Alarie '16 Is a First-Round Pick in WNBA Draft

Bella Alarie '16 was selected fifth in the WNBA Draft on Friday, April 17, becoming the first NCS athlete to have her name called in the professional basketball league's annual event.
 
Alarie was drafted by the Dallas Wings after completing her senior season at Princeton. She became the Tigers' all-time leading scorer with 1,703 points. She also started every game over her four years. The Ivy League named her Player of the Year three times, including as a unanimous pick this season, and Rookie of the Year as a freshman. Alarie was twice an honorable mention All-America selection.
 
Her collegiate performance drew the notice of USA Basketball, which twice placed Alarie on international teams. In 2017, Team USA took the silver medal in the U19 World Cup in Italy, an experience Alarie described in the Spring 2018 issue of NCS Magazine. And in 2019, the American squad took silver in the Pan American Games in Peru.
 
At NCS, Alarie was a four-year varsity player and two-time captain. In 2016, she was honored as the District's top girls' basketball player, winning Gatorade Player of the Year honors after averaging 28 points and 15 rebounds a game, and her jersey hung for a year in the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame's Ring of Honor.
 
Noting that Alarie, at 6-foot-4, is both tall and "an exceptional outside shooter," Dallas Wings president and CEO Greg Bibb said after the draft that Alarie could play two or three positions in the WNBA.
 
"Dallas has a ton of young talent, and I’m really excited to be part of that group, but I’ll contribute in whatever way possible. Whatever the coaches ask of me, I’ll bring," Alarie told the Dallas Morning News.

The WNBA draft was televised on ESPN, which gave fans a chance to watch Alarie and her family react live to the Wings' selection of her.
 
While the start of the 2020 WNBA season has been indefinitely postponed amid the coronavirus pandemic, NCS is looking forward to seeing how Alarie takes Wing in Dallas once play gets underway. Congratulations, Bella!
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    • Bella Alarie '16 (Credit: NBA Photos)

    • Alarie this March with former NCS head of school Kathleen O'Neill Jamieson at a Princeton game.

    • Alarie (20) with her NCS teammates during a 2016 varsity basketball game.

    • Alarie goes in for a layup for Team USA against Japan in the 2017 U-19 World Cup. (Credit: USA Basketball)