The Washington Mystics are one step closer to officially tipping off a new chapter in DC after calling five names in the 2025 WNBA Draft Monday night.
With three selections in the top 10 and one pick in the second and third rounds of Monday’s draft, the Mystics have brought in a new batch of talented players eager to make the final 12-person roster and hopefully their mark on the WNBA this season. While the path from being drafted to making the final regular-season roster is challenging, all these players have already achieved their dreams of being drafted into the WNBA.
The first of those players was Sonia Citron out of Notre Dame.
Welcome to DC, Sonia!
The Washington Mystics selected Sonia Citron with the third pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft. Citron, a six-foot-one shooting guard, should fit perfectly with a rebuilding Washington Mystics team and will likely make the final roster.
Welcome to D.C., SONIA!!!!! @CitronSonia pic.twitter.com/vI3TrZd8tq
— Washington Mystics (@WashMystics) April 15, 2025
Citron played all four collegiate years at the University of Notre Dame under head coach Niele Ivey. During her time at Notre Dame, Citron developed a reputation as a versatile, two-way player who can shoot the lights out on offense while guarding the opposing team’s best perimeter player on defense.
Citron averaged 14.3 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game during her career at Notre Dame, shooting 37% from deep. While she primarily played shooting guard, Citron’s versatility and defensive acumen allowed her to play small forward when the matchup or lineup presented an opportunity.
Washington Needs A Scorer
Offensively, Citron is the quintessential three-level scorer.
As previously mentioned, Citron finished as a career 37% shooter from deep, taking about four attempts from beyond the arc per game. Her precision from three-point range spaces the floor and leaves more room for her wings and bigs to operate in the midrange and down low in the paint.
Citron’s shooting prowess also extends to the midrange. She has one of the smoothest jumpers you’ll ever see, and she is especially effective off the bounce or coming off screens, making her a deadly component to any pick-and-roll scenarios with Aaliyah Edwards or Shakira Austin. Her constant movement without the ball in her hands gives her an advantage over her defenders as a cutter to the basket, and her unmatched high motor allows her to finish through opposing contact and draw fouls.
Sonia Citron tonight 🔥
• 19 points
• 8 rebounds
• 3/6 3PM
• 8/12 FG— Women’s Hoops Network (@WomensHoops_USA) February 21, 2025
In February, the Mystics made the shocking decision to trade Ariel Atkins to the Chicago Sky for the third pick in this year’s draft— the very pick they used to bring Citron to DC. While the Mystics certainly are not expecting her to come in and replace seven years of production from Atkins in one season, if there were a player in this draft to select with the third pick to try, it would be Sonia Citron.
The Mystics Want A Versatile Defense
Citron is arguably the best 3-and-D player in this year’s draft class.
Not only does she have experience guarding guards and wings in college, but Citron also exhibits a high defensive IQ, allowing her to read and react quicker than most. How often have you turned on a Notre Dame game during Citron’s time there and seen her out of position or not communicating? Rarely, if ever.
She does an excellent job of rotating to stop opponents from driving to the basket and closing out on shooters. Coming from playing defense alongside a tenacious perimeter defender like Hannah Hidalgo or a reliable wing defender like Liatu King, Citron will fit in perfectly alongside Edwards, Austin, and arguably the best perimeter defender in the WNBA, Brittney Sykes.
Example of why I consider Sonia Citron a robot on defense, she just doesn't overreact to any dribble moves, stays in front defender, get the hand up. Textbook defense pic.twitter.com/1SIbvnLmQ8
— Shabazz 💫 (@ShowCaseShabazz) February 21, 2025
Last season, the Mystics courted a below-average defense. They were seventh in points allowed (82.3), ninth in opposing field goal percentage (44.3%), sixth in opposing three-point percentage (33.3%), ninth in rebounds allowed (35.4), and dead last in rebounds per game (31.9). Citron’s defensive IQ and versatility will make her a welcome addition to a Mystics defense hoping to return to being one of the best in the WNBA in the near future.
Sonia Citron is Perfect for DC
The Washington Mystics have found success drafting in the top 10 before, having selected Aaliyah Edwards sixth last year, Shakira Austin third in 2022, and Ariel Atkins seventh in 2018.
All of these players, in more ways than one, have contributed to the Mystics building and maintaining their reputation as being one of the more versatile teams in the WNBA. While various extenuating factors have consistently gotten in the way, drafting Sonia Citron reaffirms Washington’s dedication to maintaining that identity, even as they transition to a new era under new leadership.
Sonia Citron’s fit in Washington is undeniable. After assessing her strengths on both sides of the ball and her intangibles, there’s no way the Mystics would have been able to justify not drafting her with the third pick in Monday’s draft.
As the number one overall pick to the Dallas Wings, Paige Bueckers was the biggest no-brainer pick for this year’s draft. Aside from Paige, you’d be hard-pressed to find a bigger no-brainer pick than Sonia Citron being drafted to the Washington Mystics.
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