Two Cameron Indoor guards are headed to the WNBA, and the Triangle has now produced back-to-back years of multi-player draft classes.
Taina Mair went 14th overall to the Seattle Storm in the first round. Ashlon Jackson followed at 23rd to the Golden State Valkyries in the second. It's the first time Duke has placed two players in the first two rounds since 2014, and Mair is the program's first first-round pick since Lexie Brown in 2018.
N.C. State sent Saniya Rivers and Aziaha James to the first round in 2025, so Triangle programs have now done this two years running.
Mair's case for the first round:
- 201 assists this season, tying Chelsea Gray's Duke single-season record
- 675 career assists, seventh in ACC history, ahead of Georgia Amoore and Olivia Miles
- One of six Blue Devils ever to finish with 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, and 500 assists
Jackson's case for the second:
- 235 career 3-pointers, second in Duke program history
- Hit at least 70 threes in three separate seasons, only the third Blue Devil to do that multiple times
- Two-time All-ACC pick across all four seasons at Duke
Zoom out: Both players earned WBCA All-America honors this season and helped Duke reach the Elite Eight before falling to UCLA on March 29.
Mair put it plainly after the Sweet 16 win over LSU: "I'm just willing to do what it takes to win. When I have to be able to score, I'm gonna take that head on." Seattle gets to find out if that holds in the pros.