Native Women in the WNBA
From the league’s first season to today, Native players have reached the WNBA as trailblazers, All-Stars and champions.
When Ryneldi Becenti joined the Phoenix Mercury in 1997, she became the first Native American woman to appear in the WNBA. Since then, a small but influential group of Native players has followed, representing distinct Tribal Nations and communities across the country.
Their paths also show that being drafted, making a roster and playing in a regular-season game are separate achievements. Together, their careers form a history of professional basketball that is still growing.
A Brief History of Native Women in the WNBA
Becenti, a Diné point guard from Fort Defiance on the Navajo Nation, entered the WNBA as a free agent during its inaugural season. Before joining Phoenix, she starred at Arizona State University, where she recorded the first triple-double in the women’s program’s history. ASU later retired her No. 21.
In 2011, Tahnee Robinson became the first enrolled Native American woman selected in the WNBA Draft. Robinson, who belongs to the Northern Cheyenne, Eastern Shoshone and Skidi Pawnee peoples, was chosen 31st overall by Phoenix. Her rights were traded to Connecticut, where she played during the preseason but did not make a regular-season roster.
Angel Goodrich, a member of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians, reached the league two years later. Drafted by the Tulsa Shock in 2013, she played three seasons with Tulsa and Seattle.
Shoni Schimmel brought unprecedented national attention to Native women’s basketball after Atlanta selected her eighth overall in 2014. A member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Schimmel became a two-time All-Star and won the 2014 WNBA All-Star Game MVP award.
The next generation includes Alissa Pili, who is Iñupiaq and Samoan, and Aaliyah Nye, a citizen of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians. Pili became the first Alaska Native woman drafted into and to play in the WNBA. Nye entered the league in 2025 and earned a championship with the Las Vegas Aces during her rookie season.
Native leadership has also reached the coaching bench. Cherokee Nation citizen Latricia Trammell served as head coach of the Dallas Wings and later joined the Chicago Sky as an assistant coach.
The Native WNBA Stars
1997
Ryneldi Becenti became the first Native American woman to appear in the WNBA.
Diné/Navajo
31st overall
Phoenix selected Tahnee Robinson in 2011, making her the first enrolled Native American woman chosen in the WNBA Draft.
Northern Cheyenne, Eastern Shoshone and Skidi Pawnee
82 games
Angel Goodrich appeared in 82 regular-season games during her three-year WNBA career
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians
29 points
Shoni Schimmel scored 29 points in the 2014 WNBA All-Star Game and was named MVP.
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation
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8th overall
Both Schimmel in 2014 and Alissa Pili in 2024 entered the league as eighth-overall draft picks.
Iñupiaq and Samoan
44 games
Aaliyah Nye appeared in every regular-season game of her 2025 rookie season before helping Las Vegas win the championship.
Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians
These Native Women in the WNBA do not represent a single Native experience. They come from different Nations, regions and family histories, and each reached professional basketball by a different route. Their accomplishments deserve accurate recognition, especially in a league where roster opportunities remain limited and Native representation is still rare.
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