WASHINGTON, D.C. – Veteran guard Ariel Atkins closed out her seventh season in the WNBA, leading the Mystics in record-breaking fashion.

Entering year seven in the league after being drafted seventh overall in 2018, Ariel was determined to rally back following a month-long setback due to an ankle injury midway through the 2023 season. Atkins, one of two current Mystics players who were key elements of the 2019 championship team, led the team in scoring with 20 points on opening night, and finished the season as Washington’s leading scorer. Having started and played in all 40 games this season, her 14.9 points per game were her most since the 2021 season.

On July 14th against the Las Vegas Aces, the sharpshooter set a new career-high with 36 points, marking the second time in her career as a pro scoring 30+ points in a game and her second time with six made threes in a contest. Additionally, Atkins mounted a new career-high for points in a single season with 597, surpassing her previous high 527 points from the 2022 season. On September 11th, the Tokyo gold medalist (2914) moved into third most points in franchise history, mounting nine points in Washington’s win over the Chicago Sky to spring pass Monique Currie (2843). Atkins also claimed third place on the Mystics All-Time assists leaderboard (524) passing Emma Meesseman (490) earlier in the season.

"Not only does she shoot the ball really well, she's just a tremendous teammate and a tremendous human being. The way she had to step up in the beginning of the season and take on that heavy, heavy load…she handled it with grace." said teammate Brittney Sykes

Aside from her unique scoring and facilitating capabilities, Ariel remained a nightmare for opponents on the defensive end. Earlier this year in Los Angeles, Atkins had a career-high six steals and now sits second all-time in franchise history in steals concluding the season with 312 total in her career. With 59 steals, the five-time WNBA All-Defensive athlete ranked 10th most by a player for the 2024 season. Concluding the season, the Dallas native sits in 11th place in the WNBA in steals per game, averaging 1.5 steals per game this season.

Where to Catch Ariel This Offseason

Looking to improve aspects of her game heading into year eight, Ariel Atkins is now competing overseas in the EuroLeague for Turkish team Fenerbahce Spor Kulubu Istanbul after serving as an assistant coach on the University of Michigan's Women's Basketball staff last year. Atkins links up with former Mystics teammate and 2019 WNBA Finals MVP Emma Meesseman on a team that is now back-to-back EuroLeague Champions.