“I’m not gonna be like how Paige Bueckers was a leader, how Nika (Mühl) was as a leader”: Azzi Fudd shares she “won’t be super loud” to lead UConn

Azzi Fudd is set to return for her fifth year in women's college basketball after waiving her 2025 WNBA draft eligibility in April. Fudd is expected to lead the UConn women's basketball team to a possible two-peat in the 2025-26 season.

To do this, she has to fill the void left by Paige Bueckers. Fudd insisted she felt no pressure with the responsibility. Instead, she chose to see it as a challenge she could overcome.

"I don't think I see it as pressure on me," Fudd said via CT Insider. "I see it more as a challenge. Maybe that's because I like challenges, and to think of it as pressure, then it becomes a little bit more heavy."

Fudd also revealed her leadership would reflect her style and not mirror Bueckers and former Huskies player Nika Mühl, whose time as UConn's standout players was known for their commanding personalities and competitiveness.

“I'm not gonna be like how Paige was a leader, how Nika (Mühl) was as a leader," Fudd said. "I'm not gonna be super loud. I don't think that's in me to be like that. So, to find, like, who Azzi is as a leader, that’s gonna be my challenge.”

NCAA Womens Basketball: Final Four National Championship - Source: Imagn

Azzi Fudd comes from injury setbacks to lead UConn next season

Azzi Fudd's college basketball journey has been anything but smooth. Shortly after being named Gatorade National Player of the Year in 2019, she suffered an ACL injury and then another in 2023.

Due to those injuries, Fudd could only play 17 games across her sophomore and junior seasons. She also suffered a knee sprain in December this past season. But Fudd bounced back from those injury setbacks to help UConn women's basketball retain its Big East Tournament title and win the program's 12th national championship in April.

Her performance earned her the 2025 Most Outstanding Player of the Women's Final Four. Now she is committed to returning for another outstanding season for the Huskies.