Sophie Cunningham crowns Olivia Miles as WNBA Rookie of the Year
Sophie Cunningham crowns Olivia Miles as WNBA Rookie of the Year
Meghan L. Hall, USA TODAYTue, June 16, 2026 at 10:04 PM UTC
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Sophie Cunningham has announced her pick for WNBA Rookie of the Year: Olivia Miles.
"She's gonna get Rookie of the Year," Cunningham said on a recent episode of her podcast. "I don't know if anyone has watched her play. Whoever's listening to this, she is a beast, an actual beast."
Miles was drafted No. 2 overall by the Minnesota Lynx. She joined Minnesota following college stops at Notre Dame and TCU. In her final season, Miles averaged a career-high 19.1 points, 7.2 rebounds, 6.6 assists and 1.8 steals, while shooting 48.1% from the field. Miles started a career-high 38 games (all starts) and set single-season records in points (744), assists (252), field goals (268) and minutes played (1344) in the school's second-consecutive 30-plus win season.
The 23-year-old already took home May Rookie of the Month honors and is seventh in the league in assists (5.9 apg) and top 15 in points (18.1 ppg) and steals (1.4 spg). Miles is also top 25 in rebounds per contest (5.0). With Miles' help, Minnesota sits at the top of the WNBA standings with an 11-3 record.
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"I'm not kidding ... She just has like the wiggle of a guy. She is so good. Her passing, her shooting, her court vision," Cunningham said. "She is good ― good, good."
Cunningham admits she knows some people may find it "weird" that she is complimenting another player who isn't on her team. Still, she says Miles deserves her flowers.
"She is a freaking beast. I'm a fan. Is that weird to say?" Cunningham said.
"Our sport is always like ... so competitive, and there's not that many of us, and so you're always going against each other, but I think it is cool to give people their flowers. And Olivia Miles, she 100% deserves it because she is putting the whole league on notice right now."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Sophie Cunningham says Lynx's Olivia Miles is WNBA Rookie of the Year
Source: “AOL Sports”
