The Sun selected Saniya Rivers with the No. 8 pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.
When listing impact perimeter defenders, getting through many names before landing on Rivers is hard. At 6-foot-1, the former 2021 Gatorade National Player of the Year is an impressive athlete with the length to consistently make life tough on opposing guards. She never came around as an efficient scorer in her lone season at South Carolina or the following three at NC State. However, she still earned first-team All-ACC and ACC All-Defensive Team honors during her junior and senior seasons for the Wolfpack. Rivers posted averages this season of 11.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game while leading NC State in assists, blocks, and defensive rebounds. Her versatility on both ends of the floor should serve the Sun well, as they’re in rebuilding mode after losing Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner during the offseason. Rivers was Connecticut’s second first-round pick, following LSU’s Aneesah Morrow.
