Simply making the WNBA 3-point contest wasn’t enough for Dallas Wings star Azzi Fudd. She made some history, too.
Fudd became the first rookie to win the 3-point event, catching fire in the championship round to defeat the Portland Fire’s Bridget Carleton 30-19 on Friday in Chicago.
The No. 1 pick in this year’s draft was the fourth rookie in history to compete in the contest. She made 20 of her 26 shots in the final round, with all but two of her final 10 shots going in.
“You say ‘only’ six shots, but I feel like that was a lot,” Fudd said after being told of her low number of misses. “But honestly, I was really nervous. I was excited.”
Fudd added, “It’s fun to do because — and I don’t want to sound cocky — but it’s easy to me, just the set shot. Take the ball from the rack. It really is muscle memory. It’s what I’ve been doing since I was young.”
She took home $60,000 for her win, getting $20,000 from the league and an extra $40,000 from Aflac and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association.
She advanced to the final with 24 points in the first round, second to Carleton’s 29.
While most of Fudd’s shots fell, Sabrina Ionescu’s final-round record of 37 points held up. Fudd is prepared to make a run at the mark in the future.
“If they’ll have me,” Fudd said. “I’d be honored to be here again. … That’s not up to me.”
But Fudd saved her best shooting for last, firing a shot across the bow of the greatest shooter of all time.
“Steph, if you’re listening, I’ve been asking for a rematch since high school,” Fudd said in challenging Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry to a shooting contest. “Maybe it’s our time to figure out a time and a place.”
The two of them faced off in a 3-point contest at Curry’s SC30 Select Camp in 2018 when Fudd was a high schooler. After beating all campers — boys and girls — Fudd got a shot at Curry but lost by four.
In the first contest Friday night, Team Washington downed Team Seattle 31-24 to win the Shooting Stars contest.
The four-team event featured three players on each squad — a WNBA legend, a current player in the league, and a high school player selected through the Nike EYBL youth basketball circuit.
The Washington squad of Hall of Famer Elena Delle Donne, current Mystics center Shakira Austin and high school player Jezelle “GG” Banks defeated the Seattle team of Hall of Famer Lauren Jackson, current Storm rookie Flau’Jae Johnson and high schooler Tatianna Griffin 31-24.
–Field Level Media
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