Awa Fam, the No. 3 pick in the WNBA draft in April by the Seattle Storm, just finished winning a Spanish League championship with Valencia. But she's not worried about fatigue as she prepares to start her WNBA career with the Storm.
"I feel good. For me, it's OK, I'm 19 years old. I'm ready to play right now in the W," Fam said in her first news conference with U.S. media Friday in Seattle. "I don't feel tired. It's more excited."
Fam, a 6-foot-4 center, did not play Friday as the Storm took on the Connecticut Sun. It hasn't been announced yet when she will make her WNBA debut, but she said she is ready whenever that is.
"This is what I love," she said. "I love to be improving, I love to practice, to know more about this league and about this sport. It's new challenges that I really want."
Fam, who will turn 20 on June 17, was one of the players in the mix to be the No. 1 pick in the draft. She was selected by Seattle after the Dallas Wings took UConn guard Azzi Fudd No. 1 and the Minnesota Lynx took TCU guard Olivia Miles No. 2. Fudd and Miles have been with their teams since the start of the season. Soon, it will be Fam's turn.
In their preseason survey, the WNBA's general managers picked Miles as the favorite for the Rookie of the Year award but chose Fam as the 2026 rookie they thought would be the best player in five years.
Fam said while she was focused on winning a championship with Valencia, she was still paying attention to what has been happening with the Storm, 2-4 after Friday's 77-59 win. With post players Ezi Magbegor (foot) and Dominique Malonga (concussion) currently sidelined, it will help the Storm whenever Fam takes the court.
Asked if she modeled her game after any player in the WNBA and whom she was most looking forward to playing against in the league, Fam said it was the same person. "A'ja Wilson is my idol, so I love her. She is like my model," Fam said of the Las Vegas Aces' four-time MVP center. "When I was 15 years old, I never imagined that I was going to be here. Now I'm excited because my dream has come true."