At this time last year, Aneesah Morrow and Saniya Rivers were preparing for the 2024-2025 women’s college basketball season, taking their final step before testing their talents in the WNBA.
Now as their first year in the league comes to a close, the Connecticut Suns’ first round picks from the 2025 WNBA Draft will finally get a chance to unwind and reflect on a life-changing year.
Slow start in rearview mirror for Aneesah Morrow
Morrow entered the Sun’s training camp hobbled by injuries she played through during her final year at LSU. In March, she suffered a flare-up to a lingering left foot injury during the third quarter of the SEC tournament semi-finals that ruled her out for the rest of the game.
Morrow recovered enough to play in the Tigers’ run to the Elite Eight in the women’s NCAA tournament. But with so little off between the end of the women’s college basketball season and the start of the WNBA season, the Sun staff were concerned when the No. 7 overall pick complained of left knee pain.
Knowing Morrow’s history with knee injuries, her participation in training camp was limited and she missed the first two games of the season while getting back to full fitness.
Connecticut’s cautious approach paid off, as Morrow played in 41 of the next 42 games for the Sun, earning 23 starts and averaging just under 19 minutes per game.
Her playing time was initially sporadic, but after the All-Star break, Morrow started the last 21 games for the Sun, averaging 8.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game in that stretch.
The second all-time leader in double-doubles for Division I women’s college basketball, Morrow finished with eight double-doubles this season, including four in her last eight games.
The rookie struggled with her efficiency on offense throughout the season, shooting 37.5% from the field. But Morrow’s defensive play and her energy on the glass made her a key contributor to the Sun’s improved play in the second half of the season.
“I’ve learned so much and grown so much throughout these few months,” Morrow said after Wednesday morning’s shootaround.
“Not even just basketball, but (in) life and being able to mature in a lot of situations and just grow on the corporate (side) off the court.”
One aspect of personal growth in particular that Morrow noted was in learning “to accept help”, something she was not accustomed to receiving from outsiders.
“(I was) trying to figure it all out on my own,” Morrow said. “Roll my sleeves up, put my head down and get to work.
“(I) still continue to do that, but allowing people to help you, allow the influences (of) your player development coaches to create more of a relationship with you.”
Morrow emphasized how appreciative she was of her rookie year and how important it was to stay in the moment throughout the season and not lose focus in spite of the steep learning curve.
“You have to learn quickly,” Morrow said. “That’s what it’s (all) about, The season goes quick — you’re in and out of cities every day, you’re trying to learn your new scout, you’re also playing against amazing players (from) all around the world.
“Being open to those challenges and adapting, I feel like I did a really good job with that this year, but (also) enjoying the process… this is the end of the first year already, time goes by fast and you have to enjoy it.”
Despite personal tragedy, Saniya Rivers experiences joyous season
Like Morrow, Rivers’ training camp experience was disrupted from the start, but not for a physical injury.
Prior to the start of training camp, just weeks after the 2025 WNBA Draft, Rivers’ mother, Demetria Rivers, passed away unexpectedly at the age of 47.
Rivers did not participate for most of training camp and missed the first game of the season. But once the No. 7 overall pick made her debut, Rivers quickly showed signs of being a key player in the Sun’s rotation for years to come.
Starting in 25 of her 42 games played, Rivers averaged 8.8 points, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals per game and just under a block as well. She led all rookies with 62 steals and 38 blocks this season, earning her praise throughout the year as one of the most exciting young defenders in the league already.
“I think what I wanted to translate the quickest was (my) defense and I feel like that translated quickly for me,” Rivers said during Thursday’s exit interviews. “People (have) labeled me as a ‘defensive stopper’. I had the opportunity to go guard some of the best of the best — I did my job on some, I didn’t on others, but I mean, that’s part of being a rookie.
“You’re not going to hold anybody to zero, (all) you can do is learn from (this), learn how to get better.”
Rivers also proved that she has potential as a two-way talent. The former Wolfpack sank 43 three-pointers this season, placing fifth amongst all rookies and set a new franchise record for most threes made by a rookie.
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With shooting splits of 40.7% from the field and 34.1% from beyond the arc, Rivers has serious potential to become a key figure in the team’s offense as well.
“I’ve proved to myself this season that I’m not just the defensive stopper — I can score,” Rivers said.
“It’s hard to get the three off in this league, so the fact that I got a couple in the stash, it’s honestly a blessing. I just proved to myself that I can play both sides of the ball… next season, I (want to) build off that, being able to be this big time player (on) both sides of the ball and just being that versatile player that I pride myself on, doing whatever I can for my teammates.”
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