Former Villanova star Lucy Olsen goes from Caitlin Clark successor to WNBA surprise
A lot of late-round picks don’t make it to the league. But Olsen beat the odds with the Washington Mystics.
Lucy Olsen (33) in action with the Washington Mystics against the Las Vegas Aces earlier this month.
by Jonathan Tannenwald
BALTIMORE — There was a point in time when Lucy Olsen wasn’t supposed to be here.
Then she was, then she wasn’t again, until she was once more. But things turned, until they turned back, only for …
OK, that probably confuses even people who know her story. So let’s put it this way, though it might take a while.
Olsen was a very good player at Spring-Ford High School — she was the school’s all-time leading scorer when she graduated and the 2021 Miss Pennsylvania Basketball award winner. But it wasn’t earth-shattering when the Collegeville native arrived at Villanova, just as it wasn’t when Maddy Siegrist arrived from Poughkeepsie, N.Y., three years earlier.
How is Lucy Olsen doing in the WNBA? Update on Washington Mystics rookie in preseason
Washington Mystics 2025 second-round pick Lucy Olsen is fighting for a 12-player roster spot as a WNBA rookie.
Final cuts are due May 15, one day before the team’s season opener against the Atlanta Dream.
According to the Mystics’ website, the team must trim at least four more players from its roster by that deadline. The good news for the former Iowa women’s basketball star is that seven current spot-holders are rookies, so Washington is not locked into many big contracts or to established veteran players.
But three of them are first-round picks. Washington will have to make a decision on Georgia Amoore, though, who tore her ACL in practice.
Olsen has struggled with her shot during the two preseason games, shooting 2-of-14 overall, but she’s received 36 minutes of game time, indicating the team is giving her a chance to show what she can do.
Still, according to The Washington Post’s Kareem Copeland, Olsen, Zaay Green and Ashten Prechtel are fighting for the “final spot or two.”
Lucy Olsen stats
WNBA preseason (2 games): 2.0 points, 1.0 rebound, 1.0 assist, 14.3% shooting
2024 Iowa women’s basketball (32 games): 17.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 43.6/36.0/74.4 shooting
Washington Mystics schedule upcoming
May 16: vs. Atlanta Dream, 6:30 p.m. CT, ION
May 18: at Connecticut Sun, 12 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
May 21: at Golden State Valkyries, 9 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
May 23: at Las Vegas Aces, 9 p.m. CT, ION
May 25: at Phoenix Mercury, 5 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
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How is Lucy Olsen doing in the WNBA? Update on Washington Mystics rookie in preseason
Washington Mystics 2025 second-round pick Lucy Olsen is fighting for a 12-player roster spot as a WNBA rookie.
Final cuts are due May 15, one day before the team’s season opener against the Atlanta Dream.
According to the Mystics’ website, the team must trim at least four more players from its roster by that deadline. The good news for the former Iowa women’s basketball star is that seven current spot-holders are rookies, so Washington is not locked into many big contracts or to established veteran players.
But three of them are first-round picks. Washington will have to make a decision on Georgia Amoore, though, who tore her ACL in practice.
Olsen has struggled with her shot during the two preseason games, shooting 2-of-14 overall, but she’s received 36 minutes of game time, indicating the team is giving her a chance to show what she can do.
Still, according to The Washington Post’s Kareem Copeland, Olsen, Zaay Green and Ashten Prechtel are fighting for the “final spot or two.”
Lucy Olsen stats
WNBA preseason (2 games): 2.0 points, 1.0 rebound, 1.0 assist, 14.3% shooting
2024 Iowa women’s basketball (32 games): 17.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 43.6/36.0/74.4 shooting
Washington Mystics schedule upcoming
May 16: vs. Atlanta Dream, 6:30 p.m. CT, ION
May 18: at Connecticut Sun, 12 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
May 21: at Golden State Valkyries, 9 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
May 23: at Las Vegas Aces, 9 p.m. CT, ION
May 25: at Phoenix Mercury, 5 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
How is Lucy Olsen doing in the WNBA? Update on Washington Mystics rookie in preseason
Washington Mystics 2025 second-round pick Lucy Olsen is fighting for a 12-player roster spot as a WNBA rookie.
Final cuts are due May 15, one day before the team’s season opener against the Atlanta Dream.
According to the Mystics’ website, the team must trim at least four more players from its roster by that deadline. The good news for the former Iowa women’s basketball star is that seven current spot-holders are rookies, so Washington is not locked into many big contracts or to established veteran players.
But three of them are first-round picks. Washington will have to make a decision on Georgia Amoore, though, who tore her ACL in practice.
Olsen has struggled with her shot during the two preseason games, shooting 2-of-14 overall, but she’s received 36 minutes of game time, indicating the team is giving her a chance to show what she can do.
Still, according to The Washington Post’s Kareem Copeland, Olsen, Zaay Green and Ashten Prechtel are fighting for the “final spot or two.”
Lucy Olsen stats
WNBA preseason (2 games): 2.0 points, 1.0 rebound, 1.0 assist, 14.3% shooting
2024 Iowa women’s basketball (32 games): 17.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 43.6/36.0/74.4 shooting
Washington Mystics schedule upcoming
May 16: vs. Atlanta Dream, 6:30 p.m. CT, ION
May 18: at Connecticut Sun, 12 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
May 21: at Golden State Valkyries, 9 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
May 23: at Las Vegas Aces, 9 p.m. CT, ION
May 25: at Phoenix Mercury, 5 p.m. CT, WNBA League Pass
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