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UPDATED: April 15, 2021 at 10:10 p.m.

Former Syracuse point guard Tiana Mangakahia was not selected in this year’s WNBA draft. The last Syracuse players drafted were Brittney Sykes and Alexis Peterson in the first and second round in 2017, respectively. She signed a training camp contract with the Phoenix Mercury. 

Mangakahia is the program’s all-time assist leader, with 736 assists, and is second all-time in points per game (15.8). She led the NCAA in assists per game for two different seasons.

She was diagnosed with stage 2, grade 3 breast cancer in June 2019 and was sidelined for the entirety of the 2019-20 season. But after eight rounds of chemotherapy between July and October of 2019, Mangakahia was declared cancer-free by November. She played pickup basketball to help regain her strength, fueling her return for a fifth year in which she averaged 11.4 points and 7.2 assists per game.

“It was really difficult to come back, and I just don’t feel like I was the same, but I would just say I’m proud of myself,” Mangakahia said while holding back tears after her final Syracuse game, a second-round NCAA Tournament loss to UConn.

“I know I’m not the same player that I used to be, and there are a lot of things that I need to work on my game, but I do believe I can be an asset on a team.”

Mangakahia was projected as the No. 27 overall pick by ESPN’s Mechelle Voepel ahead of Thursday’s WNBA Draft. Her goal at the start of the season was to get drafted in the WNBA’s first round, though she’s slipped to an undrafted status. Playing in the WNBA has always been her dream, Mangakahia said.

Head coach Quentin Hillsman said that Mangakahia’s 60% is better than most of the country’s 100%. He called her the “toughest kid he ever coached.”

“There are probably three or four players in the country that (have) the excuse that she has, and could use it every day, and she doesn’t,” Hillsman said in mid-January. Mangakahia said in January that there were days when she “felt like a 50-year-old.” 

Mangakahia has emphasized that she plans to continue her advocacy during her professional career by starting her own foundation for those who can’t afford cancer treatment. She’s said she wants to do public speaking to help those going through breast cancer, too, because the journey is something that only those who underwent it can understand.

“There’s worse things people go through in their life, and me getting through it and coming out on top, it’s just a blessing to be able to play this sport,” Mangakahia said on March 23.

Syracuse Director of Athletics John Wildhack has said that Mangakahia’s No. 4 is “worthy of consideration” for jersey retirement. Syracuse has yet to retire a female player’s jersey, but it has retired 21 football and men’s basketball jerseys. Mangakahia is a fan-favorite to have her jersey in the Carrier Dome rafters.

Published on April 15, 2021 at 8:50 pm

Contact Roshan: rferna04@syr.edu | @Roshan_f16