STORRS — Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd are back-to-back No. 1 overall draft picks, All-Americans, national champions and best friends.

Not only is it a rarity for a college program to have back-to-back top picks in the WNBA Draft, but never before have they gone to the same team until now.

“It isn’t every day that you get two players that were teammates go No. 1 back-to-back,” Geno Auriemma said on Monday.

While Auriemma was unable to attend April’s WNBA Draft, he wasn’t surprised to see Fudd get drafted No. 1 overall. The star guard had a career year for the Huskies in her fifth and final season in Storrs, earning All-American honors with a career-best 17.3 points per game on a career-high 48.1 field goal percentage.

“I don’t know that anyone was surprised that Azzi went No. 1,” Auriemma said Monday. “I think she was, maybe she was surprised. I don’t know. … For us, that was a great night. It was a tremendous accomplishment for Azzi. It was great representation of our program. I thought she handled it beautifully, like she handles most things.”

Fudd is the second straight Husky drafted first overall, following Bueckers in 2025. Both stars were drafted by the Dallas Wings, which looks to get back to playoff contention under a new young core and a new coaching staff this season. Bueckers had a successful debut season in the WNBA last summer, earning both All-Star and Rookie of the Year recognition. 

But Bueckers and Fudd have found themselves in the national spotlight regarding their off-court relationship. During Fudd’s introductory press conference, the Wings staff shut down a question about the two’s relationship status, stating the team would not field questions about players’ personal lives. However, the team’s decision to interject and Fudd’s choice not to answer the question made national news. Sports news talking heads voiced their opinions everywhere as some argued it was a fair question to ask now that the two are professionals, while others argued that their relationship is private and not public.

Fudd has never publicly commented on her relationship with Bueckers. However, Bueckers told WAG Talk last summer during WNBA All-Star in Indianapolis that the two were in a relationship. Since then, neither has said anything publicly about their off-court relationship.

On Monday, Auriemma was asked about how he thought Bueckers and Fudd handled the media frenzy following his own spotlight discourse surrounding his altercation with Staley.

“I think Paige had the best quote out of all of them,” Auriemma said. “You know, ‘What I do in my personal life is my own business and nobody else’s business.’ And I believe that. And as far as I’m concerned, you know, they are two great people that have come through our program and done amazing things while they’re here, and whatever else they do that’s a personal matter for them.”