Aliyah Boston has been everything the Indiana Fever were hoping she would be when they took her with the first overall pick in April’s WNBA draft. In a league where rookies often struggle to contribute immediately, Boston is one of three players through Sunday’s games averaging at least 15 points, eight rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots per game.
The other two are MVPs Breanna Stewart and A’ja Wilson.
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On Sunday, Boston was announced as a starter for the 2023 WNBA All-Star Game alongside Stewart and Wilson. Boston is just the eighth rookie ever — and the first since 2014 — to receive the honor. Boston called the news “another blessing” in a tweet and declared that “God is so good all the time.”
Another blessing🫶🏾 God is so good all the time https://t.co/TgTZ849wBa
— Aliyah A. Boston (@aa_boston) June 25, 2023
Thanks in no small part to Boston’s arrival, the Fever have already matched last year’s win total and are on pace for their best season in seven years. They are currently in possession of the eighth and final playoff spot with a 5-8 record.
Aliyah Boston is not your average rookie.@aa_boston is heading to Las Vegas as an All-Star starter. 🌟 pic.twitter.com/VjsqBMVaUt
— Indiana Fever (@IndianaFever) June 25, 2023
The former University of South Carolina star has the WNBA’s highest field-goal percentage (65.1%) of any qualified player and ranks in the top 10 in rebounding (8.1 per game) and blocks (1.5 per game) as well.
And throughout her rise in basketball, faith has been a foundational part of Boston’s life. She was raised in a Christian family while growing up in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and routinely gave glory to God as she picked up award after award during her college career.
A three-time Associated Press All-American and the unanimous 2021-22 National Player of the Year, Boston became the second South Carolina player to go No. 1 (Wilson was taken with the first pick in 2018). She praised God on draft night for the role He’s played in her journey.
“It’s just really special,” Boston said. “I’m thankful, first, to God just for putting me in this position, but also thankful to everybody in Indiana, just because they saw something in me and I’m just ready to get there and get to work.”
After the draft, Boston took to Instagram to celebrate the start of her professional career and again praise God.
“We have the power of God within us and because of that we can achieve anything according to his plan,” she wrote. “So thankful to God to be where I am today.”
View this post on Instagram
Boston also pointed to her faith following the South Carolina’s loss to Iowa in the Final Four, when asked to reflect on the impact she was able to have in her four years as a Gamecock.
“God is good, you know? And He works,” she said. “And I hope that all the little girls and boys that want to take pictures with me can see God through me because He’s the reason for all of this. No matter what happens, no matter how it happens, He is the reason for it all, and His plan is greater than ours.”
Indiana faces the defending-champion Las Vegas Aces at 10 p.m. ET on Monday. The All-Star Game will be in Las Vegas on July 15.
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