jackie Young - Las Vegas Aces

Just like her Aces teammate Jewell Loyd, Young is also a former number one overall draft choice (2019). Young was a sophomore on the 2018 National Title team, and 2025 marks her seventh year in the WNBA, all with the Aces. In her first six seasons, Young has won a pair of WNBA Titles (2022, 2023) and was named the League's Most Improved Player in 2022. Young is also one of two athletes to ever win both a 3X3 Olympic Gold Medal and a 5-on-5 Olympic Gold Medal.

Kayla McBride - Minnesota Lynx

On a Notre Dame that was a perfect 38-0 before losing to UConn in the 2014 National Championship game, McBride was the glue that kept the Irish intact.

As a senior, McBride averaged a career-high 17.6 points per game and was rewarded for it by going third overall in the WNBA Draft to the San Antonio Stars. Since then, McBride has played 11 seasons in the WNBA and has been named to four All-Star teams.

Jessica Shepard - Minnesota Lynx

Shepard began her college career at Nebraska but finished it at Notre Dame. Shepard was a junior on the 2018 National Championship Team and was named an All-American her senior year after averaging a double-double -- 16.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.

Following a monster senior season, Shepard was drafted in the second round (16th overall) and has played her entire pro career with Minnesota.

Skylar Diggins - Seattle Storm

South Bend's very own Diggins is currently the longest tenured alum -- 13 years -- in the WNBA and second with the Seattle Storm. Diggins appeared in two National Championship games and three Final Fours in her Irish tenure before getting drafted third overall by the Tulsa Shock.

Similar to Jewell Loyd, Diggins has a case for the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame when she decides to retire. Diggins won an Olympic Gold Medal in 2020 and is a six-time All-Star and four-time All-WNBA First Team selection.

Sonia Citron - Washington Mystics

Citron was selected third overall by the Mystics in this year's draft after being named an All-American as a senior. The only player in program history to finish with 1700 points, 700 rebounds, and 300 assists, Citron started 107 games for the Fighting Irish and advanced to the Sweet 16 in each of her four seasons.

In two preseason games for Washington, Citron averaged 10 points and 1.5 steals per game and scored 19 points in the Mystics 'season-opening victory over the Atlanta Dream.

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Jared Shlensky
JARED SHLENSKY

Jared Shlensky is a contributing writer for On SI and a freelance play-by-play broadcaster. Jared was previously a sports betting writer for Yardbarker, an On-Air YouTube Personality for the Sports Geek and a minor league play-by-play broadcaster

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