With less than a month remaining in the 2024 WNBA regular season, the rookies continue to impress. Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese remain atop our WNBA Rookie Rankings, but Rickea Jackson is also demanding the spotlight.
Jackson started the season off the bench, but it didn't take long for her to prove herself. This past week, the former Tennessee forward made history with the Los Angeles Sparks. Meanwhile, Kamilla Cardoso had her first 20-point game with the Chicago Sky.
All five of the top rookies have leveled up after the Olympic break, proving that the future of the league is in excellent hands.
Here is a closer look at our CBS Sports WNBA Rookie Rankings:
The Indiana Fever rookie registered a career-high 31 points in a 100-81 win over the Sky on Friday. She went 8-for-14 from the field, including 5-for-9 from beyond the arc.
The former Iowa star followed that performance with her 12th double-double of the season in a 100-93 victory against the Dallas Wings on Sunday. Clark put up 28 points and 12 assists to lead the Fever to over .500 for the first time in five years.
Reese made history again this week when she broke the WNBA's single-season rebounding record on Sunday against the Minnesota Lynx. The previous record was 404 set by Sylvia Fowles in 2018. Reese now has 418 rebounds with eight games remaining in the regular season. The former LSU star recorded 17 points and 19 rebounds in the aforementioned game against Minnesota, a 79-74 loss.
That was Reese's 24th double-double of the season, extending her already historic mark. Before this season, the WNBA double-double record for a rookie was 22 set by Tina Charles in 2010.
Jackson didn't have her most productive game on Sunday against the Atlanta Dream as she shot 31.3% from the field. However, Jackson still scored 13 points to make it 10 consecutive games in double figures.
The game prior, Jackson was much better as she helped the Sparks snap a seven-game losing streak with a 94-88 win against the New York Liberty. Jackson tallied 19 points in that game while going 7-for-11 from the field and 4-for-6 from beyond the arc.
The Sky lost to the Lynx on Sunday, but Cardoso was outstanding with 22 points on 7-of-11 from the field and nine rebounds. That was her first 20-point game in the WNBA.
After the Olympic break, Cardoso has been averaging 12.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.5 blocks per game. Reese shared how proud she was of her teammate after Sunday's game.
"I love Kamilla's confidence, being able to go up strong and finish around the basket then going up to the free-throw line and knocking it down, so I'm really proud of Kamilla," Reese said. "Her confidence since the break has been great."
Edwards started her second consecutive game on Sunday when the Mystics lost a competitive contest against the Connecticut Sun. In 24 minutes, Edwards tallied nine points on 4-for-6 from the field, adding six rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Despite only averaging 22 minutes per game, she is leading the Mystics in rebounds (5.7) and blocks (0.8).
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.
Most Popular
Comments / 0