Oh she definitely was injury-prone even before today’s news. AFAIC, this injury makes it all the more worrying for her chances at having a good, long professional career – let alone eventually finishing out her college career strong. I really hope we don’t have another situation even somewhat resembling that of Jacki Gemelos'.
That’s a huge blow. Haven’t read it yet but is it the same leg she hurt during the season?
Declare early Paige and get out of there.
Yes, it is in fact the knee on that same leg.
I was thinking about that, too. The timing of this injury is such that, if she were to early-declare for the 2023 Draft, she could choose to either sit out the 2023 season upon getting drafted, or sign immediately with the potential expectation of returning in limited action by this time next year. The W season won’t be as compressed as it is this year, after all.
If she wants to get her degree though, she’ll likely want to have a crack at having a true senior year comeback-style while she’s at it. At this point, now that she’s about to redshirt, she could end up entering the W as late as the 2026 Draft. 😳 We’ll see if this injury ends up hurting her NIL deals enough to make any sort of difference in such a potential decision…
I know Stiles had a shortened pro career, but wasn’t she at least healthy enough in college so as to set the Div. I NCAA scoring record at the time? Or did she have a serious college injury or two as well?
The best predictor for an ACL injury is a previous ACL injury, so that's worrisome as well.
I feel very bad for her but hopefully she'll heal completely (as most young athletes do now). She would be physically ready for the WNBA next summer but after missing a season, the adjustment to the pros would be substantial. My guess is she goes back to UConn in 2023-24.