The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Ariel Atkins named to AP WNBA All-Rookie Team
08.21.2018 | Women's Basketball
Atkins has averaged 11.3 points per game during her inaugural season in the WNBA.
Former University of Texas women's basketball standout Ariel Atkins has been named to the six-person Associated Press WNBA All-Rookie Team, it was announced on Tuesday.
Atkins was the seventh pick of the 2018 WNBA Draft by the Washington Mystics, making her the third-highest draft selection in program history.
She has had an outstanding opening campaign with the Mystics, averaging 11.3 points per game, 2.4 rebounds per game, 2.1 assists per game and 1.3 steals per game. She played in 29 games during the regular season with 24 starts, averaging 22.5 minutes per game. Atkins scored in double figures on 17 occasions, including three 20-plus-point performances.
Atkins and the Washington Mystics earned the No. 3 seed in the 2018 WNBA Playoffs, which start on Tuesday. The Mystics received a first-round bye and will first play on Thursday in Washington, D.C., against an opponent to be determined. That game will tip at 5:30 p.m. CT on ESPN2.
Atkins becomes the second Longhorn to be named to the AP WNBA All-Rookie Team in the last three seasons, as Imani McGee-Stafford earned the recognition with the Chicago Sky in 2016.
2018 AP WNBA ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
A'ja Wilson, Las Vegas
Diamond DeShields, Chicago
Kelsey Mitchell, Indiana
Kia Nurse, New York
Ariel Atkins, Washington
Azura Stevens, Dallas
