Inside Olivia Miles’ record-breaking WNBA rookie season

Lindsay Whalen sometimes looks at Olivia Miles and has flashbacks.

In 2004, Whalen was a rookie point guard with a lot of responsibility: She started 30 games for the Connecticut Sun, who made the WNBA Finals that season. Now Whalen is an assistant coach for the Minnesota Lynx, who’ve put the keys in the hands of Miles, a rookie point guard.

Whalen knows from experience how exhilarating it is to be in Miles’ shoes, but she also knows how much pressure it is. Like Whalen, Miles seems very capable of handling it.

The league-leading Lynx, who are 16-6 after Wednesday’s win over Connecticut, host a marquee matchup with the New York Liberty on Saturday (1 p.m. ET, ABC). We’ll see whether Miles, who has sat out the past two games because of a calf injury, is back against New York.

If so, it will be her second chance to face the Liberty, who like the Lynx are championship contenders this season. Miles had 14 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists in Minnesota’s 99-86 loss at New York on July 3.

Two months into the season, Miles has wowed WNBA observers with her transition to the pro game. She leads the Lynx in scoring (18.5 points per game) and assists (5.7) while also averaging 4.8 rebounds. She is the ninth rookie in WNBA history to be named an All-Star starter and the fourth in the past four seasons, following the Indiana Fever‘s Aliyah Boston (2023) and Caitlin Clark (2024) and the Dallas Wings‘ Paige Bueckers (2025). Miles joins Maya Moore (2011) as Lynx rookies who have been named All-Star starters

Moore, Boston, Clark and Bueckers were all No. 1 draft picks. Miles was the No. 2 pick behind fellow guard Azzi Fudd (Dallas), but Miles is in the driver’s seat for the Rookie of the Year award. How has Miles compared to the top rookies in WNBA history? Here’s what has stood out about Miles’ first 20 games in the WNBA.

Ready for responsibility

Miles, who played three full seasons at Notre Dame, was eligible for the 2024 draft. But she said she thought she wasn’t quite ready for the WNBA and transferred to TCU to finish her college career and better prepare for the pros.

Now Miles could become just the second No. 2 pick to win WNBA Rookie of the Year, joining Elena Delle Donne in 2013. But no one is surprised Miles is the front-runner. In fact, many anticipated on draft night that she would get a lot of playing time and carry a big load immediately. That has proven true.

“What we’ve learned,” Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve said, “is really just how mature a player she is at a young age. I guess whether it’s high school, college or pros, a pick-and-roll is a pick-and-roll, and that’s what she does. There are audible gasps from our coaching staff at some of the passes she makes.”

While Fudd got a little time to work her way into the Wings’ starting lineup, Miles has started every game she has appeared in and ranks second on the Lynx in minutes per game (30.6). She had to help fill in the gap the Lynx have had with star forward Napheesa Collier out.

No less an expert in point guard play, Las Vegas veteran Chelsea Gray praised Miles’ maturity after the Aces and Lynx met June 13.

“She’s showed numerous times that she could be great in big moments,” Gray said. “She’s doing an amazing job.”

Ability to score and distribute at a high level

Miles is the second player in WNBA history to average at least 18 points and 5 assists through 20 career games, joining Bueckers. Miles’ averages are slightly higher than Bueckers’ were through 20 games, and she is shooting 51% from the field compared to Bueckers’ 45% at that point in her career.

Eight Rookie of the Year winners averaged at least 18 points for their first seasons, led by another past Lynx great, guard Seimone Augustus (21.9 points per game in 2006). Las Vegas center A’ja Wilson averaged 20.7 points in 2018, with Clark and Bueckers both finishing at 19.2 points the past two seasons.

Clark had, by far, the best assists season among Rookie of the Year winners, averaging 8.4 in 2024. Bueckers is second at 5.4 last year. If Miles maintains her current assists average and wins the rookie honor, she would rank second.

Candace Parker is generally considered the gold standard for WNBA rookies, as she’s the only player to win the MVP award in her first season (2008). Parker helped revolutionize the game by being comfortable as a center who frequently displayed guard skills. Parker averaged 18.5 points, 9.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists.

The 5-foot-10 Miles is a different type of player than the 6-4 Parker, but the two-time WNBA MVP still appreciates a lot about Miles’ ability.

“She just sees the game,” Parker said. “There are people who make passes, and people who can manipulate passes — she does that. She is in a system that’s going to continue to allow her to elevate. For her to play so well in a position that is so sought-after is special.”

Miles is on pace to join Parker by becoming the fifth rookie in WNBA history to average at least 15 points and shoot at least 50% for a season. The other four were post players, and two were not true rookies: Yolanda Griffith and Natalie Williams did it in 1999, after they had played professionally in other leagues before joining the WNBA.

The true rookies to do it were Parker in 2008 and Chiney Ogwumike in 2014. Miles could become the first rookie guard to do it.

Fast learner

Whalen was a veteran by the time she was traded to Minnesota in 2010, the same season Reeve took over the Lynx. Whalen said by then, she had figured out while playing for then-Sun coach Mike Thibault that flashy plays weren’t going to make her a top-level player, no matter how fun they were.

“I went through the rookie year behind-the-back passes, turning it over,” Whalen said. “I learned real quick in this league, it’s more about consistency and making the easier play over and over and over.

“Now, Olivia, I think, has even better vision and she can make more passes. She tried a pass in one game to Natasha Howard that there was no chance it was going to get there. But Cheryl didn’t say a lot. You’ve got to let Liv figure that out. She’s going to make the next three passes that will give your team a 6-0 run. She will learn not to make the bad pass. But she’s also still a kid, so you’ve got to let her do her creative thing as well.”

For as expansive as Miles’ offensive game promised to be at the pro level, her defense was a concern. Reeve told her there was no physical reason she couldn’t be a solid defender. It would just take commitment and work.

The Lynx are allowing 80.8 points per game, second best in the league, and lead in defensive rating (101.0). Miles is holding her own as part of that defense.

Unshakeable confidence

Reeve was asked about ways Miles might remind her of Moore, who helped lead the Lynx to the first of their four WNBA titles when she was a rookie. Reeve smiled and said she thought of Moore when Miles took a couple of step-back 3-pointers in a recent game. Reeve thought one was a good shot to take, the other wasn’t. But she didn’t scold Miles because she knows part of greatness in a player is being able to maintain confidence.

“It was easy for me to let Maya be Maya,” Reeve said. “There were some places where I was hard on Maya, but those places you can’t teach? The things that they can just do that most players can’t? You have to just go through some times when it doesn’t work out so you can get to their full greatness.

“With Liv, you can call her a rookie if you want to, but she’s just always ready for the moment.”