Two Former UConn Huskies Taken in WNBA Draft While Supporting Paige Bueckers

What a night for the Huskies a week after the national championship.

UConn Huskies guard Chen, Bueckers and forward Griffin pose for a photo after a Elite Eight NCAA Tournament basketball game against the USC Trojans at Spokane Arena. / James Snook-Imagn Images

Geno Auriemma likely knew his star guard Paige Bueckers would be the first name off the board during Monday night's WNBA draft. But by the time the three-round draft concluded, he saw a couple more of his players hear their names called.

Just eight days after UConn won the national championship, the Huskies headed to New York City to support Bueckers as the Dallas Wings selected her with the No. 1 pick.

After Bueckers learned she was officially headed to Texas, she lobbied for some of her UConn teammates to be drafted after her.

"I think two teams or one team who would be genius to add Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin to their teams tonight," Bueckers said in an interview on the ESPN broadcast after she was picked Monday night. "So I think they should get drafted tonight."

The No. 1 pick must have had a crystal ball, because both Chen and Griffin got picked in the third round as they sat in the crowd amid Bueckers's UConn entourage. The WNBA's newest franchise, the Golden State Valkyries, picked Chen with the No. 30 pick in an awesome moment.

Griffin's moment came shortly after as the Minnesota Lynx chose her with the No. 37 pick, one before the final selection in the 2025 draft.

While neither Chen or Griffin were among the WNBA's official draft invitees, they got their moment to walk on stage, throw on the draft cap of their new teams and pose with commissioner Cathy Engelbert. Best of all, they were swarmed by their UConn teammates as soon as Engelbert announced their names. Not a bad ending to the night when you're watching from the crowd.

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