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Connecticut Huskies coach Geno Auriemma has chosen to take Paige Bueckers back down to earth slightly before she heads to the WNBA.
Bueckers is the projected first overall pick in the WNBA Draft, and when she recently walked in on a gathering of Auriemma's former players, he jokingly pointed out where she ranks compared to some of the others.
"Oh what, you got one [championship] so you think you can be down here now?" Auriemma jabbed.
The story was told to ESPN's Sarah Spain by former Connecticut Huskie Rebecca Lobo on her podcast 'Good Game with Sarah Spain'.
"It's probably [2:00 a.m.] and [Bueckers] comes down - she's got the net on, and her championship hat on, and she comes over and it's all the older players sitting around," Lobo said.
"And , this is just a couple hours after we saw [Auriemma] crying and hugging her and telling her he loves her.
"And he looks at Paige and he points at me and he said, 'go sit next to her, you guys only have one [championship in common].'"
Auriemma is truly a legend of the college basketball scene, having become the all-time leader in wins with 1,217 and championships with 12.
"That's who he is, you know?" Lobo said of the interaction. "I felt like I was in a time warp. Like, 30 years ago it was me he was giving crap to. [That night] it's Paige."
Bueckers' big future
Bueckers has been a standout talent since day one. In her freshman season, she made history as the first freshman ever to be named National Women's Player of the Year.
Even when injuries limited her sophomore campaign, she still rallied her team to a National Championship appearance. But this year, she closed the chapter on her NCAA career with the one thing that had previously eluded her-a title. And now, she's rolling that momentum straight into the professional ranks.
As her popularity continues to skyrocket, the WNBA is positioning itself to harness that star power. In anticipation of the buzz Bueckers will bring, the league announced a new marketing partnership that aligns perfectly with her arrival.