DiJonai Carrington awarded Most Improved Player trophy ahead of Sun-Fever game

UNCASVILLE, Conn. — DiJonai Carrington was named the WNBA Most Improved Player on Wednesday — and received her trophy ahead of the Connecticut Sun’s Game 2 match-up against the Indiana Fever at the Mohegan Sun Arena.

It was a relatively close race for Most Improved — Carrington received 28 of 67 media votes, with Los Angeles Sparks forward Dearica Hamby finishing in second place with 18 votes, and Minnesota Lynx forward Bridget Carleton coming in third with 15 votes.

Carrington finished the season averaging 12.7 points, 5 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.6 steals in 29.6 minutes per game — all career-highs. She was typically tasked with the game’s toughest defensive match-ups as well, establishing herself as one of the league’s premier defenders.

Previously, Carrington told SB Nation she wasn’t able to practice all offseason due to injury, and that she wasn’t even sure if she was going to return to Connecticut this season. But, once training camp began, Carrington saw an opportunity for a larger role on the team and capitalized.

“Once we started practicing, I was more confident that this was going to be the type role that I had. Once I was able to move, I was ready to go after it,” Carrington said. “I got back in basketball shape, I felt good. And I mean, y’all saw that towards the beginning of the season, I was ready to play. The first game was less than a month after I was able to run.”

Prior to Carrington receiving the trophy, fans rose to their feet to celebrate Carrington’s successful 2024 campaign. As a video montage of her highlights played, Sun veteran DeWanna Bonner motioned for fans to rise to their feet, while Carrington’s teams nudged her in a congratulatory fashion.

Sun head coach Stephanie White said the team celebrated Carrington’s accomplishment earlier in the day.

“Everybody’s incredibly proud of her hard work and her consistency,” said White, who had advocated for Carrington to win the award on numerous occasions.

In addition to the trophy, Carrington will also receive a cash prize of $5,150.

“Being recognized for any type of accolade in this league is special, because this is the league of the best players in the whole world, and especially just all that I’ve been through injury-wise,” Carrington said a few weeks ago, after she emerged as a finalist for the award. “I really had to earn this role on this team.”