WNBA legend Candace Parker wasn’t too happy that Indiana Fever forward Aliyah Boston did not make it to one of the two AP All-WNBA teams, while 2025 Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers did.

Candace feels that Aliyah did more than enough to deserve a spot on the All-WNBA second team and her team making the playoffs should have sealed the deal for her. She also felt that Bueckers shouldn’t have made the team because she played for a Dallas Wings squad that finished tied for the worst record in the league at 10-34.

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“That’s not what I thought would happen,” Parker said on her podcast. “I definitely think just in terms of what you were able to put together this season that you would be on an All-W second team. I think the biggest surprise that sticks out to me because I think that rookie team it doesn’t matter. You know, wins or losses, or whatever. It’s just kind of like if you’re having an individual good season your rookie year, you’re going to get Rookie of the Year and you’re going to be on the All-Rookie team.”

Boston posted career-highs in scoring and assists

Playing in her third WNBA season, Boston earned a third straight All-Star Game appearance while averaging career highs of 15.0 points and 3.7 assists per game. The 2023 WNBA Rookie of the Year also ranked 7th in rebounds this season at 8.2 per game while starting all 44 games for the Fever this season.

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She led her team in rebounds, assists, and steals while being its third leading scorer. More importantly, the Fever finished the season with a 24-20 record and 6th place in the WNBA table despite star guard Caitlin Clark playing only 13 games due to injury.

“All-W first team, and All-W second team, you don’t see usually players from a last place team. I think Paige Bueckers’resume put together, yes, she’s capable of being on an All-W first team or All-W second team, 100%. But based on team performance, she’s the only one that is from below, I believe, out of the playoff team that was able to make the All-W team,” Candace added.

Paige won ROY and made the All-WNBA second team

But while Boston did not make the All-WNBA second team, Dallas Wings rookie guard Paigue Bueckers did. Bueckers led all rookies with 692 points and 194 assists while finishing in the league’s Top 10 in points, assists, and steals per game. Because of those achievements, she was named 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year, taking all but two first-place votes in a near-unanimous win.

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Last August, Paige set the WNBA’s single-game rookie scoring record with 44 points on 17-21 shooting, making her the first player in league history to score more than 40 points on 80 percent field goal shooting. That performance essentially locked in the ROY award. However, that also helped her make the AP All-WNBA second team along with Sabrina Ionescu, Nneka Ogwumike, Kelsey Plum, and Jackie Young.

There’s no question that Paige had a historic rookie season. But not even her sensational year could help the Wings make the playoffs or just finish with a .500 mark. Dallas finished the 2024 season tied with the Chicago Sky for the worst record in the league at 10-34. Meanwhile, Aliyah had a big year playing a significant role on a playoff team. That seemed more impressive.

This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 18, 2025, where it first appeared in the WNBA section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.