2025 WNBA Draft: N.C. State’s Saniya Rivers and Aziaha James could both be high picks, experts say

Just before the buzzer signaled the end of their final game together in Reynolds Coliseum, North Carolina State head coach Wes Moore walked over to the bench where Aziaha James and Saniya Rivers were sitting side-by-side, squatted down and wrapped his arms around their necks in a brief but warm hug and patted them on the back.

Over the past few years, the backcourt duo had helped Moore win a lot of games and gave N.C. State fans who consistently sold out the historic venue in Raleigh much to cheer for. That second round NCAA Tournament victory over Michigan State was the 23rd consecutive home win for the Wolfpack in Reynolds, marking the longest home winning streak in program history. As they exited the floor on March 24, the emotions James and Rivers were going through were apparent. James shed tears and blew kisses to the crowd, while Rivers jumped around with members of the band as she held a wide smile.

For a lot of those games in Raleigh this season, there was always a seat or two reserved for a scout or coach of a WNBA team. Often, James and Rivers impressed in front of them — like when James poured in 36 points against Duke, or when Rivers flirted with triple-doubles in wins over Notre Dame and Michigan State.

On Monday night, folks will find out for sure just how much WNBA teams were dazzled by the Wolfpack duo. Rivers and James have both been invited to attend the draft in New York, making N.C. State just one of two teams to have multiple players invited to this year’s selection show. The other is South Carolina.

Together over the last handful of years, Rivers and James made a lot of history for N.C. State. As a freshman, James was on a team that won the ACC’s regular season and tournament titles. Rivers arrived as a sophomore transfer from South Carolina, and as juniors the duo — along with Madison Hayes, River Baldwin, Mimi Collins and Zoe Brooks — powered the Wolfpack to the Final Four. It was just the second time in program history N.C. State had advanced to the national semifinals, and the first time under Moore. This past season, the Wolfpack were co-regular season champs of the ACC and advanced to the Sweet 16, marking the sixth time in the last seven tournaments they’ve gone that far.

They’ll have the chance to make more history on Monday night. If either is selected in the first round of the draft, they’ll be just the third N.C. State player coached by Moore to be a first round pick, joining Markeisha Gatling and Kiara Leslie.

If both are taken in the first round, it’ll mark the first time ever that two N.C. State players have been picked in the opening round. It will also make it the first time since 2007 that multiple Wolfpack products were picked in the same draft.

Based on what folks around the WNBA are saying, there’s a real possibility that both James and Rivers hear their names called in the first 12 picks.

“Both are just really exciting players that I think are examples of where the game is going. Both incredibly athletic, both able to get up and down the court and play with speed, both able to play a couple different positions,” said Washington Mystics general manager Jamila Wideman. “I think both of them are examples of the kind of versatile outside talent that we’re just beginning to see more consistently and spread across the NCAA, and we’re about to watch that talent enter our league.”

Added ESPN’s Andraya Carter: “I think those two — they’re intriguing in different ways, but yeah, both very intriguing prospects.”

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Of the two players, Rivers seems to be the prospect that is more compelling, but also more unknown. Her potential seems unlimited, and her lanky 6-foot-1 frame is just what pro coaches are looking for in a big guard. Over the years at N.C. State, Rivers has shown the ability to defend players of all sizes, get to the rim whenever she wants, and dish out slick passes for assists. This season, she averaged 11.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

The native of Wilmington, North Carolina was a true Swiss-Army-Knife player, doing a little bit of everything and stuffing the stat sheet for the Wolfpack. In N.C. State’s second round win over Michigan State, Rivers posted a stat line that no other Division I player — man or woman — has had in an NCAA Tournament game this century: 17 points, 11 assists, eight rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

If there is a criticism of Rivers, it’s that her 3-point shooting needs work. While it has incrementally improved every year that she’s been in college, it peaked this season at 27.2 percent. Also worrisome is her career 67.9 percent success rate from the charity stripe.

But WNBA decision makers don’t seem to be worried. She’s a dynamic defender, has superb court vision and is a pure athlete with a high ceiling.

“She could probably handle (defending) 1 through 3, a little bit of 4 at times. She’s got a lot of length,” Chicago Sky general manager Jeff Pagliocca said. “Maybe the best athlete, overall athlete, in the draft. She’s proven she can guard multiple positions, which always matters in our league.”

Rivers finished her career at N.C. State with two All-ACC First Team and two ACC All-Defensive Team selections, an ACC Sixth Player of the Year award as a sophomore, and ranking in the top 15 in program history in assists, steals and blocks — reaching those figures in just three seasons.

“I’ve talked to a few different GMs and coaches, just with how athletic she is, her ability to defend, her versatility, size, she can get to the rim in one or two dribbles,” Carter says. “I think the style that she plays, the athleticism — obviously, some player development would need to happen with her jumpshot and that level of consistency — but her athleticism alone and her ability to defend, I think, would be huge.”

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From a development and potential perspective, James is the less tantalizing prospect of the two, but she has made it well known what she’s capable of on the basketball court during her four-year career with the Wolfpack, where she’s improved each season in front of everyone’s eyes. This season, James posted career-bests in points (17.9) and rebounds (4.9) per game while also shooting a career-high 44.5 percent from the floor.

James also developed a knack for playing well in big games. Of her 10 highest-scoring performances in college, eight of them were against ACC opponents or came in the postseason. Seven of those games were played at home in Reynolds, and nine of them were wins. Two of the three times she topped the 30-point mark came in games against Tobacco Road rival Duke.

“Those guards just have unbelievable range,” LSU coach Kim Mulkey said of N.C. State’s backcourt.

The 5-foot-10 lefty from Virginia Beach has improved as a 3-point and free throw shooter over the past two seasons, has shown more effort in defense and rebounding, and her combination of wicked speed, smooth handle and a silky jumpshot makes her difficult to guard. She can fill up the scoreboard quickly and her highlight reel is filled with plays where she breaks ankles and boggles minds. She’s a crafty finisher and a pure bucket-getter that leaves defenders bewildered.

James will depart N.C. State as a two-time All-ACC First Team honoree and someone who earned honorable mention All-American nods from the Associated Press, USBWA and WBCA this season. She’s eighth all-time in games-played for the Wolfpack and seventh all-time in 3-pointers made.

It’s unclear where she ranks in making moments that made the crowd at Reynolds roar, but one of her most memorable plays was her transition layup in overtime against Notre Dame this season, where she rotated the ball around her back before sinking a bucket over Olivia Miles.

“She can get on a heater,” Carter said of James. “She’s a microwave scorer, a confident scorer. I think, just her ability to score alone as a lefty, coming off of ball screens, getting to the rim, mid range, all of those types of things.”

Spokane, Washington was where the collegiate careers of Rivers and James came to an end in a Sweet 16 loss to LSU. In the postgame press conference though, there were more laughs than tears as the duo and Madison Hayes reflected on their time at N.C. State with Wes Moore.

Before leaving the dais, their final acts in N.C. State uniforms were crowding around Moore for a postgame selfie, which elicited a big smile from the 67-year-old coach even after a season-ending defeat.

“Obviously, they made an unbelievable impact on the court as far as our ability to win,” Moore said. “But just off the court too. I mean, they’re unbelievable, interacting with our fans and with kids and they represent our program — they’re ambassadors for our program in an unbelievable way. So, very blessed, it makes the journey a lot more fun when you have players and people like that.”

Whenever James and Rivers hear their names called on Monday night, it’s a guarantee that their college coach will be wearing the biggest grin and cheering the loudest. And he might just get the chance to do it twice in the first round.