STORRS — Aaliyah Edwards boarded a plane in Miami and flew right into the aftermath of a winter storm in Connecticut. “The snowstorm was not my friend,” she told the crowd at Gampel Pavilion. “Not my friend at all.”
Edwards was surrounded by thousands of friends and much of her basketball family on Wednesday night, when she was inducted into the Huskies of Honor, joining the best of the best to play for UConn women’s basketball, as a elite a group as one can join in the sport. But who among us doesn’t occasionally wish to spend a day back at school, away from the far more complicated business of our chosen profession?
And Aaliyah Edwards graduated from UConn and jumped into the women’s basketball business at an exciting, interesting and complicated moment.
“It’s not just school and basketball, it’s ‘adulting,’” Edwards said. “I’m really happy with my situation. I’m part of the union as a player-rep and part of the JEDI program (justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion) as well to represent the young athletes of The W, sharing my voice, making sure every voice is heard, especially from my generation. It’s super important, to step into those rooms where you don’t think a lot of people can hear you, but every voice matters. It may not be for now, but for five years in the future.”
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Edwards, 23, who came to UConn in 2020 from Kingston, Ontario, in a freshman class that included Paige Bueckers and Nika Muhl, navigated a difficult four years, by UConn standards. The Huskies did not win a championship during her time, but reached the Final Four three out of four years, the championship game in 2022, her career ending with a moving pick call at the end of an excruciating loss to Iowa and Caitlin Clark in the semifinals in ’24.
When it was all said and done, she was a WBCA All-American, which is a criteria for inclusion in the Huskies of Honor, and one of only six in UConn history with more than 1,800 points (1,861) and 1,000 rebounds (1,020), and had 35 double-doubles.
Taken by Washington with the No. 6 pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, Edwards, 6-3, began to gravitate toward a leadership role, like many former Huskies in the league, joining Unrivaled, the off-season venture launched by Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier. Last season, Edwards was traded to the Connecticut Sun, joining her predecessor and mentor as a UConn center, Tina Charles.
Former UConn player and WNBA player Aaliyah Edwards, left, smiles as UConn head coach Geno Auriemma, right during a pregame ceremony adding Edwards to the Huskies of Honor before an NCAA college basketball game against Xavier, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Storrs, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
So Connecticut has become a second home for Edwards, who could be part of the last season the franchise plays at Mohegan Sun Arena. With talks for a new collective bargaining agreement stalled, it is looking more and more likely that there will be a work-stoppage at the start of next season. There are times when it seems a desire to move the Sun to a bigger market, such as Houston or Boston, is one of the few areas of agreement between the league and the union.
“It’s definitely a question I’m torn,” she said. “One, I really only spent a month with the Connecticut Sun this past season, but it really is a second home to me, so a lot of memories, a lot of history here in this state. And women’s basketball is at the forefront of it, so I don’t know, I don’t know what the future holds. The possibility of us moving, yeah, that would be sad, but I hope we still have some diehards who will make the trip wherever we land. It’d be nice to stay here and continue that future with the Sun.”
Collier and Stewart, teammates on UConn’s 2016 champions who were honored earlier this season, have risen to leadership positions in the WNBA players association.
“Going into this new CBA, we’re not just trying to make changes for next year, but also for the six years down the road,” Edwards said. “Very impressed (with Stewart and Collier), especially now that ‘Phee is my teammate in Unrivaled, spending time with her, learning not just basketball things, but life lessons and how she navigates the corporate world, it’s nice to have her as a mentor. What they’re doing, her and Stewie, not only for Unrivaled but for women’s basketball, it’s amazing to see and it encourages me to make that same kind of impact in my own way.”
Edwards was at the Huskies shoot-around Wednesday morning. Before UConn’s 97-39 victory over Xavier, Edwards was introduced, her No. 3 placard unveiled among the program’s all-time stars, and she addressed the crowd for about five minutes. “I never set out to be recognized for individual accomplishment,” she said. “But it truly feels so good to see my name up there in the rafters, not only recognition for me, but for my family. It truly means the world to me.”
Former UConn player and WNBA player Aaliyah Edwards, right, embraces associate head coach Chris Dailey, left, during a pregame ceremony adding Edwards to the Huskies of Honor before an NCAA college basketball game against Xavier, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Storrs, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
The team she left behind, with the addition of impact freshmen, notably Sarah Strong, claimed that 12th national championship that eluded UConn during Edwards’ years. This year’s Huskies are 21-0, with No. 13 in their crosshairs.
“I’m still trying to get the whole alum thing going on, but I will be back when we make it to the Final Four this year,” she said. “It’s weird being away from the team for so much, but the love is still there, I still support them and it’s great to be back in this building because a lot of memories were had here.”
Aaliyah Edwards, who has helped grow the sport in Canada, left a mark at UConn in her more reserved way, and her future remains rich with possibilities.
“I always want to be a mentor for the next generation, that’s something I’ve always wanted,” Edwards said. “I think I’m just super proud of how far I’ve come, coming from a little town, Kingston in Canada. I feel like my story is a testament that it can be done, if you put in the work, just trust in yourself, believe in yourself and believing there is no impossible. I hope my story impacts somebody the same way.”