Because the WNBA begins its thirtieth anniversary season, the league is seeing an inflow of world expertise on the courtroom.
In accordance with the Elias Sports activities Bureau, as of Thursday night time, 51 gamers born outdoors the USA had performed in at the very least one sport this season. That already marks a league report for a single season, surpassing the earlier excessive of fifty set in 2001.
We’re nonetheless solely every week into the season. With a number of gamers nonetheless fulfilling abroad commitments earlier than becoming a member of their WNBA groups, that report ought to proceed to climb within the weeks to come back.
On Thursday, Alex Fowler of Australia made her WNBA debut within the New York Liberty’s 100-82 win over the Portland Fireplace. Fowler is the eighth worldwide participant to take the courtroom for the Liberty this season — two shy of the single-team report of 10 set by Golden State final 12 months.
Whereas Australia nonetheless leads the best way in worldwide illustration on WNBA rosters, France continues to emerge as a serious pipeline of expertise, following its push to the brink in opposition to the USA within the gold medal sport on the 2024 Olympics. By means of Thursday’s video games, 5 of the league’s 32 gamers averaging at the very least 15 factors per sport are from France.
The Liberty and France are each nicely represented amongst these 9 worldwide gamers who’ve stood out in the course of the season’s opening week.
Marine Johannès, New York Liberty (France)
Marine Johannes #23 of the New York Liberty
The sharpshooting Liberty guard leads the league with 15 complete 3-pointers made by way of 4 video games, whereas her 3.8 made threes per sport rank second behind Toronto’s Marina Mabrey. Along with her taking pictures, Johannes is a playmaker, main the Liberty (and tied for tenth within the league) with 5 assists per sport. Her affect hasn’t been restricted to offense, both, as Johannes ranks fifth within the WNBA in steals at 2.3 per sport.
Pauline Astier, New York Liberty (France)
Johannes isn’t the one French guard thriving in Liberty seafoam to this point this season. Astier, a 24-year-old undrafted rookie, has been sensible in her first 4 WNBA video games. She is New York’s second-leading scorer behind Breanna Stewart at 16.8 factors per sport and has shot the lights out — 62.5% from the sector and 45.5% from past the arc — whereas including 4 assists, practically 4 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per sport.
Dominique Malonga, Seattle Storm (France)
The No. 2 decide within the 2025 WNBA Draft confirmed flashes of her immense potential as a rookie whereas coming off the bench in all 42 video games, averaging 7.7 factors and 4.6 rebounds in 14.3 minutes per sport. Now a full-time starter, logging over 26 minutes per sport in her second season, the 6-foot-6 middle leads the Storm in factors (16.0), rebounds (7.3), and blocks (2.0), that are tied for twentieth, eleventh, and 4th within the WNBA, respectively.
Jade Melbourne, Seattle Storm (Australia)
The Liberty isn’t the one workforce with a number of worldwide stars close to the highest of their leaderboards. Melbourne is Seattle’s second-leading scorer behind Malonga at 14 factors per sport on unimaginable effectivity — she’s taking pictures 61.9% from the sector and 50% from 3-point vary by way of three video games. Melbourne, the Storm’s 2022 third-round decide, additionally leads the workforce in assists (5.0, tied for tenth within the WNBA) and is tied with rookie Flau’jae Johnson for the workforce lead with 1.7 steals per sport.
Kamilla Cardoso, Chicago Sky (Brazil)
Kamilla Cardoso #10 of the Chicago Sky
In her third WNBA season, Cardoso is placing up career-best numbers by way of her first two video games, averaging 15 factors and 10.5 rebounds per sport (tied for fourth within the league). She is certainly one of solely 5 gamers averaging a double-double to this point this season, becoming a member of Shakira Austin, Aneesah Morrow, Kiki Iriafen, and former Sky teammate Angel Reese.
Bridget Carleton, Portland Fireplace (Canada)
The highest decide on this 12 months’s enlargement draft, Carleton put up a career-best 26 factors and 5 3-pointers to assist lead the Fireplace to their first win Tuesday. By means of three video games, she is averaging 16.7 factors and three.3 triples per sport (third within the league behind Johannes and Mabrey) whereas taking pictures 41.7% from deep. She is Portland’s second-leading scorer — behind our subsequent entry — and is tied for sixth within the league in steals at two per sport.
Carle Leite, Portland Fireplace (France)
For the second straight season, Leite was chosen in an enlargement draft — chosen by the Valkyries in 2025 and by the Fireplace in 2026. The previous top-10 draft decide had 21 factors in Portland’s first win, following an 18-point effort in her Fireplace debut. Leite’s 19.5 factors per sport rank eleventh within the WNBA, and he or she joins Indiana’s Caitlin Clark as the one gamers averaging at the very least 19 factors, three rebounds, and three assists this season.
Jovana Nogic, Phoenix Mercury (Serbia)
After enjoying professional ball abroad since 2019, the 28-year-old Serbian guard signed with the Mercury in April and has made a right away affect by way of her first three video games. Nogic ranks second within the WNBA in 3-point taking pictures at 66.7% (8-for-12), third on the Mercury in scoring at 12.3 factors per sport behind veterans Kahleah Copper and Alyssa Thomas, and first on the workforce in plus/minus. The Mercury have outscored opponents by 34 factors throughout her 66 minutes on the courtroom.
Janelle Salaün, Golden State Valkyries (France)
Janelle Salaün #13 of the Golden State Valkyries
Like Nogic, Salaun has performed professionally abroad since 2019. After becoming a member of the Valkyries for his or her inaugural season final 12 months, Salaun averaged 11.3 factors and 5.1 rebounds whereas beginning 33 of her 36 video games as a WNBA rookie. Regardless of coming off the bench in her first three video games this season, Salaun has been even higher, averaging a team-high 15.7 factors and three.3 3-pointers per sport on 50% taking pictures from past the arc.