Alyssa Thomas regains single-season assist record a year after losing it to Caitlin Clark

By Canadian Press on September 6, 2025.

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (AP) — Alyssa Thomas took back the WNBA single-season assist record, topping Caitlin Clark’s mark of 337 set last season.

Thomas needed six assists coming into Saturday’s game against Connecticut, where she starred for so many years before leaving for Phoenix this season as a free agent. She got the record-breaking one on a 3-pointer by Kathryn Westbeld in the corner with 4:45 left in the second quarter.

Thomas held the record in 2023 with 316 assists when she played for Connecticut. Clark broke it a year later as a rookie. Now the 33-year-old Thomas, who also holds the WNBA record for triple-doubles in a season and career, has it back again. She only needed 37 games to reclaim that mark.

What’s most impressive about Thomas’ accomplishment is that she’s done it from the forward position. Ever since her time with the Sun, Thomas has been a point-forward, facilitating the Mercury’s offense. Many of her assists this year have come on 3-pointers with nearly half of them coming on shots from behind the arc.

She’s seventh on the league’s career assist list with more than 1,800 assists — the only forward in the top 10.

Thomas has averaged a career-best 9.2 assists this season, which is short of Courtney Vandersloot’s record of 9.95 set in 2020.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Doug Feinberg, The Associated Press