Connecticut Sun general manager Darius Taylor called her the steal of the draft. Helena Pueyo, selected by the Connecticut Sun with the No. 22 pick in Monday night’s WNBA Draft, could end up being just that.
Pueyo, who played five years at the University of Arizona, is a lockdown defender, named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team by both coaches and media members this year. The 6-foot-0 guard out of Palma de Mallorca, Spain led the conference in steals per game (3.2) this season, and is also fifth in Pac-12 history in career steals with 312. At the same time, she’s a reliable shooter, hitting free throws at a 81.1 percent clip and 3-pointers at a 37.5 percent rate. Pueyo averaged a career-best 9.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.6 assist this past season, her graduate campaign with the Wildcats. She upped those numbers to 15.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 3.5 steals in two NCAA Tournament contests.
Pueyo’s scoring numbers don’t jump out the way other prospects’ might. For example, Abbey Hsu, who the Sun selected out of Columbia with the No. 34 pick, averaged 20.4 points and 7.3 rebounds in her senior season. But Taylor and the Sun front office believe that we’ve only seen the beginning of what Helena Pueyo is capable of. After the draft, Taylor told…
