Geno Auriemma dives into the "harsh" reality check for all UConn players except Paige Bueckers going into the 2025 WNBA draft

UConn coach Geno Auriemma delved into the harsh reality for every other Husky not named Paige Bueckers trying to get drafted in the 2025 WNBA draft, after helping the team win its 12th national championship.

Auriemma was interviewed on Sunday following UConn's post-championship parade and discussed the sad truth about Bueckers' teammates Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin, who are eligible for the draft but unsure if they'll get picked on Monday due to the caliber of draft aspirants in this year's event.

The WNBA draft will be held eight days after the national championship game. Auriemma admitted that the turnaround from getting into the Final Four to winning the national championship and hoping their names would get drafted was quick and harsh.

"There's a lot of quick turnarounds, but it is a lot for these kids to process," Auriemma said (Timestamp 4:05). There's the joy of winning national championship, the joy of going to the Final Four and then immediately you're hit with the realization that 'What if I don't get drafted?' 'What if my basketball career's over?' So it's pretty harsh, not for Paige (Bueckers)."

Auriemma noted that it's another thing that the players will have to navigate and adapt going into the next stage of their careers.

Paige Bueckers and Aubrey Griffin are included in the prospects list for Monday's draft, and Kaitlyn Chen isn't. The guard, however, can still get drafted even if she isn't included in the prospects list.

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Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin end UConn stints with a national title

Seniors Kaitlyn Chen and Aubrey Griffin ended their UConn stints with a bang, helping the Huskies win their 12th national championship and first title since 2016. The Princeton transfer Chen played and started for 40 games with UConn in the 2024-25 season, tallying 6.9 points, 1.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 1.2 steals.

Chen's numbers may have dipped considerably from her three previous seasons with Princeton, but the guard's contributions with UConn on defense helped the team become the nation's No. 1 defensive team this season.

On the other hand, Griffin returned to the court in January following an ACL injury that sidelined her in the second half of last season to the first half of this past season. The 6-foot-1 forward played 16 games and averaged 4.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per contest while shooting 59.5% from the field.

Her peak was in the 2022-23 season, where she tallied 11.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game.

Griffin and Chen can still venture into other pro circuits in Europe, South America and Asia if they don't get drafted and could get a possible WNBA call-up along the way if they perform well in these leagues.