Azzi Fudd struggled to put Monday night into words.

Fudd dreamt for years that she would one day hear her name called in the WNBA draft. She knew there was a strong chance she could hear her name called with the No. 1 overall pick.

But close to an hour after she walked across the stage and held up a Dallas Wings jersey alongside league commissioner Cathy Engelbert, Fudd couldn’t find an adjective to describe what she was feeling.

“I don’t think it’s fully sunk in,” Fudd said. “I don’t really have words. It’s nothing I could have imagined, the feeling sitting there with my family, with Morgan [Valley], hearing your name called, being able to walk up there, it’s such a surreal feeling. I’m so grateful.”

The Wings selecting Fudd reunites her with her former UConn teammate Paige Bueckers, the top pick of last year’s class.

Fudd and Bueckers dealt with injuries during their college careers that prevented the two from sharing the court much before the 2023-24 season. They helped lead the Huskies to the national championship that season.

Now, they hope to do big things in the Big D.

“I feel like there’s still so much left on the table,” Fudd said. “And so much unknown, just so much potential, not with just her, but the entire Dallas Wings roster. I can’t wait, obviously, to play with her again but to play with every single one of them.”

The Minnesota Lynx picked former TCU guard Olivia Miles with the No. 2 pick.

The Phillipsburg, N.J., native was a projected lottery pick a year ago, though she opted to return to college for her final year of eligibility to hone her craft. Miles transferred from Notre Dame to TCU ahead of the 2025-26 season and credited coach Mark Campbell with helping her get to this moment.

Miles said she was relieved to hear her name.

“It’s like a deep breath,” Miles said. “That’s why I got emotional when I got my name called. It’s like it’s finally here. This is what it’s all about.”

Spanish center Awa Fam Thiam, who’s only 19, was picked No. 3 by the Seattle Storm.

UCLA was well represented at the WNBA draft. Lauren Betts was drafted No. 4 to the Washington Mystics. The Chicago Sky picked Gabriela Jaquez No. 5 overall before the Toronto Tempo took guard Kiki Rice sixth.

“I want to say I’m surprised, but I’m not,” Betts said of three straight Bruins being picked, “because I just know how talented all my teammates are and they deserve every single bit of this night. They worked so hard and I’ve seen their journeys.”

The draft served as the springboard to the league’s 30th season.

Dozens of draft prospects — former college players and international stars alike — got their moments in the spotlight.

One by one, starting with Fudd, followed by Flau’jae Johnson, Angela Dugalic and so on, they heard their names called.

But through the happy and fulfilled tears was the reality that they are part of history.

The 2026 draft class is the first group to reap the benefits of the new collective bargaining agreement, and that wasn’t lost on any of them.

Fudd will earn a base salary this year of $500,000 — a massive leap from 2025 top pick Paige Bueckers’ salary of $78,831.

The average first-year salary for the first-round picks is $386,000, which dwarfs last year’s average of $75,000.

Admittedly, Johnson said she was worried whether she’d even have a rookie season.

“I was hoping there was not going to be a lockout. You know what I mean?” said Johnson, whom the Valkyries picked No. 8 overall but later traded to the Seattle Storm. “But they handled it, the union, they negotiated and they got what the league deserves — what the player deserves.

“I keep telling people, I’m just blessed and grateful to be able to come at this time,” Johnson continued. “It’s the 30th season, right? So my goal is to leave it better than I found it, right? I think for the next generation and the next hoopers looking up, like in middle school, they can see this was a moment. And then now we have got to take it and run with it and make it better for them. So that’s the goal.”